The Administration has lost another ruling in its opposition to open government rules. The Bush Administration and particularly Vice President Dick Cheney has spent a huge amount of time and money fighting efforts to preserve documents and emails. On Saturday, U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ruled that Cheney must preserve a broad range of records from his time in office under the Presidential Records Act.
Continue reading “Bush Administration Loses Ruling on Cheney Records”
Evangelical minister Tony Alamo blames the Catholics. But, police insist that they had evidence of child abuse and pornography at his headquarters in Fouke, Arkansas. Critics have long called Alamo’s massive church a cult, but he insists that it is “true Christianity.”
A federal jury awarded a Wisconsin prisoner $295,000 after officials forced him to sleep on a wet, moldy mattress for two months. Reggie Townsend, 29, is serving time for reckless homicide and won the judgment against the New Lisbon Correctional Institution.
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In Billings, Montana, children know of Goldilocks and the Three Bears but Tracy Mullins, 47, gave a more modern version when he broke into a home, ate food from the kitchen, messed up the home, and then fell asleep on a child’s bed — only to be discovered by the family in the morning.
Continue reading “A Cell Just Right: Goldilocks Burglar Arrested in Montana”
Court Drug Coordinator Emily Cayton, of Scappoose, Oregon has been arrest for allegedly leaking information to drug dealers. Cayton is accused to tipping off dealers about warrants secured by the police. Obviously, such information could have resulted in fatalities for officers carrying out such warrants.
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The Library of Congress has lost a major discrimination case brought by a former special forces commander. Diane Schroer (formerly David Schroer) was hired as a senior terrorism analyst, but then denied the position when he informed the Library of Congress that he intended to have a sex change operation. The opinion below is an important victory for transgender rights and a baffling decision by the Justice Department to defend such a clearly discriminatory act.
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In Jewett City, Connecticut, police are dealing with an all-too-common situation. Two-year-old Wyatt Matteau shot himself in the eye when he played with his father’s gun — left in the open and loaded. His mother Rebecca Matteau warned him before she left the room not to play with the gun because it could cause “bad boo boos.”
Continue reading “Arrested Parents Warned 2-Year-Old Before Shooting That Loaded Gun Could Cause “Bad Boo Boos””
In Tuscon, Arizona, the son of Democratic Florida Congressman Allen Boyd has been arrested for human smuggling of five immigrants, including a 6-year-old girl. The Border Police also found a gun and drugs in Boyd’s truck. John Boyd is now facing federal charges.
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Natalie Walters is looking at a two-day trial and potentially six months in jail. Her crime? She poured a soda on the counter of a cafeteria at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Boise, Idaho.
U.S. Attorney Tom Moss is pursuing her conviction with remarkable vigor.
Continue reading “In the Can: Bush Administration Prosecutes Woman for Spilling Diet Coke”
A case out of Eagle County, Colorado presents a novel question in both criminal law and torts. Jacob Weiss, 19, is charged with manslaughter because he allegedly handed a loaded gun to his suicidal roommate.
Weiss shared an apartment with the 18-year-old, who had discussed suicide. Weiss then gave him a loaded shotgun. Both had been drinking.
Under Colorado law, it is a Class 4 felony to assist in a suicide.
One interesting question is whether, if this can be manslaughter, it can be considered an intentional tort or negligence. Obviously, there are defenses of consent, assumption of the risk, and contributory negligence — depending on the type of tort alleged. However, particularly if the victim (who had not been identified) was viewed as disturbed or lacking capacity at the time, the family could seek civil recovery.
For the full story, click here.
Diane Cockrell, 52, has pleaded no contest to three criminal counts related to the deaths of two neighbors (including a 91-year-old man) killed by her bulldogs. The sentencing in Michigan occurs as the most famous mauling case of Diane Whipple continues in California. These cases are often brought both criminally and civilly by victims or their survivors.
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Former Mets minor leaguer and sometime actor Joseph Petcka is on trial for killing his girlfriend’s 8-year-old tabby, Norman. It is a good example of such cases where both criminal and civil charges can be brought. His former girlfriend Sports Illustrated reporter Lisa Altobelli insists that it was intentional while Petcka insists that it was an accident.
There is an interesting controversy over the free speech rights of a major league basketball player and a team’s effort to avoid unpopular public demonstrations. Mavericks player Josh Howard is shown in the video below disrespecting the national anthem and saying that, as an African-American, he was opposed to it. Obviously, school children have the right not to sing the song as do adults. The question is whether a player can be sanctioned under a contract for embarrassing public displays.
Continue reading “Oh, Say, Can You See My Lawyer: Josh Howard Denounces National Anthem in Video”
Bello Masaba, a Nigerian man, is defending himself before a Sharia court after his arrest for having 86 wives and 170 children. Islamic law allows only four wives. Worse yet, he now has 86 lawyers — one for each wife — as his attorneys defend him from punishment and a rash of divorces.
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This may not be what the McCain/Palin campaign meant by carrying on the Bush legacy, but Gov. Sarah Palin has refused to comply with subpoenas in the investigation of her firing of Alaska’s former public safety commissioner. Now, her Attorney General has refused to comply with the lawful legislative subpoenas. That sounds vaguely familiar.
Continue reading “Half-Baked Alaska: State Attorney General Cites Loyalty to Palin in Refusing Lawful Supoenas”