Civil libertarians have been outraged by President Barack Obama’s adoption of extreme Bush policies on secrecy and executive privilege, including his effort to dismiss public interest lawsuits and his Administration’s refusal to investigate war crimes committed by the Bush Administration. Now, Obama has filed to dismiss the case of Arthur Smelt and Christopher Hammer, who are challenging the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which blocks same-sex couples from securing Social Security spousal benefits, filing joint taxes and enjoying other federal rights of marriage.
An English couple has a novel case against Cardiff’s University Hospital of Wales after their last embryo was mistakingly implanted into another woman. The hospital has agreed to pay damages in the lawsuit and apologized.
Continue reading “English Couple Sues After Their Last Embryo is Implanted in Wrong Woman”
In Clifton Park, New York, Shenedehowa High School student Matthew C. Beighey came up with the next best thing to getting good grades — keeping teachers from entering bad grades, or any grades at all. Beighey figured out a way to block teachers by inputting incorrect passwords three times for each of them in the system — locking them out temporarily from entering grades.
Continue reading “Student Arrested for Blocking the Ability of Teachers to Input Grade”
Just a reminder to all of the Turley bloggers: floss, brush, spit, and repeat.
Continue reading “The Scourge of Equine Gingivitis”
For months, a blogger known as “April’s Mom” has been the heroine of religious and pro-life sites, recounting how she chose to give birth to a terminally ill baby and allowed the child to die naturally hours after giving birth. April’s Mom turns out to be Beccah Beushausen, 26, a social worker from outside Chicago and the entire story was a lie.
Continue reading ““April’s Mom” Admits That Terminally Ill Baby and Anti-Abortion Sensation was a Hoax”
Former Roman Catholic priest Desmond Laurence Gannon has been jailed in a fifth prosecution for child abuse in Australia. His defense in this latest case is that he was merely giving an 11-year-old boy “anatomy lessons.”
Continue reading “Former Priest Claims that He Was Given 11-Year-Old Boy an “Anatomy Lesson” in Latest Arrest”
The New York prison system is dealing with a bizarre scandal after the media revealed taht an inmate at “the Tombs” in Manhattan was given an elaborate bar mitzvah party for 60 people with catered food, an Orthodox singer, and 60 guests. The party was thrown by Tuvia Stern, a bail jumper and scam artist who pleaded guilty to grand larceny after victims alleged he stole $1.7 million. The bar mitzvah was for his son.
Continue reading “Putting the Bars Back Into Bar Mitzvah: Rabbi Accused of Throwing Lavish Party in the Tombs”
Two former West Palm Beach police officers have been arrested in the beating a handcuffed robbery suspect, Pablo Valenzuela, 43, as captured on this dash cam video from May 2008. Louis Joseph Schwartz, 30, and Kurt John Graham, 24, were fired last August and are now facing felony conspiracy to commit official misconduct and misdemeanor battery.
Continue reading “Two Former West Palm Beach Officers Indicted After Beating Handcuffed Suspect”
Former Hennepin County prosecutor John St. Marie, 65, has been arrested for arranging for wealthy clients to hook up with high-priced prostitutes for a club known as “The Minnesota Nice Guys.”
Continue reading “Former Prosecutor Arrested for Arranging Prostitutes for “The Minnesota Nice Guys””
In a bizarre case, Bridgeville Borough resident has been convicted for repeatedly writing and calling his elected officials to complain about their lack of effort to relieve a local nuisance. If you count copies sent to some officers, Marshall Pappert sent around 350 and was arrested for criminal harassment. It is a good thing that Bridgeville prosecutors and courts did not exist when Thomas Paine was doing his incessant complaining about his government.
Continue reading “From Paine to Pappert: Citizen Arrested for Complaining Too Often to City Officials”
“Unabomber” Ted Kaczynski may soon be in front of the Supreme Court this week trying to stop a public auction of his personal possessions , who terrorized the country with a series of mail bombs over nearly two decades, is fighting to stop a public auction of his diaries and other personal possessions to compensate his victims.
Continue reading “Killer Sale: Unabomber Sues to Block Fire Sale of Personal Items”
Venezuela President Hugo Chavez has renew his threats against one of the few remaining networks that voice opposition to his government. Chavez told executives at Globovision “to reflect” upon its criticism of him and change its tone or it “won’t be on the airwaves much longer.”
Continue reading “Chavez Continues Crackdown on Journalists and Free Speech”
The Consumer Product Safety Commission has recalled a popular chenille robe made by Blair LLC (in Pakistan) after six deaths of women after the robes caught fire. Five of the women were cooking at the time when the Blair Full Length Chenille Robes allegedly caught on fire.
Continue reading “Women’s Robes Recalled After Six Fire Deaths”
The Jacksonville Beach Police Department needs to secure a good defense lawyer. On May 1, Officer Lewis Keller decided to make a u-turn on the beach in his SUV. He proceeded to run over Anne Marie Giffen, 41, who was sunbathing.
In Ramallah, West Bank, Palestinian police say that a family hanged a 15-year-old boy because they believed that he might be a collaborator with Israel. The police doubt that he was a collaborator due to his young age.
Continue reading “Palestinian Family Hangs 15-Year-Old Boy Due To Suspicion of Collaboration with Israel”