We have been following the vicious knockout game playing by knocking some unsuspecting person on the street (here and here and here). Police were looking for a man who brutally attacked an elderly man in Los Angeles, as captured by the videotape below. Police have now announced that they have arrested Dale Shoner, 43.
Continue reading “Suspect Arrested In Chilling “Knockout Game” Videotape [Updated]”
Texas State University is this week’s ground zero in our campus speech debate. The most recent controversy was triggered by an opinion column by student Rudy Martinez on November 28th in The University Star titled “Your DNA is an abomination.” While insisting that he cannot by definition be racist, Martinez declares that “white death will mean liberation for all.” Martinez is a racist and the column is deeply disturbing. However, as will come as no surprise to regulars on the blog, I still support his write to publish such views. My concern is that universities continue to be selective in affording free speech rights to students. It is doubtful that the university would be so circumspect if the the column called for the death of minorities. UPDATE: The student columnist has been fired by the newspaper.
We recently discussed how the leading Irish university has barred the use of “freshman” in favor of the gender neutral term “fresh.” The French government came to the opposite conclusion this month after French Prime Minister Édouard Philippe rejected the demand to make French more “female-friendly” by dropping masculine words. French, like English, often use the masculine forms as neutral terms. It will continue to do so.
Continue reading “France Rejects Gender Neutral Words As A “Mortal Danger” To The French Language”
Americans Joseph Dasilva, 38, and Travis Dasilva, 36, are facing well-deserved criminal prosecution in Thailand after taking “belfies” where they expose their butts in pictures at famous sites. This juvenile and disgraceful practice is viewed as funny by the Dasilvas, but it was hardly humorous for the Thais who saw the pictures at Bangkok’s Wat Arun, or Temple of the Dawn, as demeaning and insulting.
Continue reading “American Couple Arrested In Thailand After Taking “Belfies” At Sacred Temple”
Since the appointment of the Special Counsel in the Russian investigation, former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn has been the most obvious target for not simply a criminal charge but a possible prosecutorial deal. The news that Flynn is no longer sharing information under the prior joint defense agreement with Trump figures could prove significant . . . or not. Such a change would occur even with a non-cooperation plea agreement. Nevertheless, it could be an effort of Flynn to strike a deal on a deal for himself and his son in exchange for cooperation.
While it did not attract the same attention, another notable development was the cooperation agreement reached with Reza Zarrab, a Turkish businessman accused of violating U.S. sanctions on Iran. His cooperation could have magnified the pressure on Flynn, whose greatest exposure appears to be his Turkish as opposed to his Russian dealings.
Here it the column:
Continue reading “Flipping Flynn: The Real and Imagined Damage For A Mueller Deal”
Trinity College Dublin has dropped the word “Freshman” as sexist and offensive for women as well as people who do not identify with male or female genders. From now on, the 425-year-old institution will refer to students as “Fresh.” While that makes students sound that produce, it is meant to avoid term deemed by the “Equality Committee” to be a “concrete expression of the university’s commitment to gender equality.”
Continue reading “Trinity College Dublin Drops Use Of Freshman As Sexist”
Assistant Summit County prosecutor Kassim Ahmed has resigned after a truly bizarre controversy over what appears a slight bump in the hallway that led Ahmed to file an assault charge against court employee Holly Trivett. The videotape below does not support the claim and Ahmed complained that he has “taken unfair criticism as a result of these negative articles.”
Continue reading “Prosecutor Resigns After Filing Assault Charge Over Hallway Bump”
A speech by Anthony Scaramucci at his alma mater, Tufts University, has been delayed after the former Trump White House spokesman threatened the student newspaper with a defamation lawsuit. I previously wrote a column on Scaramucci and his controversial outbursts. This threat against the students at Tufts is legally meritless and undermines whatever credibility Scaramucci retained following his disastrously sort stint at the White House.
Continue reading “Anthony Scaramucci Threatens Tufts With Defamation Lawsuit”
Indiana University Health employee Taiyesha Baker is reportedly out of a job after a tweet from an account named “Night Nurse” was traced to her. In the tweet, Baker reportedly called for white male children to “be sacrificed to the wolves.” We have previously discussed the issue of when it is appropriate to punishment people for conduct outside of the work place. We have followed cases where people have been fired after boorish or insulting conduct once their names and employers are made known. (here and here and here and here). I often come down on the side of free speech, but some cases directly impact the employer and the underlying business or services. This may be one such case, but it, again, raises the question of what political and social views are protected for employees to express in social media or on their personal time.
Continue reading “Indiana University Reportedly Removes Nurse After Disturbing Tweet”
I am not sure what is more surprising. First, Julie Gagne, 47, was charged with destroying her own Infiniti SUV. Then, it was revealed that she allegedly did the act with a flamethrower. Finally, and this is probably the most surprising, flamethrowers are legal in Illinois.
Continue reading “Illinois Woman Charged With Destroying Her Own Car With A Flamethrower”
One of our graduates on the judicial bench is in hot water this week. Justice Barbara Pariente (GW Class of 1973) is facing demands from Florida Gov. Rick Scott that she be disqualified in a case over judicial appointments due to a comment caught on a live microphone. On November 1st, Pariente was caught pointing to a document listing members of the Supreme Court Judicial Nominating Commission and saying “crazy.” Update: As predicted, the high court rejected the effort to disqualify Pariente over her remark.
We previously discussed the violation of federal rules by White House counselor Kellyanne Conway in the endorsement of a commercial product. Now an even more serious allegation has been raised in a complaint filed by Walter Shaub, the former director of the Office of Government Ethics. Shaub charges that Conway violated the ban on federal employees using their positions for political purposes and the allegation is not without merit. Conway has possible defenses but the statements on Fox against the election of Alabama Democratic Senate candidate Dough Jones used poor judgment. When reviewed in the context of past cases, the complaint raises credible claims. For full disclosure, Conway is one of my former students at George Washington University Law School (she graduated in 1995).
Continue reading “Kellyanne Conway Hit With Hatch Act Complaint Over Moore Comments”
The University of Illinois is facing criticism over the actions of one of its graduate students and its own failure to act against him. Tariq Khan, a PhD student at the university, was videotaped at a rally and then going bananas after spotting members of a conservative group called Turning Point USA. Khan was later arrested but the question is how the University of Illinois will respond to yet another assault over the exercise of free speech. The university can clearly review Khan’s conduct on the videotape and judge whether it meets the standards of the university for faculty and students alike.
We just discussed the tragedy in New York where a man hunting deer after sunset with a high-powered handgun shot and killed a woman walking her dogs. If you wonder how a hunter could fire at a woman walking her dogs, you might want to consider the arrest of Marvin C. Miller, 26. The Ohio hunter is charged with bagging a brown pick up truck that he mistook for a deer. Just for a point of reference, these are representations of the two different targets for any future hunters.
Continue reading “Ohio Hunter Mistakes Brown Pickup For Deer and Disables Vehicle”
Credit: Facebook
Earliest this year, we discussed the fate of Gavel, a German shepherd flunked out of police canine academy in Queensland, Australia, for being too friendly. For those of us who are ardent dog lovers, Gavel became an instant icon. He rejection occurred despite his “family bloodline” of top German Shepard police dogs. The problem is that Gavel just wanted to be friends . . . with everyone. Now Gavel has finally landed a job for which he is uniquely qualified: greeter.
Continue reading “German Shepherd Rejected As Police Dog For Being Too Friendly Is Hired As Greeter”