Fall River (Mass) police are seeking this woman in a rather curious investigation of someone who appears to have decided NOT to rob a bank. The woman ripped up a note to a teller that was later found in the trash. What is the crime? Attempted bank robbery for walking into a bank and writing a note?
Continue reading “Police Seek Woman Who Decided Not To Rob Bank”
I have previously written about the disgraceful sweetheart deal given to accused serial pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. The deal was struck by Secretary of Labor Alex Acosta and not only succeeded in protecting Epstein from serous jail time but protecting a host of high-profile friends including Bill Clinton who were regulars at his infamous island resort. The problem is that the investigation is not being handled by the Inspector General but the oft-criticized DOJ Office of Professional Responsibility. OPR is routinely criticized for its defense of accused officials, even in some indefensible circumstances. For critics, it often seems more like OPR offers more cover than scrutiny in controversies over prosecutorial abuse. Moreover, the Epstein scandal involves serious questions of corrupt influence by powerful friends of Epstein. Such questions require serious investigative measures. OPR is more likely to find that the deal was within the scope of permissible decisions by a prosecutor like Acosta despite being widely ridiculed as an utter disgrace.
Continue reading “DOJ Agrees To Investigate Epstein Deal . . . Sort Of”
According to The Cavalier Daily, the University of Virginia is proceeding against a fraternity and sorority for “engag[ing] in alleged cultural appropriation” during chapter-sponsored activities. The violations involved students at the Kappa Sigma fraternity dressed as American Indians and members of the Zeta Tau Alpha “wearing sombreros and holding maracas.”
Continue reading “University of Virginia Investigates Fraternity and Sorority For “Cultural Appropriation” Offenses”
We recently discussed an absurd effort to trademark a hashtag. Now, the Campbell Soup Company has trademarked the word “chunky” in an application to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Campbell is using pop culture references (including Saturday Night Live skits and Simpson episodes) to support its claim over this common term. It is just another example of the utter lunacy that Congress has created in our copyright and trademark laws.
Continue reading “No [Chunky] Soup For You: Campbell Seeks To Trademark Term “Chunky” [Updated]”
The controversy over the past claims of Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren being a native American continued this week with a report in the Washington Post. The Post reported that Warren claimed to be an “American Indian” on her Texas bar registration. Warren has denied claiming the status in her legal career despite being listed or referenced as a minority at a couple of law schools. This is a notable incident because it is a claim written in her own handwriting and was entirely unnecessary for registration in Texas.
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A new set of emails has become public that shows the extent of the effort to secure a Trump Tower deal in Moscow during the election. The most notable emails are between two of Trump’s associates: Michael Cohen and Felix Sater. Sater’s boasting about Trump and Putin was previously known but now the emails have been disclosed. In one email, Sater (who seems to rival Cohen in competition for the most seedy Trump associations) brags about his close contacts with Putin and how he can get the Tower approved. He then adds “I will get Putin on this program and we will get Donald elected.” He also that it would be “pretty cool to get a USA President elected” and, if successful, wanted to be the ambassador to the Bahamas: “That my friend is the home run I want out of this.” With the Mueller report now reportedly coming within the month, the emails could be used to show a strong business interest in Moscow — an interest that continued during the campaign.
Continue reading “Trump Associate: “Our boy can become president of the USA and we can engineer it.””
The Chicago Cubs is starting out 2019 with a win, though removed from the ballpark. The Cubs prevailed in a trademark dispute with Grant DePorter, CEO of Harry Caray’s Restaurant Group, after DePorter sought to claim ownership to “#MagicNumber108.” DePorter sought to cash in with the rest in claiming commonly used phrases so that he could force others to pay him for their use. On this occasion, logic prevailed over greed. The trademark examiner and now the Patent and Trademark Office’s Trademark Trial and Appeals Board ruled that the hashtag could not be claimed as a mark. So, for all of my fellow Cubs fans, here is to #MagicNumber108.
Continue reading “Wild Pitch: Bar Owner Fails In Bid To Trademark #MAGICNUBMER108”
A University of North Carolina college student in Greensboro thought she had a ghost in her apartment. Clothes were disappearing and she would hear movement or knocks. However, when she finally summoned the courage to look inside, she found a man in her closet, dressed in her clothes.
Continue reading “College Student Thinks She Has A Ghost . . . Instead Finds Homeless Man In Her Closet In Her Clothes”
We previously discussed the move by some students to drop the long-standing name “Colonials” for George Washington University. The moniker has been associated with GWU for roughly a 100 years. However, this week a panel at GW will discuss the concerns over the use of the name and the possible need to adopt an alternative nickname, including one based on the hippo mascot. Before we embrace GW “hippocrites” or some other nickname, I would like to again voice my support for The Colonials.
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One of the aspects of the new federal tax plan that made sense to me was the elimination of much of the deduction for state and local taxes. While the move cost those of us in higher tax states, it finally forced states to stop using the federal tax laws to effectively subsidize its high tax policies. Now that bill has come due in New York where taxpayers will no longer be able to write off their high state taxes. The result is not only a shortfall of $2.8 billion but droves of wealthy taxpayers leaving the state.
Continue reading “A Bill Comes Due: New York Faces Massive Tax Shortfall With Elimination Of Federal Deduction”
We have previously discussed protests over professors using the n-word in hypotheticals or as part of a course on hate speech. Professors are being denied basic academic freedom over such content to courses. The most recent such action was taken against Professor Phil Adamo of Minneapolis’s Augsburg University. He has been suspended for using the n-word during a classroom discussion about a James Baldwin book which uses the word.
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Below is my column in The Hill Newspaper exploring the current evidence supporting a criminal collusion case against President Donald Trump or his campaign. While clearly not popular to raise, the evidence released to date is rather underwhelming. Indeed, the basis for a criminal collusion prosecution is weaker today than it was a year ago. That does not mean that new evidence cannot be released but this is an attempt at an objective review of past filings and disclosures from the Special Counsel, Congress, and witnesses. That evidence strengthens the case against collusion and certainly supplies ample foundation for a defense against the charge of a criminal conspiracy with the Russians in hacking computer systems. Once again, the column only addresses the basis for a criminal charge based on collusion by Trump or his campaign. The prosecution of Russians for hacking is strong and the fact that Russians wanted to help Trump seems unassailable. The narrative supporting a criminal conspiracy however seems increasing incomplete and incoherent.
Here is the column:
Continue reading “Is The Criminal Collusion Theory Dead?”
Every year we discuss new tort actions tied to Halloween as part of our “Spooky Torts” tradition. A new case was just filed by Shannon Sacco and her daughter over their visit to the Dorney Park and Wildwater Kingdom in Pennsylvania. The park, owned by Cedar Fair, included costumed employees as part of a Halloween attraction. Sacco claims that the costumes were too scary and caused trauma worth more than $150,000.
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In Torts, we discussed slip-and-falls and the problem of fraudulent claims against businesses. The upgrading and expansion of surveillance cameras help protect against such liability (more than catching shoplifters). It is rare however to see a fraudulent slip and fall in realtime.
Continue reading “New Jersey Man Caught On Video Faking Slip and Fall”
The American Bar Association has been trying to crack down on schools that allow students to rack up huge debt but show low bar passage or employment rates. At the same time, the ABA has fought for greater diversity in the bar. Those two policies collided this week over a proposal to require at least 75 percent of law students at accredited schools to pass the bar exam no later than two years after their graduations. That would seem a modest and reasonable condition. However, the proposal was rejected because it was viewed as ‘unfair to institutions that serve minority students,” according to Inside Higher Education.
Continue reading “ABA Rejects Proposal To Require Minimum Bar Passage Rate For Accreditation”