Academia, Criminal law, Society

Alleged Victim of Florida State Quarterback Sues University

Jameis_Winston_2013_headcropFSU_Seminoles_logoThere has been considerable controversy over the allegation of a woman against Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston of sexual assault. The woman has now filed a civil suit against the university’s board of trustees for allegedly ignoring her claims of sexual harassment and discrimination by Winston in protection of its all-star quarterback. We recently discussed another case where a FSU player was engaged in what appears to be a hit-and-run but was given lenient treatment by local police and campus security.

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Animals, Constitutional Law, Environment, International, Politics, Society

Foie Gras Ban Struck Down In California

220px-Foie_gras_DSC00180Foiegras4Another food ban has been struck down by a court. District Court Judge Stephen Wilson struck down the two-year state California state prohibition on foie gras as a violation of interstate commerce. The court issued its final decision on January 7th in Ass’n des Eleveurs de Canards et D’oies du Quebec v. Harris and found that the state law is trumped by the federal Poultry Products Inspections Act. Wilson acknowledged that there are few people in the middle of this debate: “This action for declaratory and injunctive relief touches upon a topic impacting gourmands’ stomachs and animal rights activists’ hearts: foie gras.”

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Constitutional Law, Free Speech, International, Politics, Religion

Saudi Arabia To Flog Blogger For Blasphemy On Friday

badawiJust days after extremists killed 12 people in Paris for insulting Mohammad in cartoons, the Saudi government has decided to go forward with its plan to flog a blogger for blasphemy. As previously discussed the abusive treatment of Raif Badawi, who founded the “Free Saudi Liberals” website. He was sentenced to 10 years in jail and 1,000 lashes for blasphemy and his first 50 lashes will be carried out on Friday.

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Animals, Environment, Politics

No Groundhog For You: De Blasio Barred From Holding Zoo Animal After Prior Lethal Drop

Screen Shot 2015-01-08 at 10.22.08 AMIt is bad enough that police officers now routinely turn their backs when New York Mayor Bill de Blasio approaches. Now the Staten Island Zoo has declared that neither he (nor any future mayor) will be allowed to hold Staten Island Chuck after he killed the last groundhog.

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Media, Politics, Religion, Society

Howard Dean: Stop Referring To “Muslim Terrorists” In Describing Paris Attackers

220px-HowardDeanDNC-croppedFormer Democratic Party head Howard Dean has caused a controversy with his remarks on Wednesday criticizing people who call the murderers in Paris “Muslim terrorists.” Dean certainly makes a strong point when he says “They’re about as Muslim as I am,” he said. “I mean, they have no respect for anybody else’s life, that’s not what the Koran says.” It is easy to forget that most Muslims are as appalled and outraged as non-Muslims by these horrific crimes. However, I do not agree that we have to adopt another verboten term. The fact is the “Muslim extremist” or “Muslim terrorist” refer to the motivation and self-identity of the killers not their adherence to the proper reading of Islam. I have used it in publication as the most accurate descriptive term for those committing these atrocities.

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Animals, Bizarre, International, Science, Society, Uncategorized

Heil Heifer: Gow’s Cows and the Nazi Bovine Menace

Adolf_Hitler_retouched220px-EnichiresThis truly seemed like an April Fool’s joke or hoax, but farmer Derek Gow has a problem with Nazi cows. Gow’s cows are the only herd of Nazi-engineered cows in the country. However, he found that they have a habit of trying to kill everyone around them. It appears that the cows view all pastures as part of their Lebensraum and seek to eradicate anyone who is not a “Hecker super cows.”

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Bizarre, Criminal law, Society

Popular Rapper and YouTuber Films His Trashing A Chicago 7-11 . . . But Remains At Large To Make Additional “Prank” Videos

Screen Shot 2015-01-08 at 7.28.06 AMThe video below is one of many by a Chicago man who videotaped himself and a friend ransacking a 7-Eleven on the Gold Coast on New Year’s Day and then stealing a coffee pot. It appears part of a series of such “pranks” by rapper who goes by the name VonMar. What is astonishing is that the Chicago police has not gotten around to arrest this guy who is identified, has sites on YouTube, Vine, and Facebook despite videos like this where he and his friend act like complete thugs and torment the store owner and customers.

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Constitutional Law, Criminal law, Free Speech, International, Lawyering, Media, Politics, Society, Torts

Dershowitz Threatens To Sue Victim’s Attorneys For Defamation . . . Attorneys Respond By Suing Him First

image.hmlAlanDershowitz2We previously discussed the threat of retired Harvard Law Professor Alan Dershowitz to sue Utah Law Professor and former federal judge Paul Cassell (and his co-counsel Bradley Edwards) for defamation for papers mentioning him in revelation to the sex trafficking scandal of Florida financier Jeffrey Epstein. The lawyers sought unsuccessfully to depose Dershowitz who has been accused of being one of the men who were given underaged girls to sleep with by Epstein. At the time, I wrote that Dershowitz’s statements themselves could be viewed as defamatory and actionable. It appears that Cassell and Edwards were thinking the same thing. They have now sued Dershowitz for defamation.

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Media, Politics, Society

Christie Jumps Into Hot Water Over Appearance At Cowboys Game
YouTube Screen shot
YouTube Screen shot

It was the climax of a great Lions-Cowboys game when, after the last minute win of the Cowboys, the camera showed the owner’s box as Jerry Jones was jumping up and down hugging folks. There was a familiar figure jumping up and down to get in on the hug with Jones. Like many people, however, I stopped and turned and asked “is that Chris Christie?” It turns out that there is only one Christie and he was in the box that night. How he got there is now raising ethical and legal questions.

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Bizarre, Criminal law

Florida Couple Booked For Shoplifting But Never Tells Police About Kids Locked In Car . . . For Seven Hours

walmartparentsTosheba Hope, 30, and Gerald Moultrie, 24, were arrested outside of a Walmart in Lauderdale Lakes, Florida for walk out of the retailer with $660 worth of tools and automotive accessories. Nothing unique there. Shoplifting is a continual problem for retailers. What makes this case notable is that the police took the couple away and they never mentioned that they had left their three children in a locked car in the parking lot. Indeed, for seven hours in lock up, police say that the parents said nothing about the kids. It was reportedly Walmart workers who spotted the unharmed but highly distressed kids in the car.

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Bizarre, Criminal law

Can You Guess What John Balmer Was Arrested For?

ByZihXKIf you said drugs, you are correct. John Balmer, 50, was arrested and charged with possession of meth at the Kmart in Hudson, Florida. The arresting officer clearly felt the need to snap a picture at the scene wearing his notably tee-shirt with its admission against interest (“Who Needs Drugs? No seriously, I have drugs”).

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Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Supreme Court

Turley and Greenhouse Discuss Supreme Court

175px-Linda_Greenhouse,_2005The ABA Journal has posted a podcast that I did with former New York Times journalist Linda Greenhouse on the Supreme Court. Greenhouse is currently the Joseph Goldstein Lecturer in Law and Knight Distinguished Journalist-in-Residence at Yale Law School.

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Constitutional Law, Free Speech, International, Politics, Society

British Agency Bans Urban Outfitters Picture Over “Inner Thigh Gap”

imrs.php250px-UrbanOutfittersThe United Kingdom’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has ordered Urban Outfitters to remove a picture of a model as showing an impermissible “inner thigh gap” that encourages what is viewed as an “unhealthy” diet for girls. It is the latest example, in my opinion, of a wholesale regulation of speech — both political and commercial — in England.

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Bizarre, Congress, Society

Blogger Reveals Trick To Getting Cheaper Fares So United And Orbitz Sue Him

220px-United_Airlines_-_N14219_-_Flickr_-_skinnylawyer_(1)aktarer-zaman We have long discussed the shameful treatment of passengers by the airlines, which continue to gouge consumers while reducing seat space and even the most basic accommodations. The complaints against the airlines have increased recently due to the airlines refusing to pass along record low fuels prices to consumers in maintaining high-cost tickets. Now, United Airlines has sued a 22-year-old blogger, Aktarer Zaman, for showing passengers how to find cheap flights on his website Skiplagged.com. Orbitz has joined in the ignoble effort.

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Congress, Constitutional Law, Criminal law, Politics, Society

Police Union Asks Congress To Add Attacks On Police To Growing List Of Hate Crimes

250px-FratPoliceUS-DeptOfJustice-Seal_svgThe National Fraternal Order of Police has launched a campaign to change federal law to add attacks on police as a hate crime. In a letter to President Barack Obama and Congress, the powerful union cites the murders of two New York City police officers, Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu. The demand would treat an attack based on status as the same as an attack based on race. Given the Administration’s expedited investigations of civil rights violations involving deaths caused by police officers in Missouri and New York, the change would create an interesting situation where both future suspects and officers would be arguably protections under federal hate crime laws.

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