Legal Commentary

Rent-a-Justice: New Orleans Supreme Court Faces Allegations of Favoritism for Contributors

Posted on February 03, 2008
A recent student has cast serious questions over the influence of campaign contributions on the members of the Louisiana Supreme Court. The study by my former Tulane Law School colleague, Vernon Palmer, and Loyola assistant professor of economics John Levendis finds a disturbing correlation between contributions and voting on the Court...

The Shih Tzu Hits the Fan: Indicted Mayor Resigns Amid Allegations of Stealing Puddles

Posted on February 03, 2008
Texas Mayor Grace Saenz-Lopez has resigned soon after her indictment over the on-going sage of a a Shih Tzu named Puddles. Saenz-Lopez and her twin sister were indicted in the conspiracy to steal Puddles — who appears to hold a strange hypnotic effect over humans.

Capturing the Pedaphile Market?: Woolworths Forced to Pull ?Lolita? Beds from Stores

Posted on February 02, 2008
Woolworths in London is pulling a line of beds called “Lolita” beds for six-year-old girls after parents pointed out that the name refers to a 1955 novel by Nabokov about a sexually active 12-year-old girl.

Kelo Redux: Second Circuit Upholds Use of Eminent Domain to Seize New York Homes for Private Development

Posted on February 02, 2008
The Second Circuit has rejected the appeal of homeowners contesting the right of New York to taken their homes under eminent domain authority to give to private developers. It is a repeat of the controversial use of eminent domain in Connecticut in the Kelo case — where the Supreme Court narrowly uphold the use [...

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Snipes Acquitted on Major Tax Counts; Convicted of Misdemeanors

Posted on February 02, 2008
In a surprising victory, Wesley Snipes was acquitted of federal tax fraud and conspiracy counts, but was found guilty of failing to file tax returns. It was a particular vindication for his attorneys who did not put him on the stand or call defense witnesses - a very dangerous strategy that has backfired in [...

Texas District Attorney Admits to Destroying Emails in Violation of Court Order ? Faces Potential Contempt Charge

Posted on February 02, 2008
Harris County District Attorney Chuck Rosenthal has been in the thick of controversy of late. First, he refused to prosecute Texas Supreme Court Justice David Medina and his wife after a grand jury indicted them for arson. (Click here). Then he was forced to turn over e-mails in case that included embarrassing [...

New Jersey Supreme Court Justice Sued for Harassing Son?s High School Football Rival

Posted on February 01, 2008
New Jersey Supreme Court Justice Roberto Rivera-Soto is being sued by a former high school football player who alleged that the jurist used his power and prestige to harass him after he gave Rivera-Soto’s son a bloody lip in a practice. Rivera-Soto has already been reprimanded by his Court and he is even accused [...

The Legacy of Feres: Marine Dies in Latest Act of Military Malpractice

Posted on February 01, 2008
In the civilian system, a case of misdiagnosis is a simple material of medical malpractice for which the victim or his victim can recover. In the military, it is even simpler: it is malpractice for which there is no legal recourse. That is the sad lesson being learned by the family of Carmelo [...

So Much For Federalism: Republican Senator Asks Congress to Strip Berkeley of Federal Funds in Retaliation for Slight to Marines

Posted on February 01, 2008
U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., has called for Congress to strip the City of Berkeley, Calif., of federal funds because he does not agree with a slight to the Marine Corp. The Berkeley City Council voted this week to tell the U.S. Marine Corps to move its recruiting station outside the city’s downtown...

The American Gothic Amendment: Federalism and the Same-Sex Marriage Debate

Posted on February 01, 2008
In light of today’s debate over Congress and its shaky federalism principles, this prior column on the marriage amendment may be of interest.

Medical Marijuana, Federalism and the Forbidden Fruit of the Constitution

Posted on February 01, 2008
In light of the DeMint bill to strip Berkeley of its federal funding, this earlier column on the hypocrisy in Congress over federalism may be of interest:

The Stagecraft of Scandal: Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick Gives Public Apology with Wife in a Church

Posted on January 31, 2008
When it comes to the art of the public apology, Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick may have set a new gold standard in his public apology for his alleged affair with chief of staff Christine Beatty. The view link is below. He used an actual church as a backdrop and his wife as something [...

This is Your Pilot: I Need to Speak to God

Posted on January 31, 2008
In what could make for a fascinating torts case, an airplane full of passengers witnesses a co-pilot losing his mind in the cockpit and then having to be forcibly restrained by the other crew members as he demanded to speak to God. The Air Canada co-pilot was handcuffed to a seat for the rest [...

Priest Convicted in Nun?s Death During Botched Exorcism

Posted on January 31, 2008
A former priest, Daniel Corogeanu, had been convicted of murder in the death of a nun during an exorcism gone bad. The court in Romania gave the monk seven years, though the case raises serious questions over the use of these extreme religious rites.

Nurse Admits to Body Looting From Corpses

Posted on January 31, 2008
Nurse Lee Cruceta in Philadelphia has admitted to cutting out body parts from corpses to sell on the illegal body part market — a crime that included harvesting material from the corpse of “Masterpiece Theatre” host Alistair Cooke, who died in 2004...

Judging 101: Refrain From Pronouncing Guilt Before End of Trial

Posted on January 31, 2008
Perhaps the most basic requirement of a judge (beyond remaining full clothed during deliberations) is not to pronounced guilt until after the trial. It is a rule that Superior Court Judge Hilton Fuller allegedly forgot by telling a reporter that Brian Nichols, accused of killing four people in a 2005 shooting spree that began [...

Subway v. Quiznos: Can a Sandwich Be Slandered?

Posted on January 30, 2008
There is a fascinating legal fight brewing in New York between sandwich chains Subway and Quiznos. At issue is the liability for companies using popular taste tests in commercials and the provocative question of whether it is possible to slander a sandwich.

Maryland Considering Criminalizing Use of Soldiers Names and Images in Protest Tee-Shirts or Material for Sale

Posted on January 30, 2008
Maryland Delegate Nicholaus Kipke and Sen. Bryan Simonaire are pushing for passage of the Fallen Soldier Privacy Act of 2008 to criminalize the the commercial use of a deceased soldier’s name or image. It is a controversy triggered by tee-shirts produced by anti-war activist Dan R...

Mukasey Refuses to Answer Question on Waterboarding in Congress

Posted on January 30, 2008
As expected, Attorney General Michael Mukasey has informed Congress that he will refuse to answer the long-standing question on waterboarding in this week’s hearing. The decision is a further indictment of the decision of democratic leadership to allow Mukasey to be confirmed despite his unwillingness to acknowledge that waterboarding has long been defined as [...

Snipes Rests Case Without Presenting Defense Witnesses or Testifying Himself

Posted on January 29, 2008
Wesley Snipes’ counsel rested his case without presenting a single defense witness or having Snipes himself testify. It is a move the minimizes risk on the stand but maximizes the likelihood of a conviction on the tax charges.

Negroponte Admits that Waterboarding Was Used By Bush Administration

Posted on January 29, 2008
The National Journal caught an interesting slip from John Negroponte, former director of national intelligence , who uttered The-Torture-Technique-That-Shall-Not-Be-Named”: waterboarding. While Attorney General Mukasey continues to say that he is still thinking about waterboarding months after his seemingly false testimony before Congress, Negroponte admitted in an interview that indeed it was used — [...

You Will Have to Peel My Cold Dead Fingers From My Geiger Counter: New York Moves to Require a Permit to Own Detectors of Radioactive, Biological, or Chemical Threats

Posted on January 29, 2008
Where is the NGA — National Geiger Association — when you need them? Facing an apparent shortfall of new permits to impose on citizens, the New York city council (with Mayor Bloomberg’s reported support) is moving to require that any citizens who want to own devices that detect biological, chemical, and radiological dangers must first register [...

Police Seek Arrest of Imposter of Heath Ledger?s Father

Posted on January 29, 2008
The police are seeking an imposter who pretended that he was the father of the dead actor Heath Ledger to secure hotel rooms, convince Tom Cruise to console him, and almost convince John Travolta to buy him free tickets to the United States. It is conduct that fits both criminal and tort theories of [...

Afghan Justice: Government Sentences Journalist to Death for Blasphemy Against the Prophet

Posted on January 28, 2008
After the loss of many American lives and billions in American dollars, the justice system in Afghanistan seems to be de-evolving back into the Taliban-style Islamic extremism. Journalist Sayed Perwiz Kambakhsh, 23, has been sentenced to death for merely downloading material deemed blasphemous to Islam relating to the role of women in Islamic societies...

Commencement Address for the John Marshall Law School Graduating Class of 2008

Posted on January 27, 2008
Today, I have the honor of being the commencement speaker for the John Marshall Law School graduation.

Months Later, Mukasey Still Thinking About Waterboarding and Says He May Never Say Whether it is Torture

Posted on January 27, 2008
In his confirmation hearing, Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey was rescued by Sens. Chuck Schumer and Diane Feinstein from having to admit that waterboarding has long been defined as torture by U.S. and international courts. At the time, he first denied (under oath) knowing what waterboarding is and then, when told, insisted that he [...

South Carolina Supreme Court Allows 20 People Who Flunked Bar to Pass ? Including Children of Powerful Attorneys

Posted on January 27, 2008
In a positively mind-blowing decision, the South Carolina Supreme Court decided to allow 20 people who flunked the bar to become lawyers rather than inform one individual that he had been incorrectly told that he had passed. Worse still, the current and immediate past presidents of the state bar have dismissed the controversy as [...

New Jersey Court Orders Man to Pay Child Support Even If He is Not True Father

Posted on January 26, 2008
The New Jersey Supreme Court has upheld a lower court decision against a father who claimed that he should not have to pay child support to his ex-wife after discovering that the child was not his own. It is only the latest in a string of such cases...

Pilots Challenge $5 Million Award for Instructor Credited in Moussaoui Arrest

Posted on January 26, 2008
Pilots are charging that the Bush Administration doled out $5 million as an award to flight instructor Clarence Prevost in the Moussaoui case without seriously inquiring into who was actually responsible for bringing the terrorist-wannabe to the attention of the government...

Zacarias Moussaoui and the Mad Pursuit of a Trophy Terrorist

Posted on January 26, 2008
In light of the $5 million given to a witness in the trial of Zacarias Moussaoui, this column may be of interest.

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