Legal Commentary

Minnesota Court Rules Against Ex-Nurse in Assisted Suicide Case

Posted on March 16, 2011
A judge in Minnesota has handed down a controversial verdict of guilty in the case of former nurse, William Melchert-Dinkel, 48, who encouraged people to commit suicide online. Civil libertarians and right-to-die advocates have criticized the prosecution as an assault on free speech...

Iowa Legislators Seek To Criminalize Those Who Disclose Abuses At Factory Operations

Posted on March 16, 2011
Iowa lawmakers have introduced two bills (SF 341 and HF 431) that would make it a crime for activists to procure evidence of animal abuse by factory operations. Many of the past disclosures of abuse by circuses and industry have been the result of activists gaining access to factory operations through employment (as here)...

Meet Bell Nuntita: Thailand?s Susan Boyle

Posted on March 16, 2011
In a moment reminiscent of Susan Boyle, judges on ?Thailand?s Got Talent? were left stunned by the performance of Bell Nuntita. She is being referred to as “transgender.” It is not clear if this is meant as an actual fact or whether it refers to the remarkable voice change midway through the song...

Bus Driver in New York Crash Had Long Record

Posted on March 16, 2011
The bus accident this weekend that killed 15 people has taken a potential turn toward criminal charges with new disclosures about the bus driver, Ophadell Williams. Williams has reportedly stated that he was hit by a truck before losing control of the bus...

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U.S. News and World Report Rankings For Law Schools Released

Posted on March 15, 2011
This year’s ranking of law schools by U.S. News & World Report have been released for 2011. The rankings have become increasingly important for law schools in steering applicants and encouraging alumni support. While most professors are highly critical of the rankings, I have always viewed them in a more positive way...

UCLA Students Triggers Firestorm With Anti-Asian Video

Posted on March 15, 2011
Alexandra Wallace has caused a firestorm of controversy and recrimination after she posted a Youtube video denouncing “Asians in the library.” The original video is below. The tirade attacks Asian students for talking on cellphones and even having their elderly parents show up on weekends to do their clothes and cook their food...

Meet the GWU Promissory Notes

Posted on March 15, 2011
[Warning: Language] This is the latest work of our talented students at George Washington Law School. This hilarious video was done by GWU students including Peter Biberstein of our most respected Promissory Notes group. The group sings at many of our events...

Forget Tiger Moms, Make Way For the Tiffany Moms: NY Woman Sues Preschool For Failing To Prepare 4-Year-Old for Ivy League

Posted on March 15, 2011
As entrance in top schools has become more and more competitive, parents are becoming more aggressive in seeking to guarantee every advantage for their children. In the case of Nicole Imprescia, this means going to court to sue a school over its failure to prepare her daughter for the Ivy League...

Dropping the Hammer: Obama Administration Forces Out State Department Spokesman After Criticizing Treatment of Manning

Posted on March 14, 2011
The Obama Administration has finally responded to the international outcry over the abuse of Bradley Manning. After State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley acknowledged the abuse, the Administration fired him with the apparent approval of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton...

Obama Administration Forces Dayton To Lower Standards For Police Officers To Guarantee More Minority Officers

Posted on March 14, 2011
There is a controversy in Dayton over the decision of the police department to lower its testing standards under pressure from the Obama Administration to allow for more minority officers. The city needs more officers and had determined the most qualified under the prior test...

Afghan President Begs U.S. To Halt All Operations in His Country ? Obama Administration Refuses To End Operations

Posted on March 14, 2011
I have often used these pages to complain about the billions of dollars and countless lives that we continue to lose in Afghanistan and Iraq – while our states and schools shutdown vital programs for lack of funds. This is particularly annoying with a president of Afghanistan who has repeatedly stated that he wished he [...

Iran Reportedly Recruits Children To Beat Protesters in Tehran

Posted on March 14, 2011
Even those people used to the unhinged diatribes of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad were left in stunned silence when he denounced the use of force against demonstrators in Libya as “grotesque” — adding “it is unimaginable that there is someone who kills and bombards his own people...

The Chernobyl Disaster and The Last Film of Vladimir Shevchenko

Posted on March 14, 2011
We have all been watching the Japanese reactors closely after the reported cooling failures and risk of meltdown.This short video concerns the prior disaster at Chernobyl and the last film of Vladimir Shevchenko. He died from his exposure to the site...

NPR Fires Back: Analysis of O?Keefe Video Shows Highly Distorting Edits

Posted on March 14, 2011
In a little discussed release, National Public Radio has identified some alarming edits in the video footage released by James O’Keefe III — purportedly capturing NPR officials slamming conservatives and seemingly agreeing with radical Islamic funders...

Spanish Judges Rule That U.S. Torture Case Can Proceed

Posted on March 13, 2011
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger We have previously discussed the Obama administration’s attempt to derail a Spanish judicial investigation into torture, here. Spanish law recognizes the principle of universal jurisdiction. Universal jurisdiction (UJ) is a doctrine of international law that holds that certain crimes are so terrible that the duty to prosecute them [...

The Koch Energy and Commerce Committee

Posted on March 13, 2011
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger The Republican-controlled House Energy and Commerce Committee is paying off a debt. The debt is financial and campaign support from some of the nation’s worst polluters. The payoff is the ?Energy Tax Prevention Act“, which, with an audacity that only Republicans seem to pull off, simply and blatantly [...

Spooky

Posted on March 13, 2011
-Submitted by David Durmm (Nal), Guest Blogger Presented for your listening enjoyment, the Classics IV in glorious STEREO!

Puppies vs Corporations

Posted on March 13, 2011
Submitted by Lawrence Rafferty, (rafflaw), Guest Blogger In just the latest example of corporations taking over the reins of government, the Missouri State Senate has decided that the voters of Missouri are stupid. Last fall, the voters approved a referendum that placed restrictions on the countless puppy mills in the state to ensure humane and [...

Talley v. California (1960) and Anonymous Blogging

Posted on March 12, 2011
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger Thanks to the internet, free speech has never been more in evidence. Blogs and their comments sections enable anyone with internet access to speak their mind. The anonymity provided by the IP address encourages people to write what they think...

Stormy

Posted on March 12, 2011
-Submitted  by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger Today we have the Classic IV in glorious STEREO! Enhance your listening enjoyment with headphones/earbuds.

When Judges Become Linebackers

Posted on March 12, 2011
Submitted by Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger Poster’s Note: Today’s  will be my last set of posts for a couple of weeks. Suzanne and I will be traveling to her family’s homeland for a pint and song or two. I’ll try to send JT a picture from Dublin on St...

Hey! Who Stole My Democracy??or What?s Going on in the State of Michigan?

Posted on March 12, 2011
Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Guest Blogger Warning: You are about to enter the Twilight Zone. Imagine, if you will, that you live in a state where a governor wields extraordinary power over its residents. Imagine, if you will, that your governor has the legal authority to appoint an ?Emergency Manager? to oversee the local government [...

On Scott Walker, Wisconsin, and the Budget Repair Bill: Is the Story Over Yet?

Posted on March 12, 2011
Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Guest Blogger I have already written three posts about Governor Scott Walker, his budget repair bill, and the protesters in Wisconsin. People have been interested in the Wisconsin story and have left nearly 1,800 comments at my three posts...

In One Texas Town, There is No Such Thing as Rape!

Posted on March 12, 2011
Submitted By Lawrence Rafferty, (rafflaw), Guest Blogger   I actually thought that I had misread the article when I first read it.  It described the horrific gang rape of an 11-year-old in the Texas town of Cleveland.  Eighteen young men and teenagers have been charged with the rape that is alleged to have started in a [...

8.9 Earthquake Hits Japan Followed by Tsunami ? U.S. Cities Issued Tsunami Warning

Posted on March 11, 2011
Japan was hit today with its most powerful earthquake in 100 years — followed by a series of aftershocks and a massive tsunami. (Here is a video) The quake’s epicenter was 373 kilometers (231 miles) away from Tokyo and at least 30 aftershocks have been recorded...

Sluggerrr Wins Hot Dog Case

Posted on March 11, 2011
The Kansas City Royals and its mascot Sluggerrr won a jury verdict this week against a man who claimed that Sluggerrr was negligent in throwing a hot dog into the crowd. John Coomer, of Overland Park, Kansas, was hit in the face by the lion mascot. Coomer suffered a detached retina that required three surgeries [...

More Heat Than Light: Sheen Files Against Warner Brothers and Lorre

Posted on March 11, 2011
I just read the filing by Marty Singer and I was a bit surprised by the language of the filing against Chuck Lorre and Warner Brothers. The complaint is below. In contains such lines as “Chuck Lorre, one of the richest men in television who is worth hundreds of millions of dollars, believes himself to [...

Hockey Injury in Canadians-Bruins Game Raise Calls For Criminal or Disciplinary Action Against Bruin Zdeno Chara

Posted on March 11, 2011
Canadians are debating where to draw the line between rough sports and criminal conduct after Montreal Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty (left) was hospitalized due to a bodycheck by Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara (right). Pacioretty suffered a broken vertebra and serious concussion...

Court Security Discover Woman Smuggling in a Monkey into Courthouse

Posted on March 11, 2011
Court security can sometimes find some odd things on people coming into a courthouse, but I doubt any of the officers were prepared for one woman who appeared at the Amherst County courthouse this week. When the woman came through security, officers found this small monkey dressed in diapers and a white dress with pink [...

Sweetie?s Revenge: New York Teen Arrested After Manhunt in the Death of Hamster

Posted on March 10, 2011
New York police have finally captured Monique Smith, 19, after a nine-month search in the murder of Sweetie. The victim was a hamster. Smith’s alleged crime began with the untimely death of another hamster, Princess Stephanie. Theresa Smith, 47, lives with 10 of her 12 children and had bought Princess Stephanie for her nine-year-old son...

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