Religion & Law

Iowa let us vote rally: ?Gay community, stop hijacking the civil rights movement?

Posted on March 16, 2011
Iowa Independent (includes video): "Speaking before a conservative-minded crowd of around 400 on the west steps of the Capitol, Rev. Keith Ratliff criticized gay rights activists for equating their struggle with the civil rights movement of 50 years ago...

?Senate hearing for gay judicial nominee?

Posted on March 16, 2011
UPI: U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer, "shocked" no openly gay men served as federal judges, says gay candidate J. Paul Oetken possesses legal excellence and moderate views.

Democrats launch offensive on Defense of Marriage Act after ?gay rights? group pushed a poll

Posted on March 16, 2011
Politico: "The legislative roll out comes a day after a interest-group-sponsored poll was released revealing that 51 percent of voters oppose DOMA, while just 34 percent favor it. The poll, a collaboration of gay-rights group Human Rights Campaign and Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research ...

Marriage amendment ?worries? Indiana companies, nevermind that at least 30 states have such amendments

Posted on March 16, 2011
Fox19.com: "Executives of Eli Lilly and Co. and Cummins Inc. argued Tuesday that the constitutional ban could hurt Indiana's image. State law already bans gay marriage, but supporters told the Senate Judiciary Committee that the amendment would prevent courts from overturning the law...

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Minnesota pol wants Jesus out of invocations

Posted on March 16, 2011
JTA.org: Terri Bonoff, a Democrat, plans to ask the body's leadership to change the standard letter given to clergy to say that it requires prayer to be "interfaith and nonsectarian" rather than the current "request."

Iowa: State?s justices to take to the radio airwaves

Posted on March 16, 2011
The court has lost credibility with the people of Iowa, and doing 'Van and Bonnie' or giving away free pizza, whatever they might do, is not going to change that," he said.

NH court affirms ruling ordering girl to attend public school, says case not about religion

Posted on March 16, 2011
"The New Hampshire Supreme Court says a lower court acted appropriately in ordering an 11-year-old girl to attend public school after her father claimed his ex-wife's strict Christian teachings were socially isolating the child."

9th Circuit En Banc Finds Court Holding Facility Is Covered By RLUIPA

Posted on March 16, 2011
Religion Clause Blog: The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday in an en banc decision in Khatib v. County of Orange, (9th Cir., March 15, 2011), concluded that the holding facility at the Santa Ana (CA) courthouse is a "pretrial detention facility" that is covered by RLUIPA.

Hernando club news for March 16 and beyond

Posted on March 16, 2011
St. Petersburg Times: Nature Coast 9.12 Groups: 11:30 a.m. Saturday, Spring Hill Lanes, in the lounge, 3447 Commercial Way. The speaker is Rebecca O'Dell, an appellate attorney that practices before the U.S. Supreme Court, 11th Circuit, U.S. Court of Appeal and Florida Supreme Court...

Md. county can?t enforce full pregnancy clinic law

Posted on March 16, 2011
MSNBC (AP): "Lawyers for the Alliance Defense Fund, a conservative legal group, challenged the law on behalf of a pregnancy clinic that does not provide birth control or abortions, saying it was unconstitutional."

States? use of foster kids? benefits is assailed

Posted on March 16, 2011
AP: "Foster children are removed from their homes by the state for their own protection," said Robert Fellmeth, executive director of the Children's Advocacy Institute. "For the states to turn around and punish them by taking the children's own money and leaving them destitute when they age out of the system is a violation of these vulnerable kids...

Union: 19,000 educators get pink slips in Calif.

Posted on March 16, 2011
AP: "California school districts have issued at least 19,000 layoff notices to teachers and other school employees amid heightened uncertainty over the state budget, the teachers union said Tuesday."

NY: Crash highlights Chinese-American gambling market

Posted on March 16, 2011
AP: "The crash is illuminating how casinos around New York in many ways treat the city's Chinese-Americans as their bread and butter, a population with an ancient gambling tradition that will reliably hand over money."

Ga. executions off: DEA seizes critical drug

Posted on March 16, 2011
AP: "All Georgia executions are off after federal drug agents seized the state's supply of a sedative used in lethal injections that has been challenged by capital punishment critics and death-row inmates . . . "

Police say international pedophile ring smashed

Posted on March 16, 2011
AP: "Police said Wednesday they have smashed a huge international pedophile ring, rescuing 230 children from abuse and arresting 184 suspects - including teachers and police officers."

School Administrators Respond to Allegations Teachers Called Gay Student a Sinner

Posted on March 16, 2011
NBC: Riverside County school administrators say they have "dealt with" a high school teacher who allegedly singled out a student for supporting gay rights, it was reported.

NH Supreme Court sidesteps critical religious liberty issue in homeschooler case

Posted on March 16, 2011
The New Hampshire Supreme Court upheld a lower court order Wednesday that forced a homeschooled student into a government-run school against her mother?s wishes. The court made clear that it was not addressing larger religious liberty and homeschooling concerns and was basing its ruling only on the narrow and specific facts of the case.

ACLU applauds South Haven schools for new policy after pastor encouraged church attendance

Posted on March 16, 2011
MLive.com: "In a letter to the district, the ACLU of Michigan asked South Haven Superintendent Bob Black to put an end to the practice of allowing a school volunteer, who was also a pastor at a local church, to encourage students at the middle school and high school levels during instructional time to become active with the church...

Your country or mine? EU proposes rules on divvying up property of international marriages

Posted on March 16, 2011
The Canadian Press on Google: The commission's proposal does not seek to make divorce and property laws the same in all European Union countries, but only to create rules to determine which country has jurisdiction over the division of property. The aim is to prevent one half of the couple, often the wealthier member, from rushing to court in the country he or she thinks would be most advantageous.

Senate Judiciary: No Republicans present to question Obama nominees

Posted on March 16, 2011
Blog of the Legal Times: "No Republican senators were present to question the two nominees, Paul Engelmayer and J. Paul Oetken, and the two Democrats in attendance called themselves strong supporters."

Democrats Vow to Oppose Any Bill De-Funding Planned Parenthood

Posted on March 16, 2011
Going beyond voting against the first long-term bill House Republicans sent them with the Pence Amendment 19 Senate Democrats today sent a letter to Vice-President Joe Biden vowing to vote against any federal funding bill that contains the Pence Amendment.

European court to rule on crucifixes in Italian schools ? March 18th

Posted on March 16, 2011
CNA: "The European Human Rights Court will issue a ruling March 18 on whether crucifixes should be present in the public schools of Italy."

Law Schools Draw Far Fewer Students

Posted on March 16, 2011
Wall Street Journal: "The number of law-school applicants this year is down 11.5% from a year ago to 66,876 applicants, according to the Law School Admission Council Inc. The figure, which is a tally of applications for the fall 2011 class, is the lowest level since 2001 at this stage of the process...

FFRF & friends challenge Arizona Day of Prayer

Posted on March 16, 2011
Freedom from Religion Foundation: "The Freedom From Religion Foundation, a national state/church watchdog, and four of its Arizona members, with the legal help of attorneys Richard W. Morris and Marc. J. Victor, filed a lawsuit in federal court yesterday seeking to enjoin Arizona Gov...

Senate GOP bloc demanding entitlement reform in exchange for debt limit hike

Posted on March 16, 2011
The Hill: "Nearly half the Republicans in the Senate are threatening to vote against increasing the federal debt ceiling unless the president promises to tackle entitlements."

Don Kroah: Marriage Wins in Maryland

Posted on March 16, 2011
Don Kroah writes at Townhall: As the Post editorial put it: The bill?s passage in the Senate aroused the passions of a formidable coalition of the unwilling?Republicans, churchgoing African Americans and the Catholic Church?for whom any marriage not between a man and a woman remains not marriage...

Elena Kagan Needs to Recuse Herself from Obamacare Case, Says Author of Virginia Law

Posted on March 16, 2011
CNSNews (includes video): ?She should recuse herself before she makes a decision on this case,? Marshall told CNSNews.com?s Online With Terry Jeffrey

Pregnant woman who ate rat poison charged with murder

Posted on March 16, 2011
Reuters: An Indianapolis woman who tried to commit suicide by eating rat poison near the end of her pregnancy was charged with murder in the death of her baby, officials said on Wednesday.

Legal Periodical: How California Got It Right: Mining in Re Marriage Cases for the Seeds of a Viable Federal Challenge to Same-SEx Marriage Bans

Posted on March 15, 2011
Dan J. Bulfer, How California Got It Right: Mining in Re Marriage Cases for the Seeds of a Viable Federal Challenge to Same-Sex Marriage Bans, 41 Cal. W. Int'l L.J. 49 (2010)

Legal Periodical: The Constitutional Obligation to Adjudicate Petitions for Same-Sex Divorce and the Dissolution of Civil Unions and Analogous Same-Sex Reliationships: Prolegomenon to a Brief

Posted on March 15, 2011
L. Lynn Hogue, The Constitutional Obligation to Adjudicate Petitions for Same-Sex Divorce and the Dissolution of Civil Unions and Analogous Same-Sex Reliationships: Prolegomenon to a Brief, 41 Cal. W. Int'l L.J. 229 (2010)

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