Kentucky

ARIZONA FEDERAL JUDGE FINDS GROUNDS TO SANCTION TOUGH GUY SHERIFF JOE ARPAIO

Posted on February 19, 2010
By JACQUES BILLEAUD – ap  A federal judge has found grounds for sanctioning an Arizona sheriff’s office for its acknowledged destruction of records in a lawsuit that accuses deputies of racially profiling countless Hispanics in immigration patrols...

Hundreds of Ohio Defendants Arrested On Court Clerks? Orders ? Prosecutors and Judges bypassed

Posted on February 19, 2010
 By Dan Horn ? enquirer.com ? February 13, 2010 Police in Hamilton County have arrested hundreds of people in the past year because of a criminal complaint system that the county’s top prosecutor says is bad public policy and some judges say violates Ohio law...

California Prosecutor Disbarred for Ethical Misconduct ? Disobeying Court Ordres, Hiding Evidence from Defendant

Posted on February 19, 2010
By Tracey Kaplan Calling former Santa Clara County prosecutor Ben Field’s ethical misconduct “inexcusable,” a State Bar appeals panel has upheld a judge’s landmark recommendation that he be suspended from practicing law for four years...

?Zero-Tolerance DUI Bill Makes Zero Sense?

Posted on February 19, 2010
“Zero-Tolerance Bill Makes Zero Sense” By Nathan Miller  Once again, a bill that seeks to punish prior use of a controlled substance with an automatic DUI conviction is making its way through the Kentucky Legislature.   Like its predecessors, SB 5 cleverly attempts to bootstrap an ill-advised rule regarding all drugs onto a rule created for the purpose of [...

To access this complete feed in the blog feed reader login or register for free.

Attorney Diana Skaggs Takes Issue With Ct. of Appeals Ruling Which Voids Family Court Arbitration Procedures ? Ruling virtually invites Sup. Ct. Review

Posted on February 12, 2010
  Editorial by Diana Skaggs published in Louisville Courier-Journal  Feb. 12, 2010 Distressed that arbitration is not a viable alternative to spouses who cannot afford to pay an arbitrator and holding that the approval of the arbitration process by a family court constitutes an improper delegation of its constitutional responsibility, the Kentucky Court of Appeals recently barred [...

Government Can Track Your Movements by Monitering Your Cell Phone

Posted on February 12, 2010
Feds push for tracking cell phones by Declan McCullagh Two years ago, when the FBI was stymied by a band of armed robbers known as the “Scarecrow Bandits” that had robbed more than 20 Texas banks, it came up with a novel method of locating the thieves...

Toyota Recall Sparks Largest Consumer-fraud case ever ? One claim filed in Kentucky

Posted on February 11, 2010
Legal troubles for Toyota continue to grow, with dozens of potential class-action lawsuits filed around the country, including in Northern Kentucky. University of Kentucky law professor Mary Davis was quoted in a Lexington Herald-Leader article as saying the Toyota litigation, in the wake of the Japanese automaker’s recall of more than 8...

SUPREME COURT?S DECISION ALLOWING CORPORATE CAMPAIGN FREE SPEECH PROVIDES BASIS TO BRING KENTUCKY?S RESTRICTIONS ON FREE SPEECH OF LAWYERS INTO QUESTION

Posted on February 09, 2010
  In  CITIZENS UNITED v. FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION issued in late January, the U.S. Supreme Court indicated that the government has a very difficult burden to overcome before they can limit and punish free political speech. In this case the Supreme Court invalidated campaign finance laws that prohibited political contributions by corporations to political campaigns...

Illinois joins six other states which hold that med mal caps are unconstitutional

Posted on February 06, 2010
On Feb. 4, 2010 in the case of Lebron v. Gottlief Memorial Hospital, the Supreme Court of Illinois struck down the cap on non-economic damages in medical malpractice cases, holding that the cap, which had limited damages to $500,000 for doctors and $1,000,000 for hospitals, is unconstitutional because the law violates “separation of powers” doctrine...

Does SB 87 apply to County Law Libraries?

Posted on February 06, 2010
The Senate has passed SB 87 which requires financial accounting of funds received and dispursed by the Ky. Assoc. of Counties and the Ky. League of Cities.   An amendment also imposes a reporting duty on affiliated organizations which appear to include County Law Libraries...

Wisconsin Court Limits Evidence in DUI case

Posted on February 04, 2010
Limit on evidence in drunk driving cases upheld By Alex De Grand, Legal Writer, State Bar of Wisconsin Feb. 2, 2010 ? Evidence of a preliminary breath test (PBT) in a drunk driving case remains inadmissible even if an expert relies on it to form an opinion, the Wisconsin Supreme Court held today...

CAN THE JUDICIARY MANDATE THAT THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH ADEQUATELY FUND THE COURT SYSTEM?

Posted on February 01, 2010
      Courts over the years have protested cuts in their budgets by the Executive Branch by threatening to mandate a budget and to order the Executive Branch to fund the budget as drawn up by the courts.   The judiciary in New York has threatened to do this, but never carried through with their threat...

AOC struggles to pay for new courthouses

Posted on January 31, 2010
The state court system laid off 47 people last fall, and judicial officials say they’re looking at even more drastic measures in the upcoming budget cycle. Since 2000, $880 million has been appropriated for new courthouses that are part of a program designed by former Chief Justice Joseph E...

Justice Alito Breaches Etiquette and Shows Distaste Over Obama?s Criticism of Corporate Ruling re: Campaign Finance

Posted on January 28, 2010
  WASHINGTON (Jan. 27) — It wasn’t quite “You lie!” but a shaking of the head and a muttered rebuke from Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito has sent the lip-reading blogosphere into a tizzy after President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address...

U.S. Supreme Court Ends Confrontation Clause Challenge ? Upholds Forensic Expert Ruling in Melendez-Diaz case.

Posted on January 26, 2010
  During oral arguments Jan. 11 in Briscoe v. Virginia, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia spent considerable time defending the precedent at issue, Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts, in which he wrote the majority opinion That was the Confrontation Clause decision finding that forensic evidence needed to be presented in person, not by affidavit, so it could be [...

Analysis of U.S. Supreme Court?s ruling on Campaign Finance in Citizen?s United v. Federal Election Commission:

Posted on January 25, 2010
Jan 24 2010, The Supreme Paradox: When the Court Overrides Congress  by Ben W. Heineman, Jr. The paradox of the United States Supreme Court is that, from one perspective, it is a traditional judicial institution deciding individual cases. But from another perspective, it makes broad value choices in the name of constitutional interpretation; strikes down acts of [...

U.S. SUPREME COURT RULES THAT VOIR DIRE MUST BE OPEN TO PUBLIC

Posted on January 20, 2010
In a 7-2 vote on Jan. 19th, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a criminal defendant’s right to a public trial covers the process of jury selection.  The Justices said in the Georgia case, Preston v. Jordan, that a screening of jurors should be open to the public...

KBA Board recommends disbarment Melbourne Mills- Denies Reinstatement of Lester Burns

Posted on January 16, 2010
The board of the Kentucky Bar Association decided Friday that two of the most colorful and controversial figures in Kentucky legal history should not practice law. The Board of Governors of the Kentucky Bar Association voted 14-1 to permanently disbar Melbourne Mills Jr...

Sixth Circuit Ct. of Appeals Reverses Kentucky Ten Commandments Decision

Posted on January 14, 2010
 A Kentucky county can restore a display that included the Ten Commandments along with other historical documents after a split federal appeals court ruled Thursday that there’s no evidence the county intended to mount a religious display on public grounds...

U.S. Supreme Court revisits Melendez-Diaz ruling re: right of defendant to confront forensic experts ? States seek to shift burden to Defendant to call government witness for cross-examination

Posted on January 12, 2010
  Washington Post Staff Writer  Tuesday, January 12, 2010 It was just a little more than six months ago that the Supreme Court decided that defendants must have the opportunity to challenge those who prepare forensic reports before they are admitted into evidence...

U.S. Supreme Ct. Overrules 6th Circuit on Federal Habeas Corpus Rule

Posted on January 12, 2010
      [JURIST] The US Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled] unanimously in Smith v. Spisak that the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit contravened the directives of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA) by extending Mills v...

State?s e-Transparency site now includes Judicial Branch expenditures and contracts, salary information

Posted on January 12, 2010
  FRANKFORT, Ky. ? Gov. Steve Beshear and Chief Justice John D. Minton Jr. today announced that the state?s judicial branch has joined the Governor?s e-Transparency Web site. Kentucky?s Open Door, online at www.OpenDoor.KY.gov, has been upgraded to include all Judicial Branch expenditure and contract data...

Products Liability Suit: Chemicals in Infant car seat caused Permanent Disfigurement of Child

Posted on January 08, 2010
Excerpted from Cincinnati Enquirer  Jan 8, 2009 The infant car seat that was supposed to protect a baby girl ended up leaving her ?permanently disfigured,? a Butler County couple claim in a lawsuit filed in Common Pleas Court. ?She will be scarred forever,? says Dana Luther, a Cincinnati attorney who filed the suit against Graco Children?s Products [...

The drama continues in Shelby County. Major win goes to District Judge Donna Dutton who was upheld by Ct. of Appeals.

Posted on January 08, 2010
On Friday Jan. 8, 2009 the Court of Appeals set aside a writ of prohibition that the County Attorney obtained from the Circuit Judge.    The Circuit Judge denied the right of the District Judge  Donna Dutton, to order that the Commonwealth bring a police officer to a pre-trial hearing...

AOC SERVICE WHICH PROVIDES CRIMINAL RECORDS CHECK TO CHARGE $15 PER REPORT ? Public can obtain criminal records check online, by mail of drive-thru service in Frankfort

Posted on January 06, 2010
FRANKFORT, Ky. ? The Administrative Office of the Courts today announced changes to its service that provides criminal background reports. The following changes will be effective Jan. 19, 2010: ?  There will be a standard fee of $15 for all criminal background reports...

Government Settles Prosecutorial Misconduct Civil CaseWhich Was Pending in U.S. Supreme Court ? Pottwattamie County, Iowa pays $12 million to two defendants who were framed by prosecutors

Posted on January 05, 2010
  On Monday Jan. 4, 2010,  the U.S. Supreme Court granted petitioners? motion to dismiss the writ of certiorari pursuant to Rule 46 in Pottawattamie County v. McGhee, 08?1065, which involved whether prosecutors who try a case are entitled to immunity when sued for allegedly procuring before trial false evidence to frame a criminal defendant...

FEDERAL COURT DISMISSES FEDERAL CHARGES AGAINST BLACKWATER GUNMEN DUE TO PROSECUTORS VIOLATION OF IMMUNITY RULE REGARDING COMPELLED STATEMENTS- The ?taint team? couldn?t save this prosecution ? This marks the fourth recent example in which judges have tossed out cases citing Justice Department abuse.

Posted on January 04, 2010
  The Wall Street Journal   Jan. 4, 2009   Another example of prosecutorial misconduct in a political case? No, not as the left would have it, that Blackwater still exists. The scandal is that the Justice Department’s case against five former security guards for the military contractor unraveled late last week in what appears to be another instance of [...

US Supreme Court Chief Justice Issues Year End Report on Federal Judiciary

Posted on January 02, 2010
US Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. issued an unusually brief year-end report on the federal judiciary Thursday in his capacity as head of the Judicial Conference of the United States [official website], declining to address judiciary needs as done in previous years...

Federal appeals court sets limits on police use of Tasers

Posted on December 29, 2009
  Dec. 28, 2009 A federal appeals court on Monday issued one of the most comprehensive rulings yet limiting police use of Tasers against low-level offenders who seem to pose little threat and may be mentally ill. In a case out of San Diego County, the 9th U...

New York Judge Censured for Recusals Over Lack of Pay Raise

Posted on December 28, 2009
By Joel Stashenko  December 29, 2009 ALBANY – A western New York judge should be censured for trying to organize other judges to recuse themselves from cases involving the law firms of state legislators, who have denied the judiciary a pay raise since 1999, the Commission on Judicial Conduct said today...

Bloggers, promote your law blog by nominating your blog for inclusion in USLaw.com's Law Blog Directory and RSS Reader. Benefits described.