Legal Commentary

Police Officer Shoots Man in Groin with 50,000 Volt Taser

Posted on July 21, 2010
Peter Cox, 49, is seeking possible legal action after an officer shot him in the groin with a 50,000 volt taser. The officer from the police department in Bridgwater, Somerset insists that it was an accidental discharge. Cox was stopped on suspicion of driving a BMW without insurance...

Can Sherrod Sue Over Edited NAACP Tape?

Posted on July 21, 2010
The controversy continues over a video of Georgia director of Rural Development Shirley Sherrod at the NAACP. Sherrod, and many supporters, have objected that the tape from the NAACP event was clearly edited to cut off her comments to mislead the viewers...

Georgia Agricultural Official Resigns After Racist Speech at NAACP Conference

Posted on July 20, 2010
Conservative bloggers are expressing outrage over comments at the recent NAACP conference made by Georgia director of Rural Development Shirley Sherrod. After watching the video, I think they have good reason to be outraged. The comments were clearly racist and she has now resigned...

United Reportedly Dumped Passengers From Flight Based on How Much They Paid for Tickets

Posted on July 20, 2010
The Consumerist has an interesting story this week reporting that United Airlines allegedly over-sold a flight and then dumped passengers based on how much (or little) they paid for their tickets. The site quotes a passenger as saying that United staff was open about the selection criteria in bumping 20 or so passengers from a [...

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BP Accused of Lobbying For Release of Lockerbie Bomber To Secure Oil Rights

Posted on July 20, 2010
Just when you thought British Petroleum (BP) could not get more unpopular. As tests indicate a leak and massive readings of methane release at the Gulf spill site, reports have indicated that it was BP that lobbied for the release of Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrahi in order to secure a lucrative oil deal from Libya...

Now Everyone Shift To Your Right: Millions of Muslim Indonesians Discover That They Have Been Praying Toward Africa

Posted on July 20, 2010
Millions of Muslims in Indonesia have been praying to Africa, but not by choice. The Indonesian Ulema Council had Muslims praying West to what they thought was the Kaaba in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. It turns out that Mecca is Northwest. Rather than tear down mosques built for worship to the West, elders are asking everyone [...

Monkeys on a Plane: Mexican Man Arrested With Titis On His Body

Posted on July 20, 2010
Roberto Sol Cabrera was not simply “glad to see” customs officials at the Mexico City International Airport. Upon being searched, suspicious officials found 18 monkeys around his waist. The 18 titi monkeys were in a girdle around his waist and were previously smuggled in his luggage...

GOP Trust Airs Anti-Muslim Ad in Opposing New Manhattan Mosque

Posted on July 20, 2010
A group called the National Republican Trust Pac is airing this disturbing ad to fight the construction of a mosque near ground zero in Manhattan. The ad refers to all Muslims as “they” and links them all to terrorism and the killing of Americans...

Health Care: Turns Out To Be A Tax After All

Posted on July 19, 2010
If you recall, one of the most steadfast public positions of the Democrats and the Obama White House during the health care debate was that the legislation did not constitute a tax. President Barach Obama expressly denied that the legislation was a tax in pushing for its approval...

Scotland?s Crime of ?Outraging Public Decency?

Posted on July 19, 2010
Scotland reportedly is about criminalize sending anyone an “indecent communication” without their consent. It is one of the new crimes covered by a law against ?Outraging Public Decency.? Thus, before writing any sexual statements to another individual, Scots will be expected to opinion their permission...

Scariest Mug Shot Ever

Posted on July 19, 2010
It may be hard to believe but this man — Jesse Thornhill, 28 — had trouble with his landlord. Thornhill was arrested after allegedly trying to run over his landlord. His mother simply observed that the landlord “had been having problems with her son...

Chateau Jiahu: It?s Not Just New, It?s Neolithic!

Posted on July 19, 2010
First there was the discovery of the oldest drinkable champagne in the World. Now, Dogfish Head brewery has released the oldest beer in the world made from ingredients found in a Neolithic burial site in China — beer with an original expiration date of around 7,000 BC...

Victoria?s Secret? Bed Bugs

Posted on July 19, 2010
New York hotels and stores continue to experience an outbreak of bed bugs. The most recent is Victoria’s Secret, which was forced to close for a de-bugging. The infestation of bed bugs have already led to litigation against hotels in New York, London, and other cities...

Feline Marty Feldmans

Posted on July 18, 2010
It is a well-known fact that cats are prone to holding Marty Feldman look-a-like competitions. These are two to the ranking contenders. The natural affiliation for felines with Marty Feldman is the subject of exhaustive academic research.

Hooked on Hookahs: Hamas Bans Women From Smoking Water Pipes

Posted on July 18, 2010
In Gaza, police are cracking down on the latest public scourge: women smoking water pipes (or shisha or hookahs). Citizens were handed an announcement that the Hamas government was now banning women from smoking water pipes because it leads to divorces...

Man Arrested For Claiming to Have Had Sex With ?Christie Brinkley?

Posted on July 18, 2010
A Florida man has been arrested in a bizarre crime. Armand M. Pacher, 64, a former insurance executive, is accused of sex with his Great Dane that he named Christie Brinkley. He was nabbed after allegedly complaining to a veterinarian’s office that the passion appears to have left his love life with Christie...

Palin Aide Criticizes Romney Aide for Attacking Palin Anonymously ? But Insists on Anonymity

Posted on July 18, 2010
The irony of this Politico story is hard to miss. Politico is reporting on a dust up between the Palin and Romney camps after an aide for Mitt Romney stated anonymously that Sarah Palin is ?not a serious human being.? A Palin aide immediately charged forward to denounce aides speaking anonymously to criticize his boss [...

Montreal Nixes PETA Campaign

Posted on July 18, 2010
In a surprising move, Montreal officials have barred this campaign using Pamela Anderson picture marked up like a butcher shop diagram display. The city has denied permits for the display with the caption "All animals have the same parts. Have a heart ? Go vegetarian...

Aged and Chilled: Divers Find Oldest Known Champagne at Botten of the Baltic

Posted on July 17, 2010
Divers have found a cache of the oldest known champagne from the 18th century — believed to be Veuve Clicquot champagne a from between 1772 and 1785. Diver Christian Ekstrom described the taste” “It was fantastic… it had a very sweet taste, you could taste oak and it had a very strong tobacco smell...

Rep. Towns Introduces Resolution Condemning Arrest of Citizens Filming Police Officers

Posted on July 17, 2010
We have been following cases of citizens arrested for videotaping police officers — often during abusive arrests. Now, Rep. Edolphus Towns (D. N.Y.) has introduced a resolution to denouncing the arrests. While it is refreshing to see at least one member who is motivated to take action in the face of these abusive arrests, the [...

Canadian Judge Releases Mother Who Strangled Daughter With Scarf

Posted on July 17, 2010
There is a controversial ruling in Calgary, Canada where Court of Queen?s Bench Justice Sal LoVecchio has released a mother who strangled her daughter Aminat, 14, (shown left) with a scarf despite the fact that he rejected her self-defense claim. Aset Magomadova will not spend a day in jail for the crime...

Teacher in Norfolk Resigns After Complaints Over Her Rubbing Holy Oil on Students

Posted on July 17, 2010
A Norfolk teacher has resigned after it was confirmed that she was rubbing “holy oil” on students and their desks during school at Jacox Elementary School. Interim Superintendent of Schools, Michael Spencer, sent a memo on Wednesday to members of the School Board saying, “In early June, a parent reported that a fifth-grade teacher at [...

Erin Andrews Sues Marriott and Radisson Hotels Over Peeping Tom Videos

Posted on July 16, 2010
ESPN star Erin Andrews has filed an interesting torts lawsuit against various hotel chains after a man was able to videotape her in her hotel room. Michael David Barrett was sentenced to 30 months after pleading guilty in a harassment case in federal court in Los Angeles...

Partner Accused of Sexual Harassment Sues Accusing Associate Lawyers

Posted on July 16, 2010
A leading partner at a Toronto law firm has filed a $2.3 million lawsuit against former associates Adrian Jakibchuk, a fourth-year lawyer, and Sarah Diebel, a second-year lawyer, after they accused him of sexual harassment. The firm, Mathews, Dinsdale & Clarke, advises companies on sexual harassment claims and David Cowling, the partner, has sued two [...

Four-Year-Old Boy Dies During Exorcism

Posted on July 16, 2010
The Russian media is reporting that Dmitry Kazachuk, 4, died during an exorcism in the Primorye region. Doctors believe the boy had pneumonia. No one by the shaman was present with the boy when he stopped breathing. The family asked had gone to shaman So Dyavor, 59, and her husband, Kim Sende, 62, to get [...

Ultra-Orthodox Rabbis May Soon Be Given Control Over Defining Who Is Jewish in Israel

Posted on July 16, 2010
Alana Newhouse has an interesting op-ed in the New York Times about a move in the Israeli Knesset that would give the Orthodox rabbinate control of all conversions in Israel. The authority (extending to matters of all Jewish births, marriages and deaths) would allow ultra-Orthodox (or Haredi rabbis) to define who is Jewish under standards [...

North Carolina Man Arrested After Beating His Girlfriend in Hospital Room While She Was Delivering Their Baby

Posted on July 16, 2010
Marquevious Jabar Bell, 20, appears to have flunked out of Lamaze classes. Instead of soothing sounds and helpful counting of breaths, The North Carolina man beat his girlfriend while she was delivering their child in the hospital room. After the couple got angry, Bell slapped his girlfriend across the face and proceeded to repeatedly hit [...

Philadelphia Officers Arrested in Drug Conspiracy

Posted on July 15, 2010
Three Philadelphia police officers have been arrested in an ambitious alleged conspiracy to steal 300 grams of heroin from an alleged drug supplier and then sell the drugs to another drug dealer. The problem is that the second dealer was a DEA agent as was the money launderer...

Connecticut Police Shoot Family Dog in Controversial Arrest

Posted on July 15, 2010
A family in Connecticut is alleging that police shot their dog for no reason in front of their children during a misdemeanor arrest. Police came to the house of Michael Dadio, Sr. to arrest him. He was mowing the lawn and his girlfriend?s kids were playing in the back yard when they tasered Dadio and [...

Nadler Denounces Obama?s Failure to Prosecute Bush Officials For Torture

Posted on July 14, 2010
In an interview with Raw Story, Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) denounced President Barack Obama for blocking any investigation or prosecution of torture under the Bush Administration as inviting ‘tyranny.” Nadler, chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties...

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