Like it or not, there are two sides to the compelling #metoo movement. On the one hand, the courage of sexual harassment victims speaking up and calling out perpetrators or workplace sexual harassment and abuse will almost certainly create a safer working environment for our children. But there’s also been an undercurrent of frivolous, meritless and criminal extortion attempts at profiting from the #metoo movement in Connecticut, with false claims and accusations of sexual harassment in Connecticut companies being lodged against innocent executives, solely for the purpose of scaring them into six and seven-figure settlements. These are that are trying to ride the coattails of legitimate sexual harassment cases, but that are nothing more than consensual workplace affairs and relationships, dressed up as sexual harassment lawsuits by lawyers who claims to be top Connecticut sexual harassment lawyers. So before you start panicking and paying off accusers, first figure out…
Fighting Connecticut Sexual Harassment & Extortion Claims & Accusations
↧
↧
"It's still too easy to push blacks, minorities off of juries"
Jeffrey Bellin (William & Mary) has this piece at USA Today. In part: The ruling in Connecticut v. Holmes — the appeal of a Connecticut murder case that ultimately landed a black man in prison after a potential African-American juror...
↧
IA: SW for taking blood includes testing it
The search warrant authorized taking defendant’s blood so it impliedly permitted testing it as well. The expectation of privacy is already reduced by the blood draw by authorization of law. State v. Frescoln, 2017 Iowa App. LEXIS 1227 (Dec. 6, … Continue reading →
↧
Journalists failing to call out official lies in Austin police contract debate
Local, mainstream media coverage of the Austin police union contract - which was rejected Wednesday night after a dramatic, 8-hour special-called city-council meeting - has been disturbingly bad. People whom I've considered good reporters on other topics have written pablum-filled junk on this one. For the most part, journalists appeared to go out of their way to avoid reporting factual information when it was provided by advocates or movement leaders, and instead chose to report spin and outright falsehoods from the police union and (to a slightly lesser extent) police department management.With the exception of Michael Barajas at the Texas Observer, most reporters leading up to the council vote portrayed opposition to the contract as coming from only a handful of critics, often suggesting Austin Justice Coalition's Chas Moore was the sole, vocal opponent.The Austin Statesman at one point estimated that "several" activists opposed the contract, and after…
↧
Law Review: Government Analysis of Shed DNA Is a Search under the Fourth Amendment
Government Analysis of Shed DNA Is a Search under the Fourth Amendment by Tracey Maclin, Boston Univeristy School of Law, 48 Texas Tech Law Review 287 (2015) (http://ssrn.com/abstract=2685766). Abstract: This article addresses whether the Fourth Amendment is implicated when police … Continue reading →
↧
↧
¿INMORALIDAD O UN SANTO VARÓN?
No se malogren el hígado el gringo viejo ya fue y estas son mis razones, si no les gustan tengo otras igual de importantes, jejeje!! A ver, no debemos olvidar que estamos frente al ciudadano que3 personifica la Nación, NO se está discutiendo hechos sucedidos en su administración sino el ocultamiento de los que realizó antes de ser elegido Presidente Constitucional del Perú que, de haber sido conocidos es posible que su postulación no hubiera prosperado. Lo que descalifica a PPK es haber mentido, no es relevante, en estos momentos si los negocios que tenía y el dinero que cobró de una empresa corrupta (no se sabía entonces las dimensiones de la corrupción o si esta existía) fueron para que favoreciera a dicha compañía mediante la emisión de bonos siendo él Ministro de Economía o que los realizó de buena fe y que no sabía para quien era el…
↧
"Why hiring people with criminal records benefits all of us"
↧
Current Media Explosion of Sexual Assault Accusations: Rights of those Falsely Accused?
In my previous post on this important subject, I talked about the recent literal explosion in accusations and allegations of “sexual assault” being made against a wide variety of individuals – against the famous and anonymous alike. I’m writing about this because I’ve been receiving a considerable number of phone calls recently – from both men and women alike – worried that they, too, might be accused of “sexual assault” – for the most minor of events. For things that, frankly, strain belief that someone would make such a serious allegation. This explosion of “sexual assault” allegations have followed the ‘shocking’ news that a physically unattractive Hollywood producer – Harvey Weinstein – had a “casting couch,” and would pressure certain actresses for sex if they wanted to appear in his films. To begin with, to my knowledge, the actions that Weinstein…
↧
Taking a lengthy look at the ever-uncertain state of federal marijuana policies and practices
Politico magazine has this lengthy (but somewhat superficial) article on the current state of federal marijuana debate and discourse under this full headline: "Jeff Sessions Isn’t Giving up on Weed. He’s Doubling Down. Congressional dysfunction may do what the pot-hating attorney general hasn’t managed to do all year: Remove protections...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MarijuanaLaw/~4/PgauGIyA8Ng" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>
↧
↧
techdirt: Cop Shuts Off Dashcam During Drug Dog Sniff. Appeals Court: This Is Fine.
techdirt: Cop Shuts Off Dashcam During Drug Dog Sniff. Appeals Court: This Is Fine. by Tim Cushing
↧
Words and Phrases
When a lawyer goes on a road trip from his home jurisdiction, he quickly learns that they do things differently elsewhere. Maybe just a little. Maybe a lot. But there’s almost always some local quirk. It may be the format used in papers. It may be special words. Whatever it is, it pays to know the distinctions. With that in mind, a question was posed as to which state appellate courts used the word “plenary” as opposed to “de novo.” Both express pretty much the same thing, that the standard of review by the court would be anew, as if for the first time, without deference to the court below. This is a very big deal when it comes to appeals. It can spell the difference between success and failure. But does a non-lawyer appreciate the significance of the standard of review? Does he even know what it means? There has been a movement in law toward “plain language,” the elimination of legalisms, Latin, jargon, not to mention the adoration of…
↧
Short Take: Andrea Ramsey Meets The Wheels Of The Bus
It’s all because of “toxic masculinity”? Tell that to Kansas Democrat Andrea Ramsey. Democrat Andrea Ramsey dropped out of the race to take on Kansas GOP Rep. Kevin Yoder, after sexual harassment allegations surfaced against her — and, she claimed, national Democrats abandoned her campaign. Ramsey announced she was pulling out of the race Friday, in a lengthy statement denying that she engaged in any harassment or retaliation against a former colleague. Wait, what? A woman? A Democrat? Sexual harassment? That’s not supposed to happen. And yet, it did. The case stems from Ramsey’s time as vice president of human resources at the company LabOne, according to the Kansas City Star. She allegedly made sexual advances towards a subordinate and retaliated against him when he rebuffed them. The man was eventually fired. He sued the company and included the accusations against Ramsey in the case, which was eventually…
↧
Seaton: Rocky Top Crumbles Under Cries of Hate Speech
The University of Tennessee at Knoxville is home to a unique monument called “the Rock.” Tradition holds that anyone can paint any message they like on the boulder. That tradition died Thursday when someone offended a student with their message. Aleah Vassell noticed someone painted the Rock with the words “White Pride” and immediately told a classmate, McKinley Merritt. Ms. Merritt saw the offensive painting, took a picture of it, and twitted it to the University of Tennessee’s main account. @UTKnoxville this was seen on the rock approx 30 minutes ago and is not okay. Fortunately an adult with reason and a grasp of what “free speech” means saw the twit and responded with a perfectly logical, even handed message. Hi McKinley. While we sometimes disagree with what appears on the Rock, those who paint it are protected by the First Amendment. We trust that the Volunteer community will take care of this quickly. Regular readers, or those…
↧
↧
KY: Confrontation clause doesn’t apply in suppression hearings
The Sixth Amendment’s confrontation clause doesn’t apply to a suppression hearing to get the typical CI on the stand to attack his reliability. [Now, if the CI was a material witness to the case under Roviaro, likely so.] Hawkins v. … Continue reading →
↧
Do You Need Grounds for Filing a Divorce?
North Carolina law does not require the finding of fault in order to receive a divorce. In many divorces, the couple simply does not want to remain together or one spouse wants to end the marriage. If there has not been any infidelity or other marital misconduct, these cases are known as no-fault divorces. How to Get a No-Fault Divorce The requirements for getting a no-fault divorce in North Carolina are simple. You just need to live apart from your spouse for one year, and at least one spouse needs to have lived in North Carolina for six months. You must live in separate residences during this one-year period. Living in separate bedrooms in the same home is not sufficient to be considered separation. Once the one-year period has elapsed, you can file for a divorce in your county’s district court. You should also consult with an attorney during this time to discuss common legal issues like getting a separation agreement and negotiating alimony and property distribution.…
↧
THE BEST LEGAL MOVIES
Happy Sunday! It's your favorite Girl Blogger under 30 Millennial Me! 👩 Still the only blogger in the history the justice building blog to us an emoji. And that record won't be broken any time soon we are guessing.We've been reading Rumpole since law school and we know that come holiday season he likes to do best of lists. We thought about doing best local restaurants (Eating House or Dirt on South Beach or Milos for seafood), or best books (but Rumpole has already done that) so we settled on Best Legal Movies. 1. The Verdict with Paul Newman. First, there are Newman's icy cold blue eyes....😍but the story is great. Alcoholic lawyer, down on his luck, has only one case- a med mal case and goes up against the Archdiocese of Boston and the biggest law firm in Boston with a crooked Judge sitting on the case ruling against him. But the movie has some of the best lines ever: When discussing the only expert witness the…
↧
Executing non-killers, imagining life without plea bargaining, no oversight for forensic hypnosis, and other stories
Here's a brief, browser-tab clearing roundup of items about which I haven't had time to blog, but of which Grits readers should be aware:Forensic commission can't address 'forensic hypnosis'First, updating an earlier Grits report, I communicated with Lynn Garcia, General Counsel for the Texas Forensic Science Commission, who informs me that forensic hypnosis does not fall under their jurisdiction, even as a general area they're authorized to study, because it does not involve "physical evidence," which is defined in the statute as something tangible. She said they've received complaints about the practice in the past, including one recently, and agrees it's problematic, but doesn't believe it falls within their jurisdiction. While I understand her legal interpretation, that leads to an unfortunate situation where government-sanctioned junk science (the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement gives out certifications in forensic…
↧
↧
Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the Continued Appearance of Racism
Appearances of racism have haunted President Donald J. Trump since the very day he announced his intention to seek the American presidency. During his campaign and even more during his tenure as president, Trump has either allied himself with or spoken admiringly about people who have deep ties to white nationalism and Neo-Nazi beliefs, such as political strategist Steve Bannon and Sabastian Gorka. The appearance of racism in the Trump political orbit gained credence when the president appointed Alabama Senator Jeff Session as Attorney General of the United States. Sessions’ political career has always been dogged by accusations of racism. Sessions and Shadow of Racism For example, in 1986, Sessions was an assistant U.S. Attorney in Alabama when President Ronald Reagan nominated the 39-year-old prosecutor to a federal judgeship. That nomination was derailed when credible evidence surfaced that Sessions had a history of using the n-word and held the Ku…
↧
TN: Multiple mistakes on time of issuance of SW supported suppression under state law
Multiple typos on the time of issuance of the blood warrant (2044, 2244, 2244 pm, 2244 am) resulted in the trial court’s suppressing the warrant. The facts don’t preponderate against the findings of the trial court because the witnesses were … Continue reading →
↧
Case o' The Week: A Present in the Johnson Stocking - Jones, Arizona Armed Robbery, and ACCA "Crime of Violence"
Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year, Mr. Jones.United States v. Rick Allen Jones, 2017 WL 6395827 (9thCir. Dec. 15, 2017), decision available here.Players: Per curiam decision with Judges M. Smith, Motz, and Nguyen. Big win for AFPD Keith Hilzendeger, District of Arizona. Facts: Jones pleaded guilty to 18 USC § 922(g)(1). Id. at *1. The court found he had been convicted of at least three violent felonies, and sentenced him under the ACCA. Id. After the Supreme Court’s 2015 Johnson decision and Welch, Jones filed a § 2255 motion attacking these priors. Id. The district court denied the motion. Issue(s): “Of Jones’s five prior felony convictions, three were for armed robbery under Arizona Revised Statutes § 13-1904. Therefore, whether Jones is subject to the ACCA’s fifteen-year mandatory minimum sentence depends on whether these convictions qualify as violent felonies.” Id. (footnotes omitted).…
↧
More Pages to Explore .....
