How Appealing



Thursday, February 28, 2013

“U.S. Asks That Justices Reject California Gay Marriage Ban”: John Schwartz and Adam Liptak will have this article Friday in The New York Times.

In Friday’s edition of The Washington Post, Robert Barnes will have an article headlined “Obama urges Supreme Court to overturn California same-sex marriage ban.”

In Friday’s edition of The Los Angeles Times, David G. Savage and Christi Parsons will have an article headlined “White House asks justices to reject Prop. 8; In a Supreme Court brief backing same-sex marriage, the Obama administration makes an argument that would also affect laws in seven other states.”

In Friday’s edition of The Wall Street Journal, Jess Bravin will have an article headlined “Obama Urges End to Gay Ban.”

Michael Doyle of McClatchy Newspapers reports that “In upcoming Supreme Court fight, Obama lines up behind gay marriage.”

Howard Mintz of The San Jose Mercury News reports that “President Obama calls for U.S. Supreme Court to strike down California’s gay marriage ban.”

And on this evening’s broadcast of NPR’s “All Things Considered,” Nina Totenberg had audio segments titled “Obama Administration To File Brief Urging Supreme Court To Strike Down Prop. 8” and “Obama Administration Brief Doesn’t Call For End To Bans On Gay Marriage.”

Posted at 11:35 PM by Howard Bashman



“Court decision on Voting Rights Act could spur election changes, but not turn back the clock”: Tom Curry, national affairs writer for NBC News, has this report.

Posted at 10:32 PM by Howard Bashman



“U.S. endorses limited gay marriage right”: Lyle Denniston has this post at “SCOTUSblog,” which has posted a copy of the brief at this link.

In conjunction with the filing of the brief, the U.S. Department of Justice issued the “Statement by Attorney General Eric Holder on the U.S. Government’s Filing in Hollingsworth v. Perry.”

In other coverage, The Associated Press reports that “Obama urges court to overturn gay marriage ban.”

An updated report from Lawrence Hurley and David Ingram of Reuters is headlined “Obama urges high court to allow gay marriage in California.”

Richard Wolf and David Jackson of USA Today report that “Obama forcefully opposes ban on gay marriage; The Supreme Court filing in the California case is significant because the administration did not have to get involved at all; It completes President Obama’s ‘evolution’ on the controversial issue.”

And Bob Egelko of The San Francisco Chronicle reports that “Obama adminstration urges end to Prop. 8.”

Posted at 7:32 PM by Howard Bashman



“Obama Lawyers Said to Back Gay Marriage at U.S. High Court”: Greg Stohr of Bloomberg News has a report that begins, “The Obama administration will urge the U.S. Supreme Court to reinstate same-sex marriage in California, taking a stand in a historic case that could lead to gay nuptials across the country, an administration official said. The filing will come just hours before the court’s deadline, ending months of White House and Justice Department deliberations.”

Lawrence Hurley and David Ingram of Reuters report that “Obama to urge Supreme Court to allow gay marriage in California.”

Adam Liptak of The New York Times has a news update headlined “U.S. to Urge Justices to End California Gay Marriage Ban.”

And Christi Parsons and David G. Savage of The Los Angeles Times have a news update headlined “Obama administration urges Supreme Court to strike down Prop. 8.”

Posted at 5:50 PM by Howard Bashman



“You be the prosecutor: what state sentence should be sought for Joan Orie Melvin and her sister?” Douglas A. Berman has this post today at his “Sentencing Law and Policy” blog.

Posted at 1:45 PM by Howard Bashman



“In DOMA Supreme Court Case, 15 States Say Not Recognizing Gay Marriage Is Unconstitutional”: Ryan J. Reilly of The Huffington Post has this report.

Posted at 1:34 PM by Howard Bashman



“Khalid Sheikh Mohammed’s Trial at Gitmo — Neal Katyal; The former Acting Solicitor General talks about the U.S. justice system, courtroom bugging and the future of Guantanamo Bay”: This video segment appeared on last night’s broadcast of Comedy Central’s “The Colbert Report.”

Posted at 1:22 PM by Howard Bashman



Girls Gone Wild concedes its economic bankruptcy: Bloomberg News reports that “‘Girls Gone Wild’ Files Bankruptcy to Fight Vegas Debt.”

And in other coverage, the “Betabeat” blog of The New York Observer has a post titled “Girls No Longer Wild: Infamous Porn Franchise Files for Bankruptcy; Who needs to buy VHS tapes when free porn can be yours for just one click?

Stay tuned to see whether this development will affect next Wednesday’s GGW-related oral argument scheduled at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, which I previously previewed in the second half of my earlier post titled “Boobies now and boobies later in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.”

Posted at 1:11 PM by Howard Bashman



“State Supreme Court throws out two-thirds vote to raise taxes; The state Supreme Court on Thursday struck down a requirement for a two-thirds vote in the Legislature to increase taxes”: The Seattle Times has a news update that begins, “The state Supreme Court on Thursday made it easier for state lawmakers to increase taxes. The court, in a 6-3 ruling, decided a state law requiring a two-thirds vote in the Legislature to increase taxes is unconstitutional.”

And SeattlePI.com reports that “High court guts voter-approved tax control initiative.”

You can access today’s ruling of the Supreme Court of Washington at this link.

Posted at 1:03 PM by Howard Bashman



“Flyers deemed hate speech”: Today’s edition of The StarPhoenix of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada contains an article that begins, “To many, the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in the case of the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission vs. William Whatcott was a triumph for the rights of vulnerable groups to be protected from the harm caused by extreme expressions of hate and discrimination. To others, it was a triumph of censorship and a blow against the democratic principles of freedom of expression and religion.”

And the Toronto Globe and Mail reports today that “Supreme Court ruling upholds limits on free speech in case involving anti-gay proselytizer.”

You can access yesterday’s unanimous ruling of the Supreme Court of Canada at this link.

Posted at 11:50 AM by Howard Bashman



“It’s time to stop electing judges”: Lynn A. Marks and Suzanne Almeida have this op-ed today in The Patriot-News of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Posted at 11:44 AM by Howard Bashman



“Sperm donor case: Former same-sex partner seeks involvement; Supreme Court decision cited in court filings made Wednesday.” In today’s edition of The Topeka Capital-Journal, Tim Hrenchir has an article that begins, “Citing a first-of-its-kind Kansas Supreme Court ruling made Friday, Topekan Angela Bauer on Wednesday sought the right to intervene in a case in which the state contends sperm donor William Marotta is legally the father of the daughter born to her former lesbian partner, Jennifer Schreiner.”

Posted at 11:33 AM by Howard Bashman



“Same-sex marriage: Field Poll finds California voters now strongly support gay marriage.” Howard Mintz of The San Jose Mercury News has this report.

Posted at 11:23 AM by Howard Bashman



“Obama nears deadline on gay marriage decision”: The Associated Press has a report that begins, “The next phase of President Barack Obama’s evolving position on gay marriage may come Thursday, the deadline for his administration to weigh in on a landmark Supreme Court case that could determine whether same-sex couples have a constitutional right to wed.”

Posted at 11:11 AM by Howard Bashman



“Senate overrides veto of 20-week abortion ban”: Arkansas News has this report. According to the article, “With the Senate action, the 20-abortion ban became effective immediately, giving Arkansas one of the most restrictive abortion laws in the nation.”

Posted at 11:09 AM by Howard Bashman



“Idaho baseball fan permitted to sue stadium over lost eye”: Reuters has a report that begins, “An Idaho man who lost an eye after being hit by a ball during a minor league baseball game can move forward with a lawsuit against stadium owners and the team, the Idaho Supreme Court said.”

And The Associated Press reports that “Man who lost eye at Hawks Stadium can sue for damages.”

You can access last Friday’s unanimous ruling of the Supreme Court of Idaho at this link.

The injury was sustained at Memorial Stadium, home of the Boise Hawks, the Northwest League short season class A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs.

Based solely on team logo design, my favorite Northwest League team is the Everett, Washington-based Aquasox, host of the 2013 Northwest League All-Star Game.

Posted at 11:04 AM by Howard Bashman



Supreme Court of Virginia issues ruling in law blog-related attorney discipline, free speech case: Thanks to a reader who forwarded a link to the decision while noting that the “How Appealing” blog is mentioned on page 11 of the majority opinion.

If I understand today’s ruling correctly, “How Appealing” is cited as an example of an attorney’s blog that would enjoy full First Amendment protection under the Supreme Court of Virginia’s ruling, while the blog that is the subject of today’s ruling, by a vote of 5-to-2, does not.

Posted at 10:33 AM by Howard Bashman



“Voting Law Decision Could Sharply Limit Scrutiny of Rules”: Charlie Savage will have this article in Friday’s edition of The New York Times.

Posted at 10:09 AM by Howard Bashman