How Appealing



Monday, July 30, 2007

“Complaints filed against Supreme Court justice; Judge accepted illegal discount on his legal bill, group says”: The Austin American-Statesman last week published an article that begins, “An advocacy group has filed three complaints against Texas Supreme Court Justice Nathan Hecht, alleging that he broke the law when he accepted a $100,000 discount on legal bills. Texas Watch filed the complaints Tuesday with the Travis County district attorney’s office, the State Commission on Judicial Conduct and the Texas Ethics Commission. The nonprofit advocacy group for consumers said Hecht received a discount of up to 25 percent on legal expenses for his appeal of an ethics rebuke. The State Commission on Judicial Conduct reprimanded Hecht for his support of friend Harriet Miers’ 2005 nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court, alleging that he improperly used his official position to promote Miers. However, a special review court tossed out the sanction.”

The Houston Chronicle reported last week that “Texas high court justice under review for attorney discount.”

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported last week that “Complaint filed against state court justice.”

The Daily Texan reported last week that “Hecht faces complaints on legal fees.”

And Texas Lawyer reports that “Complaints Filed Over Discounted Fees for Texas Justice Caught in Miers Nomination Flap.”

Posted at 11:44 PM by Howard Bashman



“Chief Justice Roberts Suffers Seizure”: The Associated Press provides a report that begins, “Chief Justice John Roberts suffered a seizure at his summer home in Maine on Monday, causing a fall that resulted in minor scrapes, Supreme Court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg said. He will remain in a hospital in Maine overnight.”

The Washington Post provides a news update headlined “Supreme Court Chief Suffers a Seizure.”

The Courier-Gazette of Rockland, Maine provides a news update headlined “Chief Justice Roberts to spend night at hospital.”

CNN.com reports that “Chief justice tumbles after seizure.”

Bloomberg News reports that “Chief Justice Roberts Falls After Seizure, Court Says.”

Reuters reports that “Chief Justice Roberts suffers seizure, fall.”

And in this post at “SCOTUSblog,” you can access the U.S. Supreme Court‘s official statement issued this evening.

Posted at 7:28 PM by Howard Bashman



“Chief Justice Roberts hospitalized; He was at his vacation home in Maine when he fell, court says”: NBC News provides this breaking news.

At “SCOTUSblog,” Lyle Denniston has a post that begins, “Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., fell at his vacation home in Maine at mid-afternoon, and was taken to a hospital in the area ‘as a precaution,’ the Supreme Court disclosed Monday. There were no immediate details on whether he was injured, or how severely, or about the circumstances of his fall, according to Kathleen L. Arberg, the Court’s public information officer.”

The Associated Press reports that “Supreme Court Chief Taken to Hospital.”

Bill Mears and Jean Meserve of CNN report that “Chief Justice tumbles at Maine summer home.” Additionally, Jeffrey Toobin, reporting on CNN television, stated at 3:50 p.m. eastern time that the fall occurred around 2 p.m. eastern time this afternoon.

Bloomberg News reports that “Chief Justice John Roberts Hospitalized After Fall .”

And Reuters reports that “Chief Justice Roberts taken to hospital.”

Posted at 3:22 PM by Howard Bashman



Unanimous three-judge Eighth Circuit panel rejects Angela Johnson’s efforts to overturn the federal death sentence imposed against her: According to Wikipedia, Johnson is “the first woman sentenced to die by a federal court in over 50 years.” Today’s decision was not a total loss for Johnson, in that she appears to have achieved the vacation of four death sentences and one sentence of life imprisonment. Unfortunately for her, she began the appeal facing eight death sentences and two sentences of life imprisonment, meaning that she still faces four death sentences and one sentence of life imprisonment.

Extensive coverage of the underlying trial is available online via this link from The Globe Gazette of Mason City, Iowa.

Posted at 11:54 AM by Howard Bashman



“Gun control goes to court? The Supreme Court may takes its first 2nd Amendment case in more than 60 years.” This editorial appears today in The Los Angeles Times.

Posted at 8:30 AM by Howard Bashman



“Appeals jurist takes senior status; Widener’s departure brings 4th Circuit vacancies to five”: This article appears today in The Richmond Times-Dispatch.

The newspaper also contains a related editorial entitled “Vacancies.”

Posted at 8:02 AM by Howard Bashman



“Solicitor faced with crucial decision but few guidelines”: Today’s issue of USA Today contains an article that begins, “Any decision to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate Attorney General Alberto Gonzales for allegedly lying to Congress rests with his subordinate, Solicitor General Paul Clement, who has few rules to guide him.”

And at her “Legalities” blog, ABC News correspondent Jan Crawford Greenburg has a post titled “Clement and His Options.”

Posted at 7:52 AM by Howard Bashman



“Judging the Judges”: The New York Sun today contains an editorial that begins, “It is no small thing that a federal judge had to tell the state’s presiding administrative judges that they flubbed the First Amendment when drafting new rules about attorney advertising in the State of New York.”

Posted at 7:50 AM by Howard Bashman



“Solons Aim To Reverse Ruling Curbing Asylum for Chinese”: Today in The New York Sun, Joseph Goldstein has an article that begins, “Congress, led by members of New York’s delegation, is considering whether to ease the granting of political asylum to those affected by China’s forcible sterilization and abortion policies.”

Posted at 7:48 AM by Howard Bashman



“After Flawed Executions, States Resort to Secrecy”: You can access at this link (TimesSelect temporary pass-through link) today’s installment of Adam Liptak‘s “Sidebar” column.

Posted at 7:44 AM by Howard Bashman



“An Unsolved Killing: What does the firing of a U.S. Attorney have to do with a murder case?” Jeffrey Toobin has this article about the murder of Seattle-based Assistant U.S. Attorney Tom Wales in the August 6, 2007 issue of The New Yorker.

Posted at 7:35 AM by Howard Bashman