“No sex needed to get her Series tickets”: Today’s edition of The Philadelphia Daily News contains an article that begins, “Susan Finkelstein, the 43-year-old Southwest Philadelphia woman allegedly willing to trade sex for Phillies tickets, is getting her tickets without sex. On Friday, Finkelstein, the assistant PR director of Penn’s Wistar Institute, will receive two tickets for Saturday’s Phillies-Yankees game, the first one to be played in Philadelphia and the third in the World Series.”
And today’s edition of The New York Daily News contains an article headlined “Was just flirtin’, says Phillies fan Susan Finkelstein in sex-for-tickets bust.”
“Mother challenges Texas law allowing parents to show children pornography”: This article appears today in The Dallas Morning News.
“Lawyer Reposa loses bid to overturn contempt finding”: Chuck Lindell of The Austin American-Statesman has this post today at that newspaper’s “Austin Legal” blog.
And the “Tex Parte Blog” of Texas Lawyer today has a post titled “Austin solo Adam Reposa, who made obscene gesture before judge, loses fight at CCA.”
You can access today’s unpublished ruling of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, that State’s highest court in criminal matters, at this link.
“Court of Appeal: Vulgar Language in Text Messages Was Not Obscene.” Today’s edition of Metropolitan News-Enterprise contains an article that begins, “The Third District Court of Appeal yesterday reversed the delinquency adjudication on a juvenile for making threatening or obscene telephone communication to his ex-girlfriend in a series of text messages which included a multitude of expletives derived from sexually-related themes. In the published portion of its decision, the panel explained that isolated words cannot be extracted from a private message for purposes of imposing criminal liability based on their abstract offensiveness and that the vulgar language employed by the juvenile, a 16-year old identified as C.C., was not obscene.”
And at Wired.com’s “Threat Level” blog, Kevin Poulsen has a post titled “Appeals Court Says Swearing In Text Messages Isn’t a Crime.”
You can access yesterday’s ruling of California’s Court of Appeal for the Third Appellate District at this link.
“Appeals court reinstates Zicam lawsuit”: Howard Fischer of The East Valley Tribune has a news update that begins, “A federal appeals court on Wednesday reinstated a shareholder lawsuit against Scottsdale-based Matrixx Initiatives over what company officials knew about potential dangers from its popular Zicam cold remedy.”
My earlier coverage of today’s Ninth Circuit ruling appears at this link.
“Attorneys argue Conahan, Ciavarella liable for actions on bench”: The Times Leader of Wikles-Barre, Pennsylvania has a news update that begins, “Attorneys appeared before a federal judge today to argue whether former judges Michael Conahan, Mark Ciavarella and certain other defendants are immune from liability in a lawsuit that alleges juveniles were improperly incarcerated.”
The Citizens Voice of Wilkes Barre has a news update headlined “Ciavarella in court today for hearing.”
And The Associated Press reports that “Judges seek immunity in Pa. ‘kids for cash’ case.”
“Batmaker found liable for baseball player’s death”: The Helena Independent Record has this news update.
And The Associated Press reports that “Mont. jury awards $850,000 in aluminum bat lawsuit.”
Unanimous three-judge Ninth Circuit panel issues a decision holding that “a national community standard must be applied in regulating obscene speech on the Internet, including obscenity disseminated via email.” You can access today’s ruling of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit at this link.
XBIZ.com — which describes itself as “the leading adult industry news source” — reports on the ruling in an item headlined “9th Circuit: Obscenity Should Be Defined by U.S. Community Standards.”
“US appeals court reverses dismissal of Zicam complaint against Matrixx”: Reuters has this short report on a ruling that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued today.
Things not mentioned earlier today at “How Appealing”: 1. Game one of the 2009 World Series is tonight, as the New York Yankees host the Philadelphia Phillies. The Honolulu Advertiser today contains this related article. As noted in this post from May 2009, my son and I had the pleasure of rooting for the Phillies at the new Yankee Stadium earlier this year.
2. Today is my 45th birthday. The Associated Press, The New York Times, and Wikipedia provide information about other even more noteworthy things that have happened on October 28th.
“Ceded lands suit to be dismissed”: Today’s edition of The Honolulu Advertiser contains an article that begins, “The Hawaii Supreme Court yesterday ordered the dismissal of claims by the final plaintiff in the ceded lands case, setting the stage for the end of 15 years of litigation.”
And The Associated Press reports that “Hawaii Supreme Court ending ceded lands case.”
You can access yesterday’s ruling of the Supreme Court of Hawaii at this link.
“Supreme Court election crucial to redistricting, leaders say”: This article appears today in The Philadelphia Inquirer.
And today in The Philadelphia Daily News, columnist John Baer has an op-ed entitled “Judicial campaigning under the rule of flaw.”
“Judge Alex Kozinski apologizes for distributing crude jokes; A panel concludes its investigation of the 9th Circuit’s chief judge after he says he has stopped e-mailing his ‘gag list’; No action is taken against him”: Scott Glover has this article today in The Los Angeles Times. Yesterday’s ruling of the Judicial Council of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit does not yet appear to be freely available online.
If this sounds like deja vu all over again to you, you’re right.
Update: The Third Circuit Judicial Council’s ruling that is the subject of today’s article in The Los Angeles Times is dated May 28, 2009 and can be accessed here (via “Patterico“).
“This case presents the novel issue of whether an individual can have a ‘reasonable expectation of privacy’ in a storage unit rented with a stolen identity.” The quote that forms the title of this post is not the plot of an upcoming episode of “Mad Men.” Rather, it’s the opening line of an opinion that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit issued today.
“Case Spurs Pharmacies’ Fears of Lawsuits Over Drug Abuse”: Wednesday’s edition of The Wall Street Journal will contain this article about a case pending before the Supreme Court of Nevada. You can freely access the full text of the article via Google News.
“US Dem Reps Craft Bill To Prevent Easily Dismissing Lawsuits”: Dow Jones Newswires have a report that begins, “Three Democratic lawmakers plan to introduce a bill next week that would override a recent Supreme Court ruling, and make it easier for plaintiffs to get their cases heard in court.”
“Small Law Firm Open Thread: Appellate Law.” David Lat has this post today at “Above the Law.”
“Full judicial panel to decide if torture suit should go to trial; Three judges of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals had ruled that the claims by five men that they were tortured could go to trial; The Justice Department sought and was granted a rehearing”: Carol J. Williams of The Los Angeles Times has this news update.
My earlier coverage of today’s Ninth Circuit order granting rehearing en banc appears here and here.
This evening’s DVD selection: The film “American Violet.” You can access reviews here and here.
“U.S. Wins Bid for Court Rehearing in CIA Torture Suit”: Bloomberg News has this report.
And Howard Mintz of The San Jose Mercury News has an update headlined “Court to reconsider suit against S.J. company linked to torture flights.”
My earlier coverage of today’s Ninth Circuit order granting rehearing en banc appears at this link.
“Appeals panel dismisses Fla. Christian frat case”: The Associated Press has this report on a ruling that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit issued today.
“Waiter, There’s a Gavel in My Soup”: Yesterday at the “City Room” blog of The New York Times, Gay Talese had a post that begins, “My writer friend Sidney Offit and I were dining at Lumi’s on 70th Street and Lexington Avenue on Saturday night with our mutual friend, the enduringly beautiful 78-year-old model Carmen Dell’Orefice; and seated next to our table, quietly engaged in conversation with his wife, Jane, while sipping red wine, was the chief justice of the United States, John G. Roberts Jr.” (Via WSJ.com’s “Law Blog“).
“Wis. group: Justices shouldn’t have to step aside.” The Associated Press has a report that begins, “A powerful business group that spent millions of dollars to help elect two Wisconsin Supreme Court justices is proposing a rule that would allow them to hear its cases.”
And in somewhat related commentary, The Capital Times of Madison, Wisconsin has posted online an editorial entitled “Gableman’s bias is showing.”
“Judge seals damage award against Wyeth”: Today’s edition of The Philadelphia Inquirer contains an article that begins, “A Philadelphia jury yesterday awarded punitive damages to an Illinois woman who said Wyeth’s Prempro hormone replacement therapy caused her breast cancer, but the world will have to wait at least another month before anyone knows how much.”
And Bloomberg News reports that “Pfizer Unit’s Prempro Punitive Damages Verdict Remains Secret.”
“Court to reconsider CIA ‘torture flight’ ruling”: Bob Egelko of The San Francisco Chronicle has a news update that begins, “A federal appeals court granted the Obama administration’s request today to reconsider a ruling allowing foreign captives to sue a Bay Area company that reportedly helped to plan CIA flights to countries where the prisoners were allegedly tortured.”
Via the ACLU’s web page devoted to the case, you can access the federal government’s petition for rehearing en banc and the plaintiffs’ opposition thereto.
You can access today’s order of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit granting rehearing en banc at this link.
In April 2009, a three-judge Ninth Circuit panel issued this ruling in the case, which revived the rendition lawsuit. Next, in August 2009, the three-judge panel issued this amended ruling.
My posts covering the Ninth Circuit’s original ruling can be accessed here and here. And my posts covering the original Ninth Circuit oral argument of the case and previews of that oral argument can be accessed here, here, here, here, and here.
“For Class Actions, It’s All About Location”: Today in The Daily Journal of California, Lawrence Hurley has an article that begins, “When the U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments in a major class action case next month, trial lawyers in California will face a severe threat to their ability to file certain claims in plaintiff-friendly state courts.”
“DC sniper Muhammad set to die by lethal injection”: The Associated Press has this report.
Eleventh Circuit affirms denial of qualified immunity to two police officers who shocked a man, who was neither accused nor suspected of a crime, with a Taser gun at least eight times over a two minute span, ultimately leading to his death: You can access yesterday’s ruling of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit at this link.
“Obama Administration Sides With Investors In Merck Securities Case”: Brent Kendall of Dow Jones Newswires has this report.
“Courthouse Bible plaintiff now targets Houston council prayer”: Mary Flood of The Houston Chronicle has a news update that begins, “The woman who successfully sued to have a Bible removed from a Harris County courthouse display is now suing to stop city council from opening meetings with prayers that she believes are too Christian.”
“Cape Girardeau man released after arrest for flag desecration”: This article appeared yesterday in The Southeast Missourian.
“Supreme Court Justices debate, draw laughs at Tucson event”: The Arizona Daily Star has a news update that begins, “U.S. Supreme Court Justices Antonin Scalia and Stephen Breyer drew laughs from taking a few good-natured jibes at one another, while raising thought-provoking questions about how to interpret the Constitution in an evolving society.”
In The East Valley Tribune, Howard Fischer has a news update headlined “Scalia: Some on court inventing rights.”
The Associated Press has a report headlined “Justice Scalia: Rival doctrine seeks rigidity.”
And the Office of University Communications at the University of Arizona has issued a news release headlined “What Would the Founders Think? During a UA-sponsored event, U.S. Supreme Court Justices Antonin Scalia and Stephen Breyer discussed their personal judicial philosophies in determining how the U.S. Constitution should be interpreted.”
Via the web site of Arizona Public Media, you can view today’s event online by clicking here.
“Pa. jury returns verdict in Prempro-cancer case”: The Associated Press has a report that begins, “A Philadelphia jury returned a sealed punitive-damages verdict Monday against drugmaker Wyeth Pharmaceuticals after finding a link between a woman’s breast cancer and the hormone-replacement drug she took.”
Even more Bashman news from Australia: Tuesday’s edition of The Warrnambool Standard contains an article headlined “Hit men: Thugs paid $50 each to bash man.”
You can learn more about Warrnambool at this link.
“Pa. Jury Weighs Damages in Prempro-Cancer Case; Jury weighs punitive damages in finding Prempro-breast cancer link; thousands of cases pending”: The Associated Press has this report from Philadelphia.
