How Appealing



Monday, December 14, 2009

“Court will rule on privacy of text messages sent on employer-owned devices; The police department in Ontario, Calif., was sued after the chief read sexually explicit texts sent by officers; An appeals court sided with officers, saying they had an expectation of privacy”: David G. Savage of The Los Angeles Times has this news update.

Posted at 2:58 PM by Howard Bashman



“Supreme Court refuses case on Guantanamo detainees and torture; The case of four Britons, held two years by the US, sought to clarify legal protections for Guantanamo detainees, including regarding torture and harsh government tactics; Supreme Court justices on Monday declined to hear the case”: Warren Richey of The Christian Science Monitor has this report.

And Greg Stohr of Bloomberg News reports that “U.S. High Court Rejects Appeal Alleging Torture at Guantanamo.”

Posted at 2:55 PM by Howard Bashman



“Supreme Court Grants Cert on Fourth Amendment Protection in Text Messages”: Orin Kerr has this post at “The Volokh Conspiracy.”

Posted at 1:48 PM by Howard Bashman



“The Role of the U.S. Solicitor General”: You can view this past Saturday’s broadcast of C-SPAN’s “America & the Courts” program online, on-demand by clicking here.

C-SPAN provides this description: “Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy made opening remarks before a panel discussion on the role of the Solicitor General. Three former U.S. Solicitor Generals gave insights on the duties associated with the job, including arguing before the Supreme Court.”

Posted at 12:08 PM by Howard Bashman



Access online today’s Order List of the U.S. Supreme Court: The Court has posted today’s Order List at this link. The Court granted review in three cases and called for the views of the Solicitor General in one case.

At “SCOTUSblog,” Lyle Denniston has a post titled “Torture, Chrysler cases ended; 3 grants.”

And in early news coverage, The Associated Press reports that “Court to review employer access to worker messages“; “Court rejects new appeal of Chrysler sale“; “Court won’t hear appeal from ex-Gitmo prisoners“; and “High court to rule on deportation issue.”

Posted at 10:07 AM by Howard Bashman



“Judges confounded by jury’s access to cyberspace; Panelists can do own research on Web, confer outside courthouse”: Yesterday’s edition of The Baltimore Sun contained this article.

Posted at 9:40 AM by Howard Bashman



“State Commission on Judicial Conduct has the job of judging Texas’ judges”: This article appears today in The Dallas Morning News.

Posted at 8:00 AM by Howard Bashman



“The Supreme Court leaves Washington in the lurch”: Politico.com has a report that begins, “The U.S. Supreme Court has put off until next year a ruling that could remake the political landscape for the 2010 midterm elections, and that’s making things tricky for those eagerly awaiting the decision, including political professionals, regulators, advocacy groups and even the White House.”

Posted at 7:34 AM by Howard Bashman



“Judging the judges: Does secret process let errant jurists get away with breaking the law?” Today in The Houston Chronicle, Lise Olsen has an article that begins, “One federal judge got arrested for driving drunk while dressed in drag. Others stood accused of frequenting prostitutes, a strip club and a shady escort service; sexually assaulting female court employees; sucker-punching a stranger; or slapping a spouse. Federal judges have made illegal campaign contributions, falsified court records, and illegally concealed cash gifts and gambling debts. Many more have engaged in unethical or irresponsible acts, according to an investigation by the Houston Chronicle of more than 3,000 judicial misconduct matters nationwide and analysis of related records over 10 years.”

The newspaper also contains a related article headlined “Despite troubles, some on bench keep salaries; Those who do admit misdeeds don’t always leave the public payroll.”

Posted at 7:20 AM by Howard Bashman