“Robocall mishap shows Nevadans don’t want ANY questions at 1 a.m.; Automated message goes out early morning”: Today’s edition of The Las Vegas Review Journal contains an article that begins, “Phone calls that come in the dead of night rarely bring a happy message, even if the voice on the other end of the line belongs to retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. Thanks to human and computer errors, thousands of Nevadans were roused from sleep Monday when an automated telephone message asking voters to consider Question 1 next week went out at 1 a.m. rather than 1 p.m.”
The organization Nevadans for Qualified Judges has issued this apology.
“No Opponent, But Big Money In Illinois Justice’s Race”: This audio segment appeared on today’s broadcast of NPR’s “Morning Edition.”
“Hayes threatened to kill correction officers; Convicted murderer disciplined while awaiting trial”: This article appears today in The New Haven Register.
The Hartford Courant reports today that “Cheshire Case Left Imprint On Prison System, Ex-Commissioner Testifies.” Yesterday’s newspaper reported that “Witness Harassed After Defense Calls Her To Testify In Steven Hayes Case.” And Sunday’s newspaper contained an article headlined “‘My Private Horror Show’: Joshua Komisarjevsky’s Journal Part Confession, Part Analysis Of ‘Demons.’”
“‘Don’t Ask’ Ruling Puts Judge in Spotlight”: law.com has this report.
“Diehl-Armstrong to testify today in ‘pizza bomber’ trial, without psychiatrist”: This article appears today in The Erie (Pa.) Times-News.
“Utah Supreme Court hears arguments on Ogden gang injunction”: The Deseret News contains this article today.
And The Salt Lake Tribune reports today that “Utah Supreme Court mulling Ogden gang injunction.”
“9th Circuit Says Catholic Group Has Standing to Sue San Francisco”: Ginny LaRoe of The Recorder has an article that begins, “With the judges split into unusual voting blocs, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday issued an 8-3 ruling in an Establishment Clause case that is thought to be prime for Supreme Court review.”
My earlier coverage of last Friday’s en banc Ninth Circuit ruling appears at this link.
“Nashville attorney David Randolph Smith leads fight against guns-in-bars law; Attorney remembers clients’ grief”: This article appears today in The Tennessean.
“En Banc 3rd Circuit Set to Hear DNA Samples Case”: Shannon P. Duffy of The Legal Intelligencer has this report.
“Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito Jr. renews Lawyer’s Oath for West Michigan Catholic lawyers”: The Grand Rapids Press contains this article today.
“Two sides in justice retention debate take off on dueling tours”: This article appears today in The Des Moines Register.
“Judge blocks Arizona execution due to drug issue”: The Arizona Republic has a news update that begins, “A federal judge today blocked Tuesday’s planned execution of convicted killer Jeffrey Landrigan until Landrigan’s attorneys and the court have the chance to evaluate the drugs that Arizona has obtained to carry out the execution by lethal injection.”
And The Associated Press reports that “Arizona appeals order blocking execution Tuesday.”
“Gay marriage foes back push to oust Iowa justices”: The Associated Press has this report.
“Arizona draws difficult panel for immigration appeal”: Josh Gerstein has this post at his “Under the Radar” blog at Politico.com.
“Canadian pleads guilty to war crimes at Guantanamo court”: Carol Rosenberg of The Miami Herald has a news update that begins, “Toronto-born Omar Khadr, Guantanamo’s youngest and last Western detainee, pleaded guilty Monday to committing war crimes in 2002 Afghanistan under a plea deal meant to send him home to his native Canada next year.”
The Toronto Globe and Mail has a news update headlined “Omar Khadr pleads guilty to all terrorism charges.”
And The Associated Press reports that “Canadian at Gitmo pleads guilty to all charges.”
“An Indefensible Defense”: Today’s edition of The New York Times contains an editorial that begins, “It can be hard to distinguish between the Bush administration and the Obama administration when it comes to detainee policy. A case the Supreme Court agreed last week to hear, Ashcroft v. al-Kidd, is one of those occasions.”
And today’s edition of The Los Angeles Times contains an editorial entitled “The Ashcroft appeal: Does the former attorney general have immunity in a terrorism-related case? The question at least deserves to be heard in court.”
“Court case seeks to strip sperm donors’ anonymity”: This article appears today in The Toronto Globe and Mail.
“Scalia takes Kagan to gun range, sources say”: The Daily Caller has this report.
“‘Don’t ask’ challenge gains legal traction in ’03 ruling; Court cited right to gay sex”: In Monday’s edition of The Washington Times, Ben Conery will have an article that begins, “The current court challenge to the military’s ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy on homosexuality is far from the first, but a notable 2003 Supreme Court decision may help make it the most likely to succeed.”
“Canadian terror trial deal would test Obama pledge; Resumption of a Canadian’s Guantanamo trial this week could test the Obama administration’s pledge for transparency”: Carol Rosenberg of The Miami Herald has this article.
“Arizona told to reveal source of drug for execution”: Today’s edition of The Arizona Republic contains an article that begins, “A federal judge Saturday night ordered that the state of Arizona ‘immediately and publicly disclose’ where it obtained a drug it intends to use to execute condemned murderer Jeffrey Landrigan on Tuesday. The drama has played out for weeks as defense attorneys have tried to discern where the state found sodium thiopental, a barbiturate that is in short supply. Executions nationwide have been postponed because of the shortage.”
The newspaper has posted the trial court’s order at this link.
“The Times recommends Charlie Wiggins for state Supreme Court”: Monday’s edition of The Seattle Times will contain this editorial, in which the newspaper withdraws its recent earlier endorsement for this judicial post.
“Meet the lawyer who argued money is speech, and won”: Greg Gordon of McClatchy Newspapers has this profile of attorney James Bopp Jr.
Justice Alito and the bobblehead dolls: Josh Blackman has a blog post titled “Supreme Court Historical Society Frank C. Jones Reenactment Series Lecture of Ware v. Hylton.”
According to Blackman’s account, Justice Alito attended the event in person, instead of in bobblehead form.
“Retired Supreme Court justice Stevens finds no justice in flag-burning decision”: This article appeared Saturday in The Las Vegas Review-Journal.
“Texas Supreme Court rejects provision in law that protects one company from asbestos claims”: Yesterday’s edition of The Dallas Morning News contained an article that begins, “The Texas Supreme Court ruled Friday that a law specifically designed to protect one company from older asbestos claims was unconstitutional. The ruling in favor of a plaintiff was a bit of a surprise from the court, which has been criticized by trial lawyers for siding more often with business defendants in these kinds of cases.”
And The Houston Chronicle reported yesterday that “Justices reject tort reform provision; Firm denied protection from asbestos suit.”
Friday’s ruling of the Supreme Court of Texas consisted of a majority opinion, two concurring opinions (here and here), and a dissenting opinion.
In particular, the concurring opinion written by Justice Don R. Willett makes for a very interesting read. It begins:
Litigants in our adversarial system are hard-wired for certitude, adept at insisting the law “clearly” or “plainly” favors their side or, as here, labeling the controlling analysis “straightforward and simple.” If only. Today’s case is both complex and consequential, and fiendishly so. The facts are compelling; the law is unclear; and the stakes are high, not just for these parties but also for our constitutional architecture that both confers and constrains governmental power.
Justice Willett’s concurring opinion also contains a Star Trek reference (click on the footnote link for the citation), as “The Supreme Court of Texas Blog” has noted.
You can access the briefs on appeal via this link, and you can view video of the oral argument by clicking here.
“A political fight provides N.J. Supreme Court with apolitical legal mind”: Today’s edition of The Newark (N.J.) Star-Ledger contains an article that begins, “While Gov. Chris Christie and state Senate President Stephen Sweeney continue their unprecedented political war over a Supreme Court seat, a quiet irony has unfolded. The seat has been filled by an apolitical judge neither man chose.”
“Supremely Bad Judgment”: Columnist Maureen Dowd has this op-ed today in The New York Times.
“David Beats Goliath, Phillies Out of Playoffs”: Bill Baer has this post at the blog “Crashburn Alley.”
David Murphy of The Philadelphia Daily News has a blog post titled “Red Shocktober: It’s All Over.”
And at MLB.com, Adam McCalvy has an article headlined “Silver lining for Phils: Big Three will be back; Halladay, Hamels and Oswalt to slot into top of 2011 rotation.”
“Blind Attorney Goes From Supreme Court Clerk to Appellate Advocate”: Tony Mauro of The National Law Journal has this report.
“Cell Phone Liability Lawsuits Pre-empted by FCC, 3rd Circuit Rules; Suit named 19 defendants, including all of the major cell phone manufacturers and providers, as well as two trade associations”: Shannon P. Duffy will have this article in Monday’s edition of The Legal Intelligencer.
My earlier coverage of yesterday’s Third Circuit ruling appears at this link.
“Iowa court allows lawsuit over softball injuries”: The Associated Press has a report that begins, “An Iowa law limiting lawsuits in contact sports doesn’t prevent a softball player from suing a batter for injuries suffered when a bat hit him in the head, the state Supreme Court ruled Friday. The issue, the court said, is whether the batter’s action were intentional or reckless, and a jury must decide that.”
You can access yesterday’s ruling of the Supreme Court of Iowa at this link.
“Clarence Thomas’s credibility at issue again”: Josh Gerstein has this article at Politico.com.
Saturday’s edition of The New York Times will contain an article headlined “Ex-Companion Details ‘Real’ Thomas.”
And ABCNews.com reports that “Justice Clarence Thomas’ Former Lover Speaks Out on Relationship in TV Interview; Lillian McEwen Says Thomas Had ‘Obsession with Porn,’ Bolsters Anita Hill Testimony.”
“Court rejects suit over S.F.’s blast at Vatican”: Bob Egelko of The San Francisco Chronicle has this news update.
My earlier coverage of today’s en banc Ninth Circuit ruling appears at this link.
“Troy Davis and the appeal puzzle”: Lyle Denniston has this post today at “SCOTUSblog.”
My related post from this morning can be accessed here.
