“Gay marriage opponents quit fight to remove judge”: The Associated Press has this report.

“‘Death for me will be a welcome relief’: Hayes sent to death row for Petit murders.” The New Haven Register has a news update that begins, “In an emotional court session featuring statements from Dr. William Petit Jr. and other family members, as well as from convicted murderer Steven J. Hayes, Superior Court Judge Jon C. Blue sentenced Hayes to six consecutive sentences of death for his role in the Cheshire home invasion that ended in the deaths of Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her two daughters.”

And The Hartford Courant has a news update headlined “Steven Hayes Sentenced To Death; Judge: ‘This Is A Sentence You Wrote Yourself.’”

You can access online the sentencing statements of defendant Steven Hayes and survivor Dr. William Petit Jr.

“Court surprisingly hostile to FOIA exemption”: Tony Mauro has this news analysis online at the First Amendment Center.

You can access the transcript of yesterday’s U.S. Supreme Court oral argument in Milner v. Department of Navy, No. 09-1163, by clicking here.

Proposition 8 judicial disqualification motion denied: That didn’t take long. Today’s order issued by Ninth Circuit Judge Stephen Reinhardt can be accessed here.

“Dr. William Petit To Speak Of Family At Steven Hayes’ Sentencing Thursday; Uncertain If Hayes Will Address Court”: The Hartford Courant has this news update.

The New York Times reports today that “Cheshire Appeal Will Point to Twitter.”

And The Associated Press reports that “Conn. man faces death sentence in home invasion.”

“Scottsdale drugmaker case could change what companies tell investors”: Today’s edition of The Arizona Republic contains an article that begins, “When the U.S. Supreme Court rules in a case on a Scottsdale company’s failure to tell investors about complaints over its Zicam nasal products, the decision could have significant ramifications on what all publicly traded companies must disclose about their products.”

“Miss. judge awaits confirmation; U.S. Senate poised to approve James Graves to Court of Appeals post”: This article appears today in The Clarion-Ledger of Jackson, Mississippi.

The National Transportation Safety Board has posted online the preliminary aviation accident report for Gregory S. Coleman’s November 23, 2010 flight to Destin, Florida: You can view the report by clicking here.

“Prop. 8 sponsors ask judge to disqualify himself”: Bob Egelko has this article today in The San Francisco Chronicle.

Howard Mintz of The San Jose Mercury News reports today that “Proposition 8 backers move to bump liberal judge from appeal.”

The Associated Press reports that “Judge asked to disqualify himself in Prop. 8 case.”

And at “SCOTUSblog,” Lyle Denniston has a post titled “Prop. 8: Circuit Judge challenged; Backers of California’s Proposition 8 ban on same-sex marriage seek removal of a liberal judge from the Ninth Circuit panel hearing the case next week.”

You can access the disqualification motion at this link.

“Tossing illegally obtained evidence only helps the guilty, former judge says”: The Salt Lake Tribune has this news update. The former judge is law professor Paul G. Cassell, who advanced the position while arguing a case earlier today before the Supreme Court of Utah.

“Mississippi Supreme Court Justice James Graves Jr. clears hurdle for federal bench”: The Clarion-Ledger of Jackson, Mississippi has a news update that begins, “The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee has approved state Supreme Court Justice James Graves Jr. to become a judge on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.”

“Man sentenced to prison under Stolen Valor Act”: The Las Vegas Review-Journal has this news update.

In the December 2010 issue of The ABA Journal magazine: The cover story is headlined “The 4th Annual ABA Journal Blawg 100: Our 100 Favorite Blawgs.” This blog is listed in the news category.

And Mark Walsh has an article headlined “Raising Arizona: High Court Eyes State’s Punishments for Hiring Unauthorized Aliens.”

“Obama nominates Judge Bernice Donald for U.S. Court of Appeals”: The Memphis Commercial Appeal has this news update.

And The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has a news update headlined “Hornak appointed to federal court bench by Obama.”

“President Obama Nominates Judge Bernice Bouie Donald for United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit”: The White House issued this news release today.

You can learn more about the nominee both here and here.

“The judges of a circuit not only share the same title, pay and terms of office, but they also agree to follow the same judicial oath, making them all equally susceptible to error and making it odd to think of the delegation of decisionmaking authority to panels of three as nothing more than an audition.” Sixth Circuit Judge Jeffrey S. Sutton provides an example of the exercise of judicial restraint in his opinion concurring in the denial of rehearing en banc issued today.

The original three-judge panel’s ruling on the case can be accessed here.

“High court questions broad use of FOIA exemption”: Mark Sherman of The Associated Press has this report.

You can access the transcript of today’s U.S. Supreme Court oral argument in Milner v. Department of Navy, No. 09-1163, by clicking here.

Amendments to the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure take effect today: You can access the amended rules by clicking here. More background on these amendments can be accessed via this link.

According to a “How Appealing” reader who is intimately involved in the FRAP amendment process, “The FRAP change that is likely to be of most interest to your readers is the adoption of new Appellate Rule 29(c)(5), which adopts for the courts of appeals an amicus-brief authorship-and-funding disclosure requirement modeled on Supreme Court Rule 37.6.”

“Breyer argues for ‘good faith’ on high court rulings”: Joan Biskupic has this article today in USA Today.