Recent Updates
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Racism Alleged In Bizarre Punishment
Recent Cases 08/28/2008Top administrators at a Camden middle school forced an entire bilingual class of Hispanic children to eat on the cafeteria floor for a week because one student accidentally spilled some water, and when the teacher complained, the principal and vice p...
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EPA Can Inspect Ship for Chemicals, Court Rules
Recent Cases 08/27/2008The Environmental Protection Agency can inspect a former U.S. Navy hospital ship for toxic chemicals, the 4th circuit ruled. The EPA was issued a warrant under the Toxic Substances Control Act to board the M/V Sanctuary, built in 1944, to test for po...
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Court upholds sentence for I-65 sniper
Recent Cases 08/24/2008An attorney for 19-year-old Zachariah Blanton had appealed the sentence as inappropriate, arguing that the shooting “was a more or less routine act of manslaughter, if such a thing is said to exist.”But in an eight-page ruling, the court disagreed, n...
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City of New York reaches settlement in unlawful arrest suit
Recent Cases 08/21/2008The City of New York agreed to pay approximately $2 million to settle a lawsuit brought by protesters who had claimed they had been illegally arrested, according to Tuesday statements made by the city's Law Department. In April 2003, city police arre...
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Fifth Circuit rules on jurors using Bible
Recent Cases 08/15/2008The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on Thursday refused to grant a writ of habeas corpus to convicted murder Khristian Oliver, who had argued that his Sixth and Eighth Amendment rights were violated when the jury took Bible passages into ac...
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Unsafe Practices Alleged At Firing Range
Recent Cases 08/14/2008Andrews International, which runs a purportedly "lead-free" firing range in Burbank, fired its managers for protesting that company owner Randy Andrews repeatedly allowed lead bullets to be fired there, including a case where actor Brendan Andrews fi...
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Woman Says Northwestern Won't Protect Her
Recent Cases 08/13/2008A student claims that after she was raped by a fellow student, Northwestern University violated its own rules and delayed taking action against her rapist, subjecting her to further, distressing contact with him. Plaintiff Sarah Poe sued Northwestern...
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VA Properly Denied Voter Registration, Court Rules
Recent Cases 08/12/2008The Department of Veterans Affairs was fair in its denial of a Democratic group's attempt to register voters at one of its buildings, the 9th Circuit ruled. Judge Graber found that the district court erred when it ruled Steven Preminger and the Santa...
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SEC investigating bank over auction-rate securities sales
Recent Cases 08/11/2008The Bank of New York Mellon Corp. disclosed Friday in its quarterly report that the Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating possible breaches of procedure by one of the bank's subsidiaries in auction-rate securities sales and purchases. A...
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Former Bush Assistant Sues over 'Swing Vote'
Recent Cases 08/08/2008Bradley Blakeman, a former member of the Bush administration, claims the movie "Swing Vote" is based on a copyrighted treatment he gave to actor Kelsey Grammer, who passed it along to Disney's Touchstone Pictures without his knowledge or permission. ...
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'Junior' Gotti Arrested on Murder Charge
Recent Cases 08/05/2008John A. "Junior" Gotti has been arrested on charges linking him to three New York murders, The New York Times reported. He is expected to be indicted on racketeering and murder-conspiracy charges over the killings, which took place nearly two decades...
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'Trashman' Posted Alarmist Videos, Feds Say
Recent Cases 08/04/2008Anton Dunn, using the alias "Trashman," posted threatening videos on YouTube, in which he claims to have told Gerber employees to poison baby food with the intent to kill millions of black babies, federal prosecutors claim. Dunn has been charged with...