Law

How Detroit Police Slapped False Murders On Young Black Men

April 3, 2015 Aaron Cantú, www.truth-out.org Educate! Corruption, Law, Mass Incarceration, police brutality, Racial Justice

A 2005 report published by the Northwestern University School of Law traced the first documented use of "snitch testimony" in the United States to 1819, when the state of Vermont convicted Jesse Boorn for murder based on testimony from his cellmate. The cellmate told a judge that Boorn confessed to the crime inside their jail cell while awaiting his trial. In exchange for testifying, the cellmate was freed after Boorn's trial, and Boorn was sentenced to the gallows. This basic reward system underpinning jailhouse informant testimony persists into the present day. It's not difficult to imagine why a prisoner informant would lie about overhearing a confession if it means real material benefits.

Not Guilty Verdict In Killing Of Indigenous Woman Prompts Protest

April 2, 2015 Kim Wheeler, www.cbc.ca Resist! Indigenous Rights, Indigenous Women, Law

The recent not guilty verdict in the murder trial of an Ontario man accused of killing Cindy Gladue, whose body was found in the bathtub of an Edmonton hotel room, has prompted protest and calls for an appeal. Gladue, a 36-year-old sex worker, was a Cree mother of three who lived in Edmonton. Found dead in an Edmonton hotel room in June 2011, she had bled to death from an 11-centimetre wound in her vagina. The defence for Bradley Barton, a long-distance trucker from Ontario, argued the wound was the result of rough sex, while the prosecution said Barton used a weapon on Gladue. On March 18, a jury found Barton not guilty of first-degree murder, as well as of manslaughter in Gladue's death.

South Dakota Tribes Win Federal Case

April 2, 2015 Kate Fort, www.turtletalk.wordpress.com Resist! Indigenous Rights, Law

The court finds that Judge Davis, States Attorney Vargo, Secretary Valenti and Ms. Van Hunnick developed and implemented policies and procedures for the removal of Indian children from their parents’ custody in violation of the mandates of the Indian Child Welfare Act and in violation of the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The case directly addressed section 1922 emergency removal standard of evidence and return of the child; and due process claims at those emergency hearings (48-hour hearing) of notice, the right of parents to present evidence, to cross-examine witnesses, attorney representation, and a decision based on evidence at that hearing.

Journalists Sue Police Over Treatment During Ferguson Protests

April 2, 2015 Associated Press, www.theguardian.com Resist! Ferguson, Freedom of Expression, Law, Media, Police

Four journalists arrested during last summer’s protests over the Fergusonshooting death of Michael Brown are suing St Louis County’s police department for civil rights violations and unlawful detention. The lawsuit filed Monday in St Louis also names 20 unidentified St Louis County officers. Plaintiffs include two journalists who were covering last August’s protests for German publications, as well as a freelance reporter and a journalist for an online investigative publication. The suit describes them as US citizens. The lawsuit alleges that the journalists’ arrests for failing to disperse when ordered by police was unjustified and was an infringement of constitutionally protected freedom of the press.

City Council Approves $2.45-Million Deal With Occupy L.A. Protesters

April 2, 2015 Veronica Rocha, www.latimes.com Resist! Law, Los Angeles, Occupy

The Los Angeles City Council approved a $2.45-million agreement Wednesday to settle all claims involving Occupy L.A. protesters arrested during a violent clash with Los Angeles police in 2011. Although the City Council agreed to settle, the deal must still be approved by a U.S. District Court judge before it's finalized, said Frank Mateljan, a spokesman for the city attorney's office. Cheryl Aichele and five other demonstrators filed a lawsuit in December 2012, alleging the police department used a “shock and awe” campaign to forcibly remove hundreds of protesters from a campsite on the south side of City Hall. Attorneys representing the protesters did not immediately return calls seeking comment.

A Climate Change Fix Both The Left & Right Can Embrace

April 2, 2015 Sarah "Steve" Mosco, www.sarahmosko.wordpress.com Create! Climate Change, Congress, Environment, Law

Studies abound linking the increase in extreme weather-related catastrophes in recent decades, like droughts, floods, hurricanes and blizzards, to global climate change. Some climate experts stress the urgency of addressing the problem now, predicting cascading economic and political, social and environmental upheavals worldwide if action is delayed. Since the dawn of the industrial revolution, the CO2 content of earth’s atmosphere has shot up from 275 ppm to over 400 ppm, already well above the 350 ppmlimit some scientists believe is a safe level above which we risk triggering irreversible consequences out of human control.

NLG Students To Hold ‘Black Lives Matter’ Day Of Action

March 31, 2015 National Lawyers Guild, www.nlg.org Resist! Black Lives Matter (BLM), Law, Racial Justice

On Thursday, April 2, two days before the 47thanniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., National Lawyers Guild (NLG) students and faculty will hold aday of action at law schools nationwide in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement against racist police violence and white supremacy. Despite strong, grassroots organizing and regular demonstrations since the murder of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO, police killings of unarmed Black Americans continue with impunity. This week, NLG members will coordinate with other student and local groups to disrupt business as usual and call attention to the racist legal system which criminalizes and oppresses people of color.

Indiana Activists Protest Anti-Gay Law

March 30, 2015 Associated Press, www.theguardian.com Resist! Indiana, Law, LGBTQ

Hundreds of people gathered outside the Indiana Statehouse on Saturday, to rally against a new law that opponents say could sanction discrimination against gay people. Republican governor Mike Pence signed a bill on Thursday prohibiting state laws that “substantially burden” a person’s ability to follow his or her religious beliefs. The definition of “person” includes religious institutions, businesses and associations. The measure will take effect in July. Saturday’s crowd chanted “Pence must go” and held signs reading “I’m pretty sure God doesn’t hate anyone” and “No hate in our state”.

Protests At Cooper Union On Tuition, NY Atty Gnrl Investigating

March 28, 2015 Gothamist, www.gothamist.com Resist! Law, New York City (NYC), Student Activism

The Wall Street Journal reports that Attorney General Eric Schneiderman will probe the financial decisions made by the school that led to its reported insolvency, including a $175 million loan to build new facilities, potentially inaccurate numbers on the school's website, a bonus awarded to the president preceding the current administration, and the handling of the the land underneath the Chrysler Building, which belongs to the school and reportedly netted it $7 million annually. The AG's office will also investigate the school's decision to charge tuition. The school is currently in the midst of a lawsuit levied by a group of professors, alumni and students who claim the Board of Trustees could have avoided charging tuition—$20K per semester, starting with this school year's freshman class—if it weren't for a number of poor financial decisions.

Ferguson Police Settle Lawsuit Over Use Of Tear Gas

March 27, 2015 St. Louis Post Dispatch, www.stltoday.com Resist! Ferguson, Human Rights, Law, police brutality

Three police agencies have agreed as part of a federal lawsuit settlement with Ferguson protesters to restrict use of tear gas and other chemical agents on crowds. U.S. District Judge Carol Jackson, who issued a temporary restraining order on police after a hearing here Dec. 11, was expected to dismiss the lawsuit Thursday while keeping supervision of compliance through Jan. 1, 2018. The restraining order had told police to provide “reasonable” warning before using gas on a crowd. Lawyers for St. Louis Police Chief Sam Dotson, St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar and Missouri Highway Patrol Capt. Ronald S. Johnson signed off on settlement terms. Police agreed not to use gas to frighten or punish people lawfully exercising their constitutional rights.

Father Protects Daughter From Toxic Testing

March 27, 2015 Steven Singer, www.gadflyonthewallblog.wordpress.com Resist! Charter Schools, Education, Law

I’ll admit it – I was scared. I’m a nationally board certified teacher with a masters degree in education. I’ve taught public school for over a dozen years. But I’ve only been a daddy for half that time. Would making this call get my little girl in trouble? I didn’t want to rock the boat. I didn’t want my daughter to suffer because her old man is making a fuss. I didn’t want her teachers and principal giving her a hard time because of something I did. But I couldn’t deny what I know. Standardized testing is destroying public education.

Net Neutrality: Trade Group Led By AT&T & Verizon Sues FCC

March 25, 2015 Jon Brodkin, www.arstechnica.com Educate! FCC, Law, Net Neutrality, Telecommunications

The Federal Communications Commission's new net neutrality rules haven't taken effect yet, but they're already facing lawsuits from Internet service providers. One such lawsuit was filed today by USTelecom, which is led by AT&T, Verizon, and others. Another lawsuit was filed by a small Internet service provider in Texas called Alamo Broadband. (The Washington Post flagged the lawsuits.) Internet providers are now common carriers, and they're ready to sue. The net neutrality order, which reclassifies broadband providers as common carriers and imposes rules against blocking and discriminating against online content, "is arbitrary, capricious, and an abuse of discretion," USTelecom alleged in its petition to the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Can States Slow The Flow Of Military Equipment To Police?

March 25, 2015 Jake Grovum, www.pewtrusts.org Educate! Ferguson, Law, police brutality, Wars and Militarism

You get these pictures that just shock the conscience,” said Republican state Sen. Branden Petersen of Minnesota, referring to news footage of heavily armed police patrolling streets or carrying out sting operations. His bill would bar law enforcement in the state from accepting gear that’s “designed to primarily have a military purpose or offensive capability.” But Petersen and those backing similar efforts in other states — they’ve come up in California, Connecticut, Indiana, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Tennessee and Vermont — face an uphill climb, partly because of the way law enforcement acquires the gear. The equipment flows through a Pentagon surplus operation known as the 1033 Program, which makes available gear that the military no longer wants.

CODEPINK Taught Senator Cotton About Constitution

March 24, 2015 CODEPINK, www.codepink.org Resist! Law, Nuclear Energy, Wars and Militarism

On Monday, March 23rd, the peace group CODEPINK will be attending an event hosted by the Foreign Policy Initiative where Senator Tom Cotton will deliver a keynote speech regarding ‘National Security Priorities in an Increasingly Dangerous World.’ Dressed as Colonial Revolutionaries and carrying Constitutions, members of CODEPINK will read Sen. Cotton an “Open Letter from the People of the United States.” The CODEPINK letter is a response to Cotton’s open letter to the government of Iran that purports to school Iranians on the US Constitution but is really designed to quash the nuclear talks. Cotton’s letter, signed by 46 other Republicans, falsely states that Congress has the power to revoke any nuclear deal reached with President Obama.

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