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1 spank isn't domestic violence, Fla. court says
Court Watch |
2011/09/18 22:09
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An appeals court says a single spank doesn't qualify as domestic violence.
A three-judge panel of the 1st District Court of Appeal on Friday quashed an injunction for protection against domestic violence.
It cited common law and a 2002 Florida Supreme Court ruling that says reasonable or non-excessive corporal punishment can be used as a defense against child abuse charges.
Circuit Judge Karen Gievers of Tallahassee had issued the injunction against a father identified in the ruling only as G.C.
He had been accused by his former wife of spanking their 14-year-old daughter once on the buttocks with his hand.
The father said the teen had been disrespectful and defiant. The girl said she was only being sarcastic. |
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Appeals court upholds sentence in Ponzi scheme
Court Watch |
2011/09/15 22:10
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A federal appeals court has upheld the 30-year prison sentence for a man convicted of operating what prosecutors called the largest Ponzi scheme in Louisiana's history.
In a 15-page opinion issued Friday, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the sentence for Matthew Pizzolato, of Tickfaw.
Pizzolato also was ordered to make over $15 million in restitution to the 165 victims he defrauded. He had offices in Baton Rouge, Covington, Hammond and Lake Charles and advertised investment services under several company names, including Gulf Region Guaranty Inc.
Prosecutors said he promised high rates of return and claimed investors' money was protected against losses, but made risky investments they didn't authorize, gave away millions to friends and family and spent much of the money on luxury items for himself. |
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Colombia court reinstates conviction in Galan hit
Court Watch |
2011/09/01 09:43
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The Supreme Court on Wednesday reinstated the murder conviction of a former justice minister for masterminding the 1989 assassination of presidential candidate Luis Carlos Galan, a courageous foe of drug cartels.
The court also reinstated the 24-year prison sentence a lower court imposed in 2007 on Alberto Santofimio, who was widely considered the political godfather of the late cocaine kingpin Pablo Escobar.
Hitmen employed by Escobar killed Galan, and a key witness in Santofimio's trial said he saw the defendant urge Escobar to order the murder.
Kill him, Pablo, testified John Jairo Velasquez, or Popeye, who was Escobar's chief henchman at the time and has confessed to organizing the assassination.
Santofimio, a senator who had been justice minister in the 1970s, was at the time a rival of Galan for the Liberal Party's presidential nomination.
The Aug. 18, 1989, assassination badly traumatized a nation already reeling from a terror campaign by Escobar's henchmen, who killed hundreds of judges, journalists and police. Escobar also targeted civilians with car bombs, even blowing up an airplane in midflight.
The drug kingpin was trying to pressure Colombia's leaders not to extradite drug lords to the United States. Nonetheless, Galan, the presidential frontrunner when he was killed, promised to battle the narcos with extradition. |
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Court asked to stop immigrant license checks
Court Watch |
2011/08/24 08:57
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div class=entrydiv class=articlepFour state legislators and a Silver City woman asked a judge Wednesday to stop Gov. Susana Martinez's administration from trying to verify whether immigrants who received a driver's license in New Mexico still live in the state./ppAn Albuquerque law firm and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund filed a lawsuit in state District Court in Santa Fe on behalf of the Democratic lawmakers and the Hispanic woman./ppThe suit seeks to block a state agency from checking a random sample of 10,000 license holders who are foreign nationals to determine their residency./ppNew Mexico is one of only three states — the others are Washington and Utah — where an illegal immigrant can get a driver's license because no proof of citizenship is required. However, Utah's permits cannot be used as government ID cards./ppMartinez wants the Legislature to end New Mexico's policy of granting driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. She and other critics contend it jeopardizes public safety and attracts illegal immigrants who fraudulently claim to live in the state only to get ID cards that make it easier to stay in the country./p/div
/div |
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EEOC sues, argues man on treatment should be hired
Court Watch |
2011/08/18 09:18
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The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has sued a national insurance company, contending the firm violated federal law by refusing to hire a North Carolina man after he disclosed he was participating in a methadone treatment program for a drug addiction.
The suit was filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Raleigh against United Insurance Co. of America, said EEOC attorney Lynette Barnes.
The complaint argues the firm violated federal disability discrimination law by refusing to hire Craig Burns, 30, who applied for a job in the firm's Raleigh office in December of 2009. The firm made a conditional offer of employment to Burns the following month, depending upon his passing a drug test, the complaint said.
The test showed the presence of methadone in his system, so Burns submitted a letter to the firm from his treatment provider saying he was participating in a supervised methadone treatment program and taking legally prescribed medication as part of the treatment, the complaint said.
Upon receiving this information, United Insurance notified Barnes he was not eligible to be hired and withdrew the employment offer, the complaint said. |
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Dougherty siblings to appear in Colorado court
Court Watch |
2011/08/12 10:24
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A woman caught with her two brothers after a nationwide manhunt told Colorado authorities she deserved to get shot after pointing a gun at a police chief at the end of the siblings' run from the law, according to a court document.
Lee Grace Dougherty, 29, Dylan Dougherty Stanley, 26, and Ryan Edward Dougherty, 21, are being held in Pueblo County, Colo., on bonds of $1.25 million each. The three made their first court appearance Thursday by video from jail, and none made any statement during the brief hearing.
They face charges of attempted murder of a peace officer and assault on a peace officer. The charges stem from allegations that they shot rounds from an AK-47 at four patrol cars during a chase Wednesday on Interstate 25 in Colorado. The chase ended when troopers deployed spike strips to puncture the tires of the trio's Subaru, and the vehicle rolled and crashed into a guardrail. |
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