Civil Rights

Huge 416-Child Custody Hearing in Texas Ranch Raid Involves 350 Lawyers

Updated: A huge custody hearing began today concerning 416 children taken by Texas officials from a ranch operated by a renegade Mormon sect that reportedly promotes polygamy. It bogged down almost immediately as lawyers for the children demanded to see the evidence being introduced—three teenagers’ medical records. “State District Judge…

Apr 17, 2008 5:44 PM CDT

Dozens of Lawyers at Custody Hearing for 416 Kids from Texas Ranch

In preparation for a massive custody hearing Thursday concerning 416 children taken by the state of Texas from a ranch run by a renegade Mormon group that advocates polygamy, a preliminary hearing was held today that drew some 48 lawyers. District Judge Barbara Walther “was clearly struggling with how to…

Apr 14, 2008 4:16 PM CDT

Civil Rights Leader Sexually Abused Teen Daughter in 1990s

A famed civil rights leader who was present when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated almost exactly 40 years ago has been convicted of sexually abusing his daughter during the 1990s, when she was a teenager. Yesterday’s conviction by a Virginia jury and 15-year sentence for James Bevel, 71,…

Apr 11, 2008 7:50 PM CDT

ABC: White House Micromanaged Torture

In detailed discussions in the White House basement, top aides to President Bush micromanaged at least several torture sessions of terrorist suspects, starting in 2002, a major newspaper says. Relying on an ABC News report televised earlier this week, Washington Post columnist Dan Froomkin writes that a group including Vice…

Apr 11, 2008 4:32 PM CDT

Racial-Profiling Hotline Opens for Biz in Denver

Community activists in Denver have launched a racial-profiling hotline for drivers who believe they’ve been pulled over or targeted by police because of race. The Colorado Racial Profiling and Police Discrimination Hotline is a project of the Colorado Progressive Coalition, a 12-year-old nonprofit group that claims 5,500 members, the Denver…

Apr 9, 2008 10:44 AM CDT

Online Posting of Accused Shoplifter Photos Stirs Debate

Civil liberties watchdogs are sounding alarms over a new law enforcement tactic in Arizona in which photographs of shoplifting suspects are posted online – even before a conviction. Avondale police are the latest to post, then publicize the mug shots of suspects online, the Arizona Republic reports. The idea is…

Apr 8, 2008 4:53 PM CDT

Obama’s Legal Career Wasn’t All About Civil Rights

During his four-year career as a Chicago lawyer, Barack Obama did indeed handle a number of civil rights cases. But in addition to the legal work he highlights in his initial autobiography and on the presidential campaign trail, he also handled a number of more routine cases, such as real…

Apr 8, 2008 4:23 PM CDT

No Right to Hijab in Courthouse Holding, Judge Rules

A federal judge in Los Angeles has dismissed a lawsuit brought by a Muslim woman who asserted her right to wear a traditional Islamic head scarf while being detained in a courthouse holding facility. U.S. District Court Judge David Carter ruled March 26 that unlike jail or prison, a courthouse…

Apr 8, 2008 2:28 PM CDT

Troutman Sanders Seeks Sanction for Neo-Nazi’s Online Comments About a Partner

A partner with Troutman Sanders in Richmond, Va., testified Wednesday that a neo-Nazi’s online comments about his role in a fair-housing suit have upended his home life. Lawyer Kevin Mottley told a Norfolk federal court that after the post he and his wife began to get strange phone calls and…

Apr 4, 2008 4:31 PM CDT

Eugene Pincham: ‘Giant’ of Chicago Legal Community Dies

Chicago-area legal legend R. Eugene Pincham, who served as a state appellate judge but proved too confrontational for political office, died Thursday after a long illness. He was 82. Chief Cook County Judge Timothy Evans confirmed the news for the Chicago Tribune, saying, “He was one of the best and…

Apr 3, 2008 8:23 PM CDT

Md. Police Agree to $400K Settlement in Racial Profiling Suit

The Maryland State Police Department has agreed to pay $400,000 to settle a 10-year-old lawsuit that contends it engaged in racial profiling of motorists. The department will pay $300,000 to six plaintiffs who remain in the litigation and will spend up to $100,000 to hire a consultant to examine whether…

Apr 3, 2008 3:25 PM CDT

Grand Juror Spots Conviction Error in Unusual Oregon Case

A former Oregon man who was jailed for sex abuse, but never actually indicted is suing state authorities for $3.5 million. The federal suit filed in Portland arises from an unusual case involving David Lee Simmons, who was jailed for 30 days in 2006 after pleading guilty to felony charges…

Apr 1, 2008 10:49 PM CDT

You Wanna Do What?

Construction Worker Whose Head Is Plunked by Plank Sues After ER Approaches Problem from the Other End

Apr 1, 2008 3:35 PM CDT

Legal Gender-Bender: Dad-to-Be Pregnant

How does the law relate to a pregnant dad? Some folks in a central Oregon resort town are about to find out. Originally born female, a transgender man in the city of Bend is now legally Thomas Beatie, married to Nancy. Because his wife had her uterus removed, however, and…

Mar 27, 2008 9:16 PM CDT

ACLU Protests Tax Firm’s Lack of Online Help for Same-Sex Couples

Same-sex couples have now been permitted to form civil unions in Connecticut for several years. But that doesn’t mean that they can expect to have their tax returns prepared online by a major national company, like other legally recognized couples. The American Civil Liberties Union is protesting the approach taken…

Mar 27, 2008 6:13 PM CDT