As discussed in prior posts, the city of San Francisco has recently passed a law requiring all retailers of cell phones to post the SAR levels of each phone. The specific absorption rate, or SAR, is the amount of radiation absorbed by the body when the phone sends a signal to the network. In June, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed the “cell phone right to know” ordinance affecting all retailers within the city....
It’s a bit out of the ordinary when a ferret chews fingers off of an infant, but for allowing just that to happen, Missouri parents Carrie and Ryan Waldo have been charged with first-degree child endangerment, a felony. The incident, which occurred in January, originally appeared to be an accident. But after an investigation and a peek into the couple’s cell phone records, it was readily apparent to law enforcement that something more akin to neglect had occurred....
Under federal rules of procedure, there is what’s known as the “no-impeachment rule” which prohibits jurors from undermining or discrediting their verdicts. The rule is designed to provide finality to jury verdicts as well as promote “full and vigorous discussion” by jurors without fear that they will be harassed after being discharged or summoned to recount their deliberations. Jury deliberations are essentially a “black box” in that they are free from judicial review in almost all cases....
CNN is reporting that authorities have stated that the founder of an Islamic television station in New York, Muzzammil Hassan, has confessed to beheading his wife, Aasiya Hassan. Hassan was arrested last Thursday after police found the the decapitated body of his wife at the “Bridges TV” station in a Buffalo, NY suburb. Police indicated that Hassan went straight over to the police station and confessed after the killing. Although the headlines might bring to mind other past news stories about “honor killings”, a FOX News story may indicate that the basic motive might have crossed cultural boundaries, considering that Aasiya had filed for divorce just last month....
Drug arrests are serious offenses, and can lead to lengthy prison terms. Often, a person caught with drugs is charged not just with possession, but also “intent to distribute.” Prosecutors can try to prove intent to distribute with circumstantial evidence – by establishing other facts that allow a judge or jury to infer that a defendant was dealing drugs. Each drug-dealing case is different, but in general, here are six factors that prosecutors often use to establish an intent to distribute:...
If you didn’t already act, it’s too late now. Today is malware Monday. What this means is that the government took down a safety net that had been allowing infected users to access the Internet. Thousands of users had been infected with the malware last year which allowed hackers to control infected computers through infected servers. The FBI was made aware of the problem and thought about shutting down the infected servers....
Nancy Garrido has reportedly confessed to prosecutors that she kidnapped Jaycee Dugard back in 1991. Garrido admitted kidnapping Jaycee Dugard, then 11 years old, at a bus stop in Lake Tahoe on June 10, 1991, The New York Times reports. Garrido is accused of helping her husband kidnap the young girl and hold her captive for 18 years. While Garrido denied any sexual contact with Dugard, she said she did know her husband, Phillip Garrido, was raping the girl....
Acting Solicitor General Neal Katyal recently notified the U.S. Supreme Court that a significant report cited in Graham v. Florida, the recent case about minors being sentenced to life without parole, was inaccurate. Katyal informed the Court in a letter that the U.S. Bureau of Prisons (BOP) provided incorrect information in their report that stated that six juvenile prisoners were in prison for life without being convicted of murder. According to Neal Katyal’s letter of May 24, “The government has conducted a careful review of the presentence investigation reports and other materials concerning these inmates… it appears that none of the six inmates listed in the attachment to BOP’s letter is serving a life sentence based solely on a nonhomicide crime completed before the age of 18....
Batches of fat-burning supplement OxyElite Pro are likely going to be removed from shelves soon. The Hawaii Department of Health, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers of Disease Control (CDC) are encouraging consumers to stop using the supplement, after several reports of hepatitis, liver-failure, and even one death may have been linked to the dietary supplement, the New York Daily News reports. So far, 29 suspected cases have been under investigation....
Looks like celebrity blogger Perez Hilton and the Black Eyes Peas manager are ready to put an incident involving alleged battery at a Toronto night club behind them. They have settled a civil lawsuit for battery and emotional distress. The lawsuit stems back to an incident last June where the Peas manager allegedly gave Perez Hilton a black eye outside a nightclub. Hilton sued Molina for battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress, seeking more than $25,000 in damages....
What are they serving on Jet Blue? Playboy Playmate Tiffany Livingston is helping keep the budget airline in the news with her in-flight antics on a recent east coast commute. Livingston was recently detained by the FBI when her mid-flight anxiety caused her to attempt to open the plane’s hatch. According to The Examiner, the twenty one year-old Livingston was on a flight from Orlando, Florida to Newark, New Jersey when panic hit....
Prop. 8 is unconstitutional. But is same-sex marriage a constitutional right? Maybe not. The 9th Circuit has upheld a lower court ruling, striking down California’s same-sex marriage ban on equal protection grounds. But the court focused only on the law’s purpose – not on the constitutional right to same-sex marriage. The ruling states that Prop. 8 is unconstitutional because it “serves no purpose, and has no effect, other than to lessen the status and human dignity of gays and lesbians in California....
Will the revolution be televised? If you consider the arguments regarding California’s ban on same sex marriage, Proposition 8, to be in any way revolutionary, then the answer is yes. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals will hear the appeal from the ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Vaughn Walker finding Prop 8 to be unconstitutional. At the time the trial was scheduled, Judge Walker was considering allowing cameras in the courtroom for a live feed....
A ruling handed down by the U.S. Supreme Court this week may make generic pharmaceuticals available just a little bit sooner. The decision centered around a dispute between two drug manufacturers, Sandoz and Amgen, where the former was attempting to market and sell a generic version of the latter’s drug. SCOTUS ruled that Sandoz did not violate the six-month notice period designed to give Amgen time to object to the approval of a similar drug on patent or other legal grounds....
Here is one of those things that is so obvious, you would think it just wouldn’t be worth mentioning. Seems though, it bears repeating. If you are in the middle of a contentious divorce and/or custody battle, do not miss a court ordered drug test. Even if you are on the beach in St. Barts and it just kinda slipped your mind. Supermodel Stephanie Seymour, in the middle of a major custody fight with ex-husband business mogul Peter Brant, was ordered by the court to undergo a mandatory drug test....
The FDA is asking for a significant increase in its budget to meet the ever increasing demands placed on the agency, according to their News Release of February 1. The Food and Drug Administration is asking for a total of $4.03 billion from the President’s fiscal year 2011 federal budget. This would represent a 23 percent increase over the agency’s current budget of $3.28 billion. The proposed budget would be comprised of an increase in $146 million from the budget and $601 million in industry user fees....
The incidents surrounding Trayvon Martin’s shooting death will not go to a grand jury after all, the Florida special prosecutor in charge of the investigation announced Monday. “State Attorney Angela Corey has decided not to use a grand jury in the Trayvon Martin shooting death investigation,” Corey’s office said in a statement, according to Reuters. A grand jury was initially set to convene Tuesday to consider whether Martin’s killing would lead to criminal charges....
Recent weather delays at U.S. airports have forced passengers to remain on grounded planes for up to 10 hours, and have prompted U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) to announce a plan for a “Passengers’ Bill of Rights.” According to a press release from Senator Boxer, the legislation “would require air carriers to ensure passengers access to necessary services such as food, water, and adequate restroom facilities. The legislation would also give passengers the right to safely deplane if the aircraft has remained on the ground for more than three hours past its scheduled departure time....
Some types of insurance you just can’t live without, while others are generally a waste of money, a new report suggests. With these unnecessary insurance plans, “small threats are hyped, overpriced premiums seem reasonable when chopped into daily installments, and promises shrink in the fine print,” Consumer Reports warns in its May issue. The magazine’s editors identified specific types of insurance that aren’t worth the cost. Common unneeded insurance plans include:...
Ever wonder what happened to 16 and Pregnant star Whitney Purvis? No? Well, you’re going to find out. The now 20-year-old was arrested on Thursday for stealing a pregnancy test from a Georgia Walmart. She allegedly concealed the test in her hoodie and then snuck into the store’s bathroom. She then peed on the stick. The results of the test are unknown, as Purvis was subsequently busted by security. Instead of paying the $15....
