Government

N.Y. Judge Orders Surgery for Amish Tot After Parents Refuse Consent

Finding that a one-year-old Amish boy will die if he doesn’t have heart surgery, a New York judge has ordered that it be performed despite his parents’ refusal to consent, on religious grounds. “Family Court Judge Barbara R. Potter ordered that 20-month-old Eli Hershberger, who was born in April 2007…

Dec 24, 2008 5:18 PM CST

Illinois City’s Efforts to Shush Critics Unconstitutional, Federal Judge Says

A municipality in suburban Chicago violated the First Amendment rights of residents when it imposed greater restrictions on those who wanted to criticize the city in public protests, a federal judge has ruled. “One of the plaintiffs, Jose Zurita of Waukegan, won his claim that Mayor Hyde did not permit…

Dec 24, 2008 3:28 PM CST

Feds Ask Ill. Lawmakers to Limit Scope of Impeachment Inquiry

Illinois lawmakers considering impeachment for Gov. Rod Blagojevich have agreed to a request by federal prosecutors to limit the scope of their probe so as not to interfere with the government’s ongoing criminal investigation. U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald released a letter Tuesday asking legislators to refrain from interviewing key witnesses,…

Dec 24, 2008 12:25 PM CST

Girl, 12, Mistaken for Prostitute, Sues Over Alleged Police Beating

Responding to a report that three white prostitutes were soliciting, plainclothes police officers in Galveston, Texas, wound up arresting a 12-year outside her home one August day in 2006, according to a federal lawsuit filed there against the three officers. Not recognizing them as police, the girl, who says the…

Dec 23, 2008 10:26 PM CST

ACLU Sues Calif. City, Seeks to Protect Homeless from Criminalization

In a federal civil rights lawsuit filed today by the ACLU Foundation of Southern California, the agency says an upscale California seaside community is violating constitutional law and the Americans With Disabilities Act by treating disabled homeless individuals as if they were criminals. “(F)or all intents and purposes, Defendants have…

Dec 23, 2008 9:21 PM CST

Report Says 1 in 4 Pubescent Girls Abused at Yearning for Zion’s Texas Ranch

In a report today that appears likely to ignite further controversy over a fringe religious group that advocates polygamy, Texas Child Protective Services says more than one in four pubescent girls at the Yearning for Zion ranch near Eldorado had been sexually abused by being involved in an underage marriage…

Dec 23, 2008 7:20 PM CST

Scathing Report Blisters Ex-Ohio AG

In a scathing multi-agency investigative report (PDF) released today by Ohio’s inspector general, former state attorney general Marc Dann is accused of personally participating in “rude, vulgar and abusive” treatment of employees. Dann, who was forced to resign in May by a sexual harassment scandal in his office, also maintained…

Dec 23, 2008 12:54 AM CST

In Unusual Order, Oregon Judge Tells State Agency to Bond Out Rape Suspect

An impasse apparently continues between an Oregon state agency and the state-court judge who has ordered that the Department of Human Services post $50,000 bail to bond out a rape suspect from jail and thus reunite him with his 13-year-old son. Clackamas County Circuit Judge Deanne Darling says no showing…

Dec 20, 2008 12:30 AM CST

Ill. Gov: I’m Not Guilty, ‘Will Fight Until I Take My Last Breath’

Responding for the first time to federal corruption charges that could result in his impeachment and have already led to widespread calls for his resignation, embattled Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich said at a press conference today that he is not guilty of any wrongdoing and “will fight until I take…

Dec 19, 2008 8:55 PM CST

Ill. Gov’s Lawyer Comes Out Swinging; State’s Top Court Nixes ‘Unfit’ Argument

An attorney representing the embattled governor of Illinois came out swinging today at a bipartisan legislative committee hearing on possible impeachment, calling the process “unfair and quite frankly illegal.” Meanwhile, the state supreme court has rejected a motion by state Attorney General Lisa Madigan seeking a determination that Gov. Rod…

Dec 18, 2008 1:37 AM CST

Federal Courts Want $14 Fee, But Delay Swearing In New Citizens

Federal courts in a number of major cities apparently are happy to get a $14.09 fee for each immigrant to whom a judge administers a citizenship oath. But several are not conducting citizenship ceremonies in a timely manner, according to a report by a government ombudsman. “In one of the…

Dec 17, 2008 6:29 PM CST

Adam Walsh Case Closed: Drifter Murdered Son of ‘Most Wanted’ Host

Updated: In a news conference this afternoon, police in Hollywood, Fla., have announced that they are closing the Adam Walsh murder case as solved. Ottis Toole, a drifter who confessed, but then recanted, concerning the 1981 abduction and murder of the 6-year-old boy is, in fact, guilty, Hollywood Police Chief…

Dec 16, 2008 8:35 PM CST

Taliban is, Increasingly, a Source of ‘Justice’ in Afghanistan

Although Afghanistan officially has government courts to settle civil disputes and rule on criminal matters, there is another option that citizens, in some cases, are pursuing in order to get swift–and, some say, fair–resolution of their claims. Rather than pay a bribe to a government judge, they would rather have…

Dec 16, 2008 7:55 PM CST

Federal Law Bans Texas Prison Plan to Jam Cell Phones, State AG Says

Seeking to block inmates from using smuggled cell phones, Texas prison officials were planning a test later this week of a a technique to jam cell phone transmissions without affecting legitimate prison and emergency communications. “But the demonstration was summarily canceled Monday after Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott told them…

Dec 16, 2008 6:49 PM CST

Gov Hires ‘Courtroom Bulldog’ as Ill. House Launches Impeachment

Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich has hired well-known criminal defense lawyer Ed Genson to represent him. The Associated Press calls Genson a “courtroom bulldog” while ABC7 describes him as “wily and pugnacious.” Genson’s clients have included former publisher Conrad Black, ex-Congressman Mel Reynolds and singer R. Kelly. “Defendants in criminal cases…

Dec 16, 2008 12:03 PM CST