Lawyers Suing Over Suspect’s Shooting Death Seek Facebook Information for 57 Officers

An Albuquerque, N.M., policeman who listed his job description as “human waste disposal” on Facebook has caught the attention of lawyers who filed a wrongful death suit against the city for a police shooting in January 2010. The lawyers are asking the city to provide Facebook usernames and passwords of…

Mar 4, 2011 1:44 PM CST

Online Commenters Who Targeted CEO Must Be Identified, Judge Rules

An Indianapolis judge has ruled the state’s shield law does not bar the release of identifying information about online commenters in a defamation lawsuit. The ruling by Judge S.K. Reid of Marion Superior Court requires the Indianapolis Star and the Indianapolis Business Journal to release information about anonymous posters, the…

Mar 3, 2011 12:49 PM CST

Two New Mug Shots of Accused Arizona Shooter Released Over Objections of His Lawyer, Government

Two new mug shots of Jared Lee Loughner, the man accused of the Arizona shootings that left six dead and injured 13 others in January, were released Tuesday. In a hearing on Friday, U.S. District Court Judge Larry Burns refused to seal Loughner’s photographs, prompting the U.S. Marshals Service to…

Feb 25, 2011 10:46 PM CST

Abortion Doc’s Sensitive Patient Records Were Stored in Ex-AG Employee’s Home, Ethics Panel Is Told

Under fire for allegedly mishandling sensitive patient records from an abortion doctor in addition to other claimed violations of attorney ethics rules, a former attorney general of Kansas and district attorney has contended the disciplinary case against him is politically motivated. But the No. 2 man in the AG’s office…

Feb 24, 2011 8:34 PM CST

Google Fights to Keep Documents Secret in Trademark Appeal

Google is famous for bringing information to the Internet, but it’s fighting to keep several documents secret in a pending appeal. Language software maker Rosetta Stone appealed to the Richmond, Va.-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals after a federal judge ruled for Google in a trademark dispute, Bloomberg reported…

Feb 23, 2011 11:29 AM CST

New York Daily News Complies with Judge Order, Discloses Confidential Source

The New York Daily News revealed information about a confidential source earlier this month to comply with a trial judge’s order. The Daily News disclosed the confidential source information to avoid the risk of adverse appellate court ruling that could broadly affect New York’s shield law, the First Amendment Center…

Feb 22, 2011 11:00 PM CST

Wi-Fi Users Are At Risk for Widespread Hacking, New York Times Says

Think the password to your social networking account keeps your information secure? Think again. Especially for those who use unsecured Wi-Fi networks in public, but even for those who have wireless Internet connections at home, there is a big issue. It is now remarkably easy for even unskilled hackers, in…

Feb 19, 2011 12:59 AM CST

Google Transforms Jury Selection Process

Some lawyers, surreptitiously searching sites to uncover the personal details of potential jurors, are instigating a privacy debate and raising questions about whether the online vetting process has enough court supervision. Before selecting jurors, lawyers conduct in-depth searches, delving into individuals’ online identities to ascertain how they are likely to…

Feb 18, 2011 9:19 PM CST

Many Usernames Can Be Used to ID and Track Individuals, Researchers Say

If you have the same username on eBay, Google and MySpace, there’s a good chance you may be identifiable. French researchers at the National Institute for Computing and Automation Research in Grenoble have found that about half of the individuals who use the same moniker on multiple sites like these…

Feb 17, 2011 1:28 AM CST

As Probe Widens, Lawyer Says Celebrities Can’t Prove Tabloid’s Investigator Hacked Voice Mail

Two celebrities who claim their cell phone voice mail was hacked by an investigator with the U.K.’s News of the World may not be able to prove it, a lawyer for the tabloid told a London court today. According to Bloomberg News, the plaintiffs, actor Steve Coogan and sports commentator…

Feb 15, 2011 7:58 PM CST

Loughner Lawyers Claim Mug Shot Is Inherently Private

Lawyers for Jared Lee Loughner are asking a judge to block release of a second mug shot of the Tucson shooting suspect. The Pima County Sheriff’s Office released a mug shot of a smiling Loughner two days after his arrest in the shooting rampage that killed a federal judge and…

Feb 11, 2011 12:29 PM CST

Shoppers Don’t Have to Give their ZIP Codes to Retailers, Rules California Supreme Court

Often in the forefront as far as recognizing consumer rights is concerned, California law gives consumers the right to withhold their ZIP code from retailers, the California Supreme Court decided today. Under the state’s constitutional right of privacy and the Song-Beverly Credit Card Act of 1971, which protects consumers’ “personal…

Feb 10, 2011 11:14 PM CST

Effort Pays Off: New Law Confirms ‘Red Flags Rule’ Exemption

Feb 1, 2011 6:30 AM CST

Landlord Who Rented Room Equipped with Hidden Camera is Hit with $476K Jury Verdict

When a 60-year-old Internal Revenue Service agent advertised a furnished room for rent in his Florida townhome, it turned out to come with some extras. In additional to the DVD/VCR player, the room also contained a hidden camera within the machine. It was pointed at the bed of the young…

Jan 31, 2011 9:53 PM CST

Courtney Love’s ‘Boudoir Queen’ Tweets Leave Lawyers Arguing: Is Case Settled or Not?

An eagerly awaited trial over Courtney Love’s twitter rants against a Texas fashion designer known as the “Boudoir Queen” may not be upcoming after all. Although lawyers for both sides disagree about the status of the Los Angeles Superior Court case, Love’s counsel says a settlement is essentially a done…

Jan 31, 2011 7:15 PM CST