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If hard-won court victory against Prop 8 is tossed out because of “standing” defect, you can thank Jerry Brown

Peter Scheer August 18, 2010

BY PETER SCHEER—If I were Ted Olson, the former US solicitor general who is leading the legal battle against Prop 8, I would be unhappy with Jerry Brown right now. Olson’s hard-won victory before federal district court judge Vaughn Walker was meant to be the first stage of a legal strategy culminating in a US Supreme Court decision establishing–for the entire country–a constitutional right of gay marriage. But Judge Walker’s decision striking down Prop 8

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Federal judge rules against Kansas law prohibiting nonresident petitioning

donal brown August 17, 2010

Citing the First Amendment, a federal district judge struck down a Kansas law that prohibited nonresidents from circulating petitions in Kansas. -db The Winfield Daily Courier August 14, 2010 By Roxana Hegeman Associated Press Writer WICHITA (AP) — A federal judge struck down as unconstitutional on Friday a part of a Kansas law that prohibits nonresidents from circulating petitions within the state. U.S. District Judge Sam Crow ruled that the law violates the First Amendment

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Federal transparency: Changes in administration raise questions

donal brown August 17, 2010

Transparency advocates are wondering if recent changes in Obama administration management mean that Obama is stepping back from his commitment to open government. -db NextGov August 16, 2010 By Aliya Sternstein As the Obama administration gently pushes agencies to follow their transparency plans, recent changes in key management positions at the White House have watchdog groups concerned the open government initiative could lose steam. The administration on Thursday scored agencies according to an online dashboard that

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Free speech: Federal judge strikes down laws restricting protests near funerals

donal brown August 17, 2010

A federal district judge ruled that two 2006 laws regulating protests near funerals violated the First Amendment. -db Kansas City Star Aug. 16, 2010 By Mark Morris Missouri’s laws restricting protests near funerals are unconstitutional, a federal judge ruled Monday. The ruling from Chief U.S. District Judge Fernando Gaitan found that two 2006 laws that sought to regulate such protests violated First Amendment free-speech rights. Shirley Phelps-Roper, daughter of Westboro Baptist Church founder Fred Phelps,

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Free speech: Blogger convicted of threatening judges with violence

donal brown August 16, 2010

A federal court jury found a blogger had overreached in urging his readers to kill three judges of a federal appeals court for upholding a Chicago handgun ban. -db Wired August 16, 2010 By David Kravets Three trials later, authorities have finally won a criminal conviction against Hal Turner, the New Jersey hate blogger charged with threatening to kill federal appeals court judges. Turner was convicted in federal court in Brooklyn on Friday of threatening

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