Two Lee County, Florida men face possible prison sentences of five years because their MySpace pages show them making hand gestures that prosecutors say are associated with street gangs. “Their prosecutions are the first under a state law passed last year that criminalizes the use of electronic media to ‘promote’ gangs.” The bill’s sponsor, state legislator Rep. William D. Snyder, R-Stuart, says in response to charges that the measure violates the First Amendment by criminalizing expression: “none of our freedoms are absolute, and the freedom of expression is not absolute”. [Steven Beardsley, Naples Daily News, Jul. 30] (& welcome Reason “Hit and Run”, Coyote readers)
Archive for August, 2009
“Jobless grad sues college for 70G tuition”
Monroe College grad Trina Thompson is suing for a refund of her $70,000 tuition “because she hasn’t found gainful employment since earning her bachelor’s degree in April, according to a suit filed in Bronx Supreme Court on July 24.” [New York Post; NBC New York]
P.S. Joanne Jacobs: “I have a feeling Monroe doesn’t offer a money-back guarantee.” Jane Genova: lawsuit of this sort “should have been filed years ago”. More: Daniel Indiviglio, The Atlantic; The Onion.
Cash for clunkers program
Litigation vs. privacy, part LXXVII
Online courthouse files are a giant privacy/security breach waiting to happen. [Eric Turkewitz]
Wall Street “Bull” sculpture
The sculptor of the artwork on prominent public display in New York’s financial district sues a book publisher and authors who used a photo of it on their cover [John Carney, Business Insider]
Another frozen cache problem
Due to a plugin upgrade, many users found our front page stuck on its July 30 version over the past couple of days. I think I’ve resolved it now; if you’ve still got a July 30 version of the front page and forced-refresh won’t help (Windows: ctrl+F5, Mac/Apple: Apple+R or command + R), let me know.
“Teen passenger in speeding car sues driver who was hit”
Investigators for the Salem, Mass. police concluded that the Pereira cousins’ vehicle had been speeding along recklessly at 81 mph when they collided with the Honda Odyssey minivan of Christine Speliotis and her passenger; Timothy Pereira now faces multiple charges while police concluded that Speliotis was traveling at a reasonable speed and did not charge her with wrongdoing. Now Brandon Pereira, who was a passenger in his cousin’s vehicle and severely injured in the crash, is suing Speliotis, who with her passenger suffered broken bones and other injuries. His attorney, Roland Hughes, provided this quote to the Salem News: “Basically, under Massachusetts law I’m trying to get compensation for my client anywhere I can.”
Noneconomic damages and pets
Late [July 31], the California Court of Appeal issued its decision in the case of McMahon v. Craig, holding unequivocally that California law does not permit an animal owner to recover damages for his or her emotional distress at the injury or death of an animal caused by negligence, and that there can be no recovery of damages for loss of the companionship of a non-human companion.
The report is first-hand, for it was blogger Wallace who represented the winning side in the case. Congratulations are in order.
For fear of choking
Schools across the United Kingdom are enacting rules against traditionally tied boys’ neckties in favor of clip-ons, citing safety concerns. [BBC via Free Range Kids]