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California high court eases secrecy limits on police records
Court News |
2019/08/21 09:43
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California's Supreme Court is expanding 40-year-old rules for telling suspects when they've been arrested by a bad cop.
The justices ruled unanimously Monday that police agencies' obligation to make sure suspects get a fair trial outweighs the privacy rights of officers who have a history of bad behavior.
They rejected a lower court ruling that blocked the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department from giving prosecutors the names of deputies who previously took bribes, tampered with evidence, lied, or used excessive force.
Prosecutors are required to share that background with defendants, who can then use it to argue that they were framed or otherwise harmed by rogue officers.
The justices also noted that a new law requiring more public disclosure of police misconduct means some police records are no longer confidential. |
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Planned Parenthood to exit federal family planning program
Court News |
2019/08/15 12:59
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Raising the stakes in a standoff over women’s health, Planned Parenthood said Wednesday it will leave the federal family planning program within days unless a court puts a hold on Trump administration rules that bar clinics from referring patients for abortions.
Spokeswoman Erica Sackin told The Associated Press that Planned Parenthood clinics “will be formally out of the Title X program” by Monday unless the full 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco halts the new rules. The appeals court is weighing a lawsuit by Planned Parenthood and others to overturn the rules; a panel of judges in effect had earlier allowed the administration to go ahead with enforcement.
Monday also is the deadline set by the federal Department of Health and Human Services for participants in the family planning program to submit plans on how they would comply with the rules, which are set to take effect Sept. 18.
In a notice to the court Wednesday, Planned Parenthood said it “will be forced to withdraw” from program by close of business on Monday unless the full court intervenes.
It’s unclear what the immediate impact would be for patients next week because Planned Parenthood has also pledged to keep its doors open as it contests the administration’s policy change. |
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Puerto Ricans get their 3rd governor in 6 days
Court News |
2019/08/07 09:24
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Justice Secretary Wanda Vazquez became Puerto Rico’s new governor Wednesday, just the second woman to hold the office, after weeks of political turmoil and hours after the island’s Supreme Court declared Pedro Pierluisi’s swearing-in a week ago unconstitutional.
Accompanied by her husband, Judge Jorge Diaz, and one of her daughters, Vazquez took the oath of office in the early evening at the Supreme Court before leaving without making any public comment. She then issued a brief televised statement late Wednesday, saying she feels the pain that Puerto Ricans have experienced in recent weeks.
“We have all felt the anxiety provoked by the instability and uncertainty,” Vazquez said, adding that she would meet with legislators and government officials in the coming days. “Faced with this enormous challenge and with God ahead, I take a step forward with no interest other than serving the people ... It is necessary to give the island stability, certainty to the markets and secure (hurricane) reconstruction funds.”
The high court’s unanimous decision, which could not be appealed, settled the dispute over who will lead the U.S. territory after its political establishment was knocked off balance by big street protests spawned by anger over corruption, mismanagement of funds and a leaked obscenity-laced chat that forced the previous governor and several top aides to resign.
But it was also expected to unleash a new wave of demonstrations because many Puerto Ricans have said they don’t want Vazquez as governor.
“It is concluded that the swearing in as governor by Hon. Pedro R. Pierluisi Urrutia, named secretary of state in recess, is unconstitutional,” the court said in a brief statement. |
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Judge files order against lawyer with ties to Southern group
Court News |
2019/08/03 09:20
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An attorney who previously led the North Carolina chapter of a group that advocates for Southern secession has been ordered not to handle clients' money.
A Wake County judge filed an order that prohibits Harold Ray Crews of Walkertown from accepting or disbursing client funds. The order signed Monday says the North Carolina State Bar received information that Crews had mishandled money entrusted to him.
It also says that Crews wants to cooperate and won't appeal the order. As recently as 2017, Crews was chairman of the state chapter of the Alabama-based League of the South, which advocates for Southern secession.
After a violent white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, Crews sought charges against DeAndre Harris, a black man who was severely beaten during the rally. A judge acquitted Harris.
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