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In an action challenging the constitutionality of a Chicago municipal ordinance prohibiting the use of wireless telephones without a “hands-free” device while driving a motor vehicle, district court judgment is affirmed where: 1) the court properly dismissed plaintiff’s Fourth Amendment claims as the police had probable cause to stop them based on their violation of the hands free law; 2) the court properly dismissed plaintiff’s equal protection claims as the distinction between plaintiffs and those who were not ticketed was rational; 3) plaintiffs have not alleged any plausible constitutional violation that might become the basis for holding the City liable; and 4) the court did not abuse its discretion by not permitting plaintiffs to amend their complaint as the proposed amendments would be futile....

While the Nine heard oral arguments about the Stolen Valor Act in U.S. v. Alvarez on Wednesday, the Court was also releasing opinions. The Supreme Court issued three more opinions this morning, raising the decision tally for their first post-recess week to seven. It was a day of reversals, with the Court sending the following cases back to the Montana Supreme Court and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. PPL Montana v....

Being on the U.S. Supreme Court is not a race, but people like to watch who is leading the court. Sometimes a single decision will produce a stand-out leader, whether in jurisprudence, or just because. All opinions are not created equal. In any case, winning is sometimes a matter of opinion. For those scoring at home, here are the most recent leaders by number of written decisions: Opinion Count At last count, SCOTUSblog reported Justice Clarence Thomas was leading the pack....

It is “brutal,” “offensive,” and offends “fair play and decency” to take children from their mothers seeking asylum, a federal judge said. And if that’s not enough, it violates the due process clause of the U.S. Constitution. Judge Dana Sabraw minced no words in refusing the government’s motion to dismiss a complaint by two immigrant mothers. In Ms. L. v. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the mothers said they were forcibly separated from their minor children for months....

District Court judgment denying plaintiff’s petition for habeas corpus and refusing to issue a certificate of appealability is reversed in part where the state clearly and unambiguously waived the exhaustion requirement under 28 U.S.C. sec. 2254(b)(3) when it conceded exhaustion in its answer to plaintiff’s habeas petition. Plaintiff’s habeas petition should be granted so that he may be resentenced on his two robbery convictions. Read Sharrieff v. Cathel, No. 07-1156...

Happy Monday! Because it’s the eve of the eve of a holiday, and you’re probably thinking ahead to where you’ll be tomorrow night, we’re not going to occupy your mind with an in-depth analysis of a SCOTUS case. (Besides, the Court is on holiday too – there’s nothing to analyze.) So please, take some time from your busy holiday work schedule to enjoy this pre-holiday roundup, instead. No, that’s not figurative....

In this day and age, business is fiercely competitive. Almost everything can be found on the internet, from confidential information to private business information to trade secrets getting leaked online. Protecting your proprietary information is more important than ever and could mean gaining a competitive advantage over similar business owners and startups. Your first step is having cybersecurity and secure computer systems in place. Whether it’s information on a patent you are developing, a customer list, or “just” a hamburger recipe, you have a strong need to keep your private information private....

Defendant’s drug-related murder conviction is affirmed where there was sufficient evidence demonstrating that defendant induced his drug associates to participate in the victim’s murder through promises to forgive drug-related debts and to engage in future drug transactions. Read US v. Aguilar, No. 08-4640 Appellate Information Argued: September 21, 2009 Decided: November 5, 2009 Judges Opinion by Judge Raggi Counsel For Appellant: James E. Neuman and David Stern, New York, NY...

District court’s denial of defendant’s motion to suppress a statement he gave to law enforcement agents implicating himself in criminal firearms trafficking is affirmed as, district court did not commit clear error in finding that defendant initiated conversation with law enforcement, and thus, the law enforcement agents did not interrogate defendant in violation of his Fifth Amendment right to counsel, and the court properly denied defendant’s motion to suppress his incriminating statements....

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals has considered a New York City ban on churches holding worship services in public schools 5 times over the last 17 years. A three-judge panel heard the latest round of arguments on Monday, and it seems that the appellate court will once again side with the city, The Associated Press reports. Last June, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a New York City Department of Education rule prohibiting the use of schools for “religious services or religious instruction” did not constitute viewpoint discrimination because banning church services in public schools was not an effort to exclude expressions of religious points of view or of religious devotion....

The latest development in the travel ban executive order cases pending before the U.S. Supreme Court involves the letter briefs submitted to the Court pursuant to September 25th order. When the Court took the case off calendar, it also issued a request to the parties for briefing on the issue of mootness in light of the most recent executive order travel ban. Clearly, the Trump administration urged the High Court to vacate the lower courts’ rulings on the grounds of mootness....

For decades, the Supreme Court has been filled with justices who did not believe in William Shakespeare. Indeed, for only the past few months has the Supreme Court been free of anti-Shakespeare conspiracy theorists. The highest court in the land apparently has a long history of harboring Shakespeare-denying jurists, a shadowy cabal of so-called “Oxfordians” who reject the idea that “Hamlet,” “Macbeth,” and “Romeo and Juliet” were written by William Shakespeare....

Petition for review of BIA’s decision to uphold the IJ’s finding that a Syrian petitioner’s former marriage to a US citizen was a sham is denied as the marriage was entered into in an attempt to allow him to remain in the United States and thus uphold the IJ’s ruling that petitioner is removable under section 237(a)(1) as supported by substantial evidence. Petitioner’s remaining claims are rejected. Read Abdulahad v. Holder, No....

In an action based on defendants’ shipping of defective products, summary judgment for plaintiff is affirmed where: 1) defendants were not “shippers” entitled to the protection of section 1304(3) of the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act (COGSA); and 2) the bill of lading at issue did not violate COGSA. However, the district court’s denial of plaintiff’s motion for attorney’s fees is reversed where plaintiff did not waive the right to contend that Singapore law governed the bill of lading....

In US v. Strickland, No. 08-30091, the Ninth Circuit affirmed defendant’s child pornography sentence, holding that defendant’s prior Maryland conviction for child abuse was a predicate offense relating to sexual abuse of a minor under 18 U.S.C. section 2252A(b)(1) and (2) resulting in an increased statutory minimum and maximum sentence, because the docket sheet for the Maryland conviction established that the predicate offense was for sexual abuse of a child....

Arbitration clauses are everywhere, and we write about them a lot. Whether it’s Sirius XM, Indian tribe payday lenders, or cell phone companies, we’ve seen everything in arbitration cases. Or so we thought. Kenneth Johnson bought a TV and refrigerator from Rent-a-Center. In 2012, Johnson let Rent-a-Center employee Eric Patton into his house to service the refrigerator, like he’d done several times before. This time, though, Patton seriously beat and robbed Johnson....

Viral videos of people getting arrested are becoming more and more common. But every arrest video is not evidence of excessive force or police brutality. Sometimes those videos are actually evidence of an arrestee’s own wrongdoing. Simply put, video evidence of an arrest can cut both ways. Video Evidence Cuts Both Ways In the case of Matthew Bair, out of Pennsylvania, the video taken by his friend that went viral really didn’t do him any favors....

Impossible Burgers hit the shelves of Gelson’s Markets in California on Sept. 20, and the company says they aim to make them available nationwide by mid-2020. At $8.99 for a 12-ounce package, the Impossible Patties come at a higher price point than ground beef – but many consumers don’t seem to care, as the meat alternative industry continues to grow. The Impossible Burger already has several competitors, including the Beyond Burger by Beyond Meat, Kellogg’s Morningstar Farm line of meat alternatives, and a beef/pea protein burger introduced by Tyson this fall....

Scammers have taken advantage of the coronavirus pandemic from the start, but the recent surge of the highly infectious omicron variant is providing them with more opportunities to fleece the public. Omicron’s rapid spread means that those who suspect they’ve been infected or exposed may not be able to be tested right away due to high demand. So they often scour the internet in hopes of finding a provider that can do it quickly....

For years, National Collegiate Athletic Association guidelines prohibited college student athletes from profiting from their name or image while they are in college. But recently, federal courts have found that the NCAA can no longer prevent college football and basketball players from sharing in proceeds generated by use of their likenesses. Still, the ability for student athletes to sign endorsement deals or otherwise license their name and image (and get paid for doing so) has yet to be codified....