Free Republic

Treasury Department officials didn't check to make sure they had the legal authority to delay an Obamacare mandate before issuing guidance that flouted the text of the law, a department official told House investigators. Treasury Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy Mark Mazur, who announced the employer mandate delay in a blog post, told the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee that he didn't remember anyone considering the legal basis for the delay. "Did anyone in the Department of the Treasury inquire into the legal authority for the delays?" Mazur was asked. "I don't recall anything along those lines, no," he...

Texas prosecutors are applauding a decision by the State Court of Criminal Appeals which provides police officers a second chance to present evidence which has been gathered contrary to Texas law and the 4th Amendment. The ruling literally offers law enforcement a “do-over;” an opportunity to secure a search warrant AFTER a home has been illegally searched and AFTER evidence has been improperly obtained. In 2010, police in Parker County, Texas received a call from a confidential informant (CI) who claimed that Fred Wehrenberg and a number of associates “were fixin’” to cook meth. Hours after the call–at 12:30 A.M...

"Jodi Arias' defense team is trying hard to keep two heavily-covered events out of the Maricopa County Superior Courtroom. Lawyers have filed two motions with the court as of Feb. 13, requesting Judge Sherry Stephens prevent the retrial jury from hearing about Jodi Arias' attempt to switch out her attorney and claims that Arias wanted to kill prosecutor Juan Martinez."

In 2011, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D – Nev.) went before a joint session of the Nevada State Legislature to call for “an adult conversation” about prostitution in the state. “Nevada needs to be known as the first place for innovation and investment – not as the last place where prostitution is still legal,” he said in a speech delivered to the Nevada Legislature. “We should do everything we can to make sure the world holds Nevada in the same high regard you and I do,” Reid continued. “If we want to attract business to Nevada that puts...

CREIGHTON LAW REVIEW, Vol. 33, No. 4 1999-2000, 821 SCHOOL OF LAW CREIGHTON UNIVERSITY OMAHA, NEBRASKA IF IT'S NOT A RUNAWAY, IT'S NOT A REAL GRAND JURY ROGER ROOTS† I. INTRODUCTION The doings of American grand juries are notoriously misunderstood and unknown by most sectors of the public.[1] Generally, the grand jury process escapes obscurity only when indictments are made public and when, for whatever reason, grand jury "leaks" are disclosed in the news media.[2] In theory, the grand jury is supposed to act as a check on the government — a people's watchdog against arbitrary and malevolent prosecutions.[3] By...

I was helping a young lady last night (age 20), whose mother had kicked her out the night before for making out with a young man in his car in the driveway. YL had been kicked out with a sleeveless shirt, no shoes, no coat, and no medicine (she had surgery several weeks ago on her back) and the mom literally threw her out into the yard. The mom was apparently incoherent with rage and they could barely even understand what she was screaming at them. They're still not sure why she flipped out like that. She also kept YL's...

Jodi Arias was convicted of murder, but still awaits a sentence. So far, Arizona taxpayers have covered $2.1 million in legal fees for the Jodi Arias legal team and other costs associated with her case.

Del. Bob Marshall, R-Manassas, has introduced a bill that would give farmers and landowners’ property rights remedies against local zoning laws. The bill is inspired by the Martha Boneta debacle last year. But unlike last year’s “Boneta Bill,” HB1219 extends beyond farmers to anyone who owns property. The bill also tackles other issues such as the constitutional rights of farmers. HB1219 says that local governments that violate constitutional rights through zoning must pay their victims the amount of the fines they sought to impose and the actual damages, including attorney fees. The bill also allows the Virginia Attorney General to...

Los Angeles Attorney Declares Rampant Fraud, Many Abuse Claims Against Catholic Priests are ‘Entirely False’ January 2, 2011 By TheMediaReport.comIn a stunning ten-page declaration recently submitted to the Los Angeles County Superior Court, veteran attorney Donald H. Steier stated that his investigations into claims of sexual abuse by Catholic priests have uncovered vast fraud and that his probes have revealed that many accusations are completely false.Counselor Steier has played a role in over one hundred investigations involving Catholic clergy in Los Angeles. In his missive Mr. Steier relayed:"One retired F.B.I. agent who worked with me to investigate many claims...

DAILY CURRANT – Colorado is reconsidering its decision to legalize recreational pot following the deaths of dozens due to marijuana overdoses. According to a report in the Rocky Mountain News, 37 people were killed across the state on January 1st, the first day the drug became legal for all adults to purchase. Several more are clinging onto life in local emergency rooms and are not expected to survive. “It’s complete chaos here,” says Dr. Jack Shepard, chief of surgery at St. Luke’s Medical Center in Denver, “I’ve put five college students in body bags since breakfast and more are arriving...

A federal judge in New York on Friday ruled that the National Security Agency’s program that is systematically keeping phone records of all Americans is lawful, creating a conflict among lower courts and increasing the likelihood that the issue will be resolved by the Supreme Court. In the ruling, Judge William H. Pauley III, of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, granted a motion filed by the federal government to dismiss a challenge to the program brought by the American Civil Liberties Union, which had tried to halt the program. Judge Pauley said that...

The head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement defended the role of federal agents in transporting illegal immigrant children after a federal judge complained they were hand-delivering smuggled kids to parents in the United States. “While the court’s comments did not relate specifically to ICE, it is clear that the transportation of unaccompanied children (UAC) by ICE personnel is appropriate and legal,” acting Director John Sandweg wrote in a brief email obtained by FoxNews.com. The email was sent Monday and addressed to “all ICE employees.”

TORONTO (AP) — Canada's highest court struck down the country's anti-prostitution laws Friday, a victory for sex workers who had argued that a ban on brothels and other measures made their profession more dangerous. The ruling drew criticism from the conservative government and religious leaders. The court, ruling in a case brought by three women in the sex trade, struck down all three of Canada's prostitution-related laws: bans on keeping a brothel, making a living from prostitution, and street soliciting. The ruling won't take effect immediately, however, because the court gave Parliament a year to respond with new legislation, and...

Received a note on our door from the county tax assessors office "informing us that they required access to our home. Never heard of this before. Is that legal? Not sure if I want a government tax agent snooping around my home. Not in the current climate here in WI. Any serious advice?

WASHINGTON – Reports of the Russian government abusing its gay citizens are based upon false propaganda by gay rights groups in the United States, Austin Ruse, president of the Catholic Family and Human Rights Institute, claimed at a Nov. 15 symposium hosted by The Howard Center for Family, Religion & Society. "Please understand what's really going on in Russia and cast aside all of the propaganda that you hear in the United States and elsewhere. It's just not true," Ruse urged. He was the main speaker at the symposium, "Family Policy Lessons From Other Lands: What Should America Learn?" and...

**SNIP** “I wonder if he has the legal authority to do this,” Dean told an MSNBC panel Thursday afternoon. “Since this was a congressional bill that set [the Affordable Care Act] up.”

Though not the type of story Coach is Right is known for posting, this caught our interest as an example of the sort of long term damage which can be caused by vanity, arrogance and utter contempt for the future of one’s own children. What sort of father could take his wife to court, regardless of her faults, hoping to prove that his children are ugly, all for the purpose of...

Can anybody cite the law that exempts people (Sellers) from divulging their SS#s during real estate transactions? I know this can be done (at least in NH) because I was at a closing 8.5 years ago, where the Seller was refusing to release his. The in-house lawyer was then called upon and, when he came out, he and the Seller had a bit of a back-and-forth about it in front of everyone. The Seller then told the lawyer that he could prove it to him if he'd just come with him outside the room (presumably out to a telephone?). When...

Uruguay’s drug czar says the country plans to sell legal marijuana for $1 per gram to combat drug-trafficking, according to a local newspaper. The plan to create a government-run legal marijuana industry has passed the lower house of Congress, and President Jose Mujica expects to push it through the Senate soon as part of his effort to explore alternatives in the war on drugs. The measure would make Uruguay the first country in the world to license and enforce rules for the production, distribution and sale of marijuana for adult consumers. …

Lawsuit reform is an issue that enjoys wide-ranging bipartisan support, with demonstrated appeal to advocates of small government and progressive government alike. All Americans have an interest in the fundamental rule of law and in the fair and justified treatment of participants in our economy. As lawsuit reform aims to pursue accurate justice, so it aims to keep the economy properly functioning. Oklahoma legislators recently voted in bipartisan majorities to reinstate more than two dozen lawsuit reforms that had previously been struck down on a technicality by the state supreme court. Alabama passed a key lawsuit reform with overwhelming majorities...