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Fee proposed for public court record access
Court Watch |
2013/03/25 15:18
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A proposal by the state's judicial branch to charge $10 to view a public file at the Santa Rosa courthouse is being criticized by those who say it would limit access to public information.
A spokesman for the Judicial Council, the policymaking body of the courts, tells the Santa Rosa Press Democrat the search fee would generate $6 million annually.
But open government advocates and some journalists say it will create an unfair financial barrier to public documents.
The new search fee is among 11 recommendations from a panel of judges, lawyers and legislators that have been sent to Sacramento for inclusion in Gov. Jerry Brown's budget.
The newspaper says the proposals are expected to raise $30 million statewide.
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Former Chicago Bear pleads guilty to tax charges
Court Watch |
2013/03/11 15:45
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Former Chicago Bears player Chris Zorich pleaded guilty Thursday to federal tax charges, admitting to the judge that he didn't file "in a timely fashion."
The 43-year-old faced four misdemeanor counts of not filing federal income tax returns from 2006 to 2009. Over that time, he allegedly made more than $1 million, including income from a charity he founded.
The judge asked Zorich if he knew he was wrong not to file the returns.
"Yes, your honor," Zorich said, wearing a black suit and tie.
His attorney previously said Zorich was looking forward to putting the case behind him.
The Chicago native was on the 1988 Notre Dame team that won a national championship. He played for the Bears from 1991 to 1996 and ended his career with the Washington Redskins in 1997. |
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Officials: Fla. lawyer at center of $300M scheme
Court Watch |
2013/03/01 15:45
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One of the men who authorities say was at the center of a scam to use a veterans charity as a front for an illegal gambling operation worth nearly $300 million was a well-known attorney who once ran a marathon in a suit as a publicity stunt.
Another man involved in the case was described by friends as a small-town “pool hustler” in South Carolina. Jacksonville attorney Kelly Mathis was identified by authorities as the man at the center of the alleged racketeering scheme. Two other men charged as co-conspirators had experience running gaming parlors, including Johnny E. Duncan, who was charged more than 20 years ago with creating a fake charity to sponsor bingo gaming, which allowed the games to operate tax-free. The other man, Jerry Bass, had previously worked as general manager of a video poker parlor in South Carolina.
Authorities said Mathis made about $6 million from the operation. During a news conference Wednesday, Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi unveiled a poster with a photo of Mathis in the center and linked to dozens of alleged gambling operations. Officials said he was the registered agent for 112 businesses related to the investigation. Nearly 60 people have been arrested so far. |
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NY appeals court nixes Defense of Marriage Act
Court Watch |
2012/10/22 14:50
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Saying the gay population has "suffered a history of discrimination,"
a divided federal appeals court in Manhattan ruled Thursday that a
federal law defining marriage as a union between a man and a woman was
unconstitutional, adding fuel to an issue expected to reach the U.S.
Supreme Court soon.
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals seemed interested in adding its
voice to several other rulings already at the high court's doorstep by
issuing its 2-to-1 decision only three weeks after hearing arguments
on a lower court judge's findings that the 1996 law was
unconstitutional.
In a majority opinion written by Judge Dennis Jacobs, the 2nd Circuit,
like a federal appeals court in Boston before it, found no reason the
Defense of Marriage Act could be used to deny benefits to married gay
couples. It supported a lower court ruling after a woman sued the
government in 2010, saying the law required her to pay $363,053 in
federal estate tax after her partner of 44 years died.
Jacobs, though, went beyond the Boston court, saying discrimination
against gays should be scrutinized by the courts in the same
heightened way as discrimination faced by women was in the 1970s. At
the time, he noted, they faced widespread discrimination in the
workplace and elsewhere. The heightened scrutiny, as it is referred to
in legal circles, would mean government discrimination against gays
would be assumed to be unconstitutional.
"The question is not whether homosexuals have achieved political
successes over the years; they clearly have. The question is whether
they have the strength to politically protect themselves from wrongful
discrimination," said Jacobs, who was appointed to the bench in 1992
by President George H.W. Bush.
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High court begins new term with human rights case
Court Watch |
2012/10/04 16:48
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The Supreme Court opened its new term Monday with a high-stakes dispute between businesses and human rights groups over accountability for foreign atrocities.
The justices appeared ready to impose new limits on lawsuits brought in U.S. courts over human rights violations abroad.
The argument was the first in a term that holds the prospect for major rulings about affirmative action, gay marriage and voting rights.
Meeting on the first Monday in October, as required by law, the justices entered the crowded marble courtroom for the first time since their momentous decision in late June that upheld President Barack Obama's health care overhaul.
The lineup of justices was the same as in June, but the bench had a slightly different look nonetheless. Justice Antonin Scalia was without the glasses he no longer needs following cataract surgery over the summer.
Chief Justice John Roberts formally opened the term and the court turned quickly to its first argument.
The dispute involves a lawsuit filed against Royal Dutch Petroleum over claims that the oil company was complicit in abuses committed by the Nigerian government against its citizens in the oil-rich Niger Delta. |
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