• Home
  • About Me
  • Disclaimer

The Researching Paralegal

~ Articles and Research for Legal Professionals

The Researching Paralegal

Tag Archives: Civil Rights

Use “The Streisand Effect” To Hit The Perfect Legal Writing Chord.

15 Saturday Aug 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Civil Rights, First Amendment, Legal Argument, Legal Writing, Persuasive Writing

≈ Comments Off on Use “The Streisand Effect” To Hit The Perfect Legal Writing Chord.

Tags

Breaking Energy Blog, Civil Rights, Elie Mystal, Legal Writing, Persuasive Writing, Raymond Ward, Song Lyrics

Peabody Energy Tries To Strike Song Lyrics From Complaint: Welcome To The Streisand Effect, by Elie Mystal, Breaking Energy Blog (with hat tip to Raymond Ward!)

http://tinyurl.com/ozm4j5l

Kudos to the lawyers who came up with this legal writing strategy. A couple sued Peabody Energy and alleged a civil rights violation. The police arrested the couple for holding up a banner during Peabody’s shareholder’s meeting.

The Complaint filed against Peabody Energy included lyrics to a song called “Paradise,” by John Prine. Who knows how the plaintiff’s counsel found it. The lyrics are a perfect choice.

The song is about coal mining exploitation by a company. You guessed it – the company’s name is Peabody. The lyrics about the big, bad coal company abusing the rights of common people strike the right chord.

Peabody’s reaction was understandable, but a costly mistake. Peabody filed a Motion to Strike. Strike what? The song lyrics – in a lawsuit about freedom of speech. To be kind, perhaps Peabody’s counsel did not think that one through.

The plaintiff’s response is classic and brilliant legal writing strategy. -CCE

Share this:

  • Print
  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Share on Tumblr
  • Pocket
  • More
  • Telegram

Like this:

Like Loading...

Detailed Databases on Fatal Shootings By Law Enforcement.

04 Saturday Jul 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Civil Rights, Excessive Force

≈ Comments Off on Detailed Databases on Fatal Shootings By Law Enforcement.

Tags

beSpacific Blog., Civil Rights, Excessive Force, Law Enforcement, Sabrina I. Pacifici, The Counted, The Guardian, The Washington Post, Wrongful Death

Washington Post Database Collecting Data On Citizen Killings By Police, by Sabrina I. Pacifici, BeSpacific Blog

http://www.bespacific.com/washington-post-database-collecting-data-on-citizen-killings-by-police/

Both The Washington Post and The Guardian have created databases to track numerous details of every fatal shooting by a police officer and other law enforcement in the line of duty in the United States. The Guardian’s project is called “The Counted.” Both the Post and The Counted seek the public’s input, photographs, and videos in an attempt to make their respective databases as comprehensive as possible. -CCE

 

Share this:

  • Print
  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Share on Tumblr
  • Pocket
  • More
  • Telegram

Like this:

Like Loading...

Latest Supreme Court Opinion on Pregnancy Discrimination Claims.

28 Saturday Mar 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Employment Law, Pregnancy Discrimination, United States Supreme Court

≈ Comments Off on Latest Supreme Court Opinion on Pregnancy Discrimination Claims.

Tags

Civil Rights, Employment Law, Jason Shinn, Michigan Employment Law Advisor Blog, Pregnancy Discrimination Act, Title VII

A New Day for Pregnant Employee Workplace Accommodations – Understanding the New Framework, by Jason Shinn, Michigan Employment Law Advisor Blog

http://www.michiganemploymentlawadvisor.com/category/pregnancy-discrimination-act/

Yesterday [March 26, 2015] the U.S. Supreme Court issued the much anticipated opinion in a pregnancy discrimination claim, Young v . United Parcel Service.

For context, the claim in Young v UPS arose under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA). The PDA was added to Title VII (the gold-standard in terms of civil rights law prohibiting workplace discrimination) to overcome a prior Supreme Court ruling that allowed employers to treat pregnant female workers less favorably based on being pregnant.

There are two anti-discrimination provisions under the PDA: the first prohibits pregnancy bias as a form of discrimination based on sex; the second prohibits employers from treating female employees who become pregnant different than other employees who perform the same sort of work. . . .

Continue reading →

Share this:

  • Print
  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Share on Tumblr
  • Pocket
  • More
  • Telegram

Like this:

Like Loading...

Useful Information for Jury Selection?

14 Saturday Mar 2015

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Civil Rights, Hate Crimes, Jury Selection, Research, Trial Tips and Techniques, Voir Dire

≈ Comments Off on Useful Information for Jury Selection?

Tags

beSpacific Blog., Civil Rights, Criminal Law, Hate Crimes, Jury Selection, Sabrina I. Pacifici, Voir Dire

Study Finds Racial, Ethnic Divide In Attention To Crime News, by Sabrina I. Pacifici, BeSpacific Blog

http://www.bespacific.com/study-finds-racial-ethnic-divide-in-attention-to-crime-news/

 ‘Crime consistently ranks as one of the most followed and discussed topics by the public, and it receives more attention in local news media than almost any other subject. A recent Pew Research Center report reinforces these findings but also suggests that certain groups of residents pay closer attention to local crime than others in the three cities studied. A difference that particularly stands out is between racial and ethnic groups. . . .’

Continue reading →

Share this:

  • Print
  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Share on Tumblr
  • Pocket
  • More
  • Telegram

Like this:

Like Loading...

Justice Scalia’s Interpretation of Criminal Statutes And “Rule of Lenity.”

22 Saturday Nov 2014

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Appellate Law, Civil Rights, Constitutions, Criminal Law, Federal Law, Federal Sentencing, Fourth Amendment - Search & Seizure, Law Enforcement, Research, Statutes, United States Supreme Court, White Collar Crime

≈ Comments Off on Justice Scalia’s Interpretation of Criminal Statutes And “Rule of Lenity.”

Tags

Above the Law (blog), Civil Rights, Criminal Law, Federal Criminal Statutes, Fourth Amendment, Justice Scalia, Matt Kaiser, Rule of Lenity, White Collar Crime

Scalia Weighs In On One of the Most Important Questions in the World of White-Collar Criminal Defense, by Matt Kaiser, Above The Law Blog

http://tinyurl.com/kahbnvm

Justice Scalia is not a man known for mild opinions. I hear the other Justices have voted him ‘least likely to say ‘this is a question on which reasonable minds could disagree.’

While a conservative, Scalia has done good work for those charged in criminal cases in recent years. He’s been good on Fourth Amendment issues, the Confrontation Clause, and federal sentencing.

And, at oral argument recently, on what is perhaps the most significant criminal justice issue of the day — how broadly we should interpret criminal statutes — Scalia has turned his considerable intellect again in a defense-friendly way.

How, you ask?

Whether to interpret a criminal statute broadly or narrowly is an intricate question. The ‘Rule of Lenity says that criminal statutes should be interpreted narrowly. Yet courts often read in a meta-‘Rule of Lenity’ that says that the Rule of Lenity itself should be interpreted narrowly.

Moreover, judicial review of the scope of a criminal statute is tricky. There are thousands of federal criminal statutes on the books and Congress makes more every year. About 95% of the time, people charged with federal crimes plead guilty. Courts are highly resistant to litigate the meaning and breadth of a federal criminal statute before trial, which means that challenges to the interpretation of a statute are possible in a very small number of cases.

What that means is that prosecutors’ interpretations of federal statutes are highly unlikely to be meaningfully challenged. And, when they are, generally they are interpreted broadly. . . .

Share this:

  • Print
  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Share on Tumblr
  • Pocket
  • More
  • Telegram

Like this:

Like Loading...

Texas Prosecutor Fired for Using Racial Remarks In “Batson Challenge.”

12 Saturday Jul 2014

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Batson Challenge, Implied Bias, Jury Selection, Trial Tips and Techniques, United States Supreme Court

≈ Comments Off on Texas Prosecutor Fired for Using Racial Remarks In “Batson Challenge.”

Tags

Batson Challenge, Batson v. Kentucky, Civil Rights, Jim Crow, Jury Selection, Negro Motorist Green Book, Peremptory Strike, Race Activist, San Antonio Employment Law Blog, Tom Crane, Trial Tips & Techniques

Travis County Prosecutor Fired Over Racial Remarks, by Tom Crane, San Antonio Employment Law Blog

http://tinyurl.com/o3m82b4

Poor choice of words, bad judgment, racially inappropriate or all three? -CCE

The ’Batson challenge’ allows a lawyer to challenge the strike of a potential jury member. The challenge is based on the decision in Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 70 (1986), which found it unconstitutional to strike a potential jury member on the basis of race. The Batson challenge does not require much. So long as the lawyer can articulate a non-discriminatory reason for the peremptory strike, then the strike will likely stand.  A prosecutor, Steve Brand, in Travis County struck a potential jury member because she was a member of the NAACP, because she wanted to be a member of the jury, and because she had a link on her Facebook page to Negro Motorist Green Book, a book for safe travel during the Jim Crow era. Mr. Brand said he wanted to avoid an having an ’activist’ on the jury and would have done the same in regard to a perceived white activist. . . .

Share this:

  • Print
  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Share on Tumblr
  • Pocket
  • More
  • Telegram

Like this:

Like Loading...

29 Sunday Jun 2014

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Abortion, Appellate Law, First Amendment, United States Supreme Court

≈ Comments Off on

Tags

Abortion Buffer Zone, American Civil Liberties Union, Civil Rights, Concurring Opinions Blog, First Amendment, Judge Posner, Massachusetts, McCullen v. Coakley, Ronald K.L.Collins, Walter Dellinger

FAN 20.4 (First Amendment News) — 9 Comments on McCullen, the Abortion Buffer Zone Case, by Ronald K.L.Collins, Concurring Opinions Blog

http://tinyurl.com/lj44njo

Mr. Collins shares excerpts from nine commentaries on the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling in McCullen v. Coakley, which removed the “buffer zone” around abortion clinics in favor of First Amendment rights of those who protest abortion. -CCE

Share this:

  • Print
  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Share on Tumblr
  • Pocket
  • More
  • Telegram

Like this:

Like Loading...

Court Bars Woman From Facebook. First Amendment Violation?

18 Sunday May 2014

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Criminal Law, First Amendment

≈ Comments Off on Court Bars Woman From Facebook. First Amendment Violation?

Tags

Civil Rights, Facebook, First Amendment, Matt Moreno, NEWSY, Rants, Social media

Woman Barred From Ranting About Family On Facebook, by Matt Moreno, NEWSY

http://www.newsy.com/videos/0518facebook/

Hate it when people rant on Facebook? Well, one New Jersey mom has actually been banned from doing just that.

A judge has ordered one unidentified woman not to go on Facebook rants about her children or ex-husband. . . .

Share this:

  • Print
  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Share on Tumblr
  • Pocket
  • More
  • Telegram

Like this:

Like Loading...

Civil Rights Litigation Clearing House.

16 Sunday Mar 2014

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Recent Links and Articles

≈ Comments Off on Civil Rights Litigation Clearing House.

Tags

Civil Rights, Civil Rights Litigation Clearing House

Civil Rights Litigation Clearing House, University of Michigan Law Center

http://www.clearinghouse.net/index.php

The Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse collects documents and information from civil rights cases in specific case categories across the United States. It is available to scholars, teachers, students, policymakers, advocates, and the public, to allow greater understanding of civil rights litigation in this country.

Share this:

  • Print
  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Share on Tumblr
  • Pocket
  • More
  • Telegram

Like this:

Like Loading...

Cleveland Police Chief suspends 63 of 104 officers involved high-speed car chase and fatal shooting of driver and passenger.

21 Monday Oct 2013

Posted by Celia C. Elwell, RP in Excessive Force, Governmental Tort Claim Act, Municipal Law

≈ Comments Off on Cleveland Police Chief suspends 63 of 104 officers involved high-speed car chase and fatal shooting of driver and passenger.

Tags

Civil Rights, Excessive Force, High Speed Chase, Police

Cleveland police to suspend 63 officers after fatal car chase, by Kim Palmer, Reuters
http://reut.rs/1fALXdr

Share this:

  • Print
  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Share on Tumblr
  • Pocket
  • More
  • Telegram

Like this:

Like Loading...
Follow The Researching Paralegal on WordPress.com

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Search

Sign In/Register

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

Categories

Archives

  • March 2022
  • January 2022
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • January 2021
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • October 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • May 2019
  • March 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013

Recent Comments

Eric Voigt on Top 20 Paralegal Blogs, Websit…
profvoigt on Research Guides in Focus – Mun…
Make Your PDF Docume… on Make Your PDF Document Edit-Pr…
madlaw291282999 on Using Hyperbole -Are You Riski…
How to Treat Bad Cli… on Why Do Bad Clients Deserve The…

Recent Comments

Eric Voigt on Top 20 Paralegal Blogs, Websit…
profvoigt on Research Guides in Focus – Mun…
Make Your PDF Docume… on Make Your PDF Document Edit-Pr…
madlaw291282999 on Using Hyperbole -Are You Riski…
How to Treat Bad Cli… on Why Do Bad Clients Deserve The…
  • RSS - Posts
  • RSS - Comments

Blog at WordPress.com.

  • Follow Following
    • The Researching Paralegal
    • Join 454 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • The Researching Paralegal
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...
 

You must be logged in to post a comment.

    %d bloggers like this: