Despite being married, 23-year-old Alyssa Branton was stalked for months by a much older man who recently shot her dead outside her office building after she refused his advances. Despite providing more than 70 pages of documentation detailing Roger Troy’s bizarre and unwanted behavior, Branton was denied the restraining order that might have saved her…
Category: Justice
Hillary’s Uphill Fight Against Sexual Violence
Hillary Clinton has arguably done more to combat sexual violence in Africa in her short time as Secretary of State than the entire U.N. has in the last decade.
There are lessons that people in the U.S. and the rest of the civilized world can learn simply from her. We do not have to visit Africa and see the mauled and maimed women first-hand to realize that, whatever our differences politically, we really have a minimal number of problems to deal with in our lives and that it is our general adherence to the rule of law, with all of its compulsions and flaws, that creates the sense – and more than that, the reality – of security most westerners enjoy day in and day out.
MySpace Stalker’s Conviction to be Dismissed
The LA Times says that U.S. District Judge George H. Wu will throw out the conviction of Lori Drew, the mother who stalked and harassed Megan Meier, a classmate of her daughter’s, until Megan committed suicide, when his written ruling is filed, probably next week.
The Justice of DNA Evidence
Matt Yglesias is so slick and charming he darn near took me in when he wrote about the Supreme Court’s recent ruling that denied an Alaska man the opportunity to obtain – at his own expense – a DNA test that might exonerate him of a crime. After all, why shouldn’t William Osburne be allowed to test DNA that wasn’t available at the time/place of his trial and conviction?
Thought Crimes Bill Expected to Pass House
HR 1913, the latest far-left attempt to pass special provisions for hate crimes, is expected to pass through the House of Representatives this week, perhaps even tomorrow.
Hate crimes are abominations most often carried out by dullards and xenophobes. You know, the kind of people your parents warned you about as a youngster. Nevertheless, all hate crimes legislation is bad legislation.
An Injustice Rectified and What It Ought to Symbolize
In 2005, U.S. Border Patrol Agents Nacho Ramos and Jose Compeon stopped Oswaldo Aldrete-Davilla, a Mexican drug smuggler in the U.S. illegally, while the latter was in possession of nearly a half-ton of contraband. A struggle ensued and Davilla was shot in the buttocks. Ramos and Compeon, concerned about reporting the matter, foolishly attempted to…
5 Blind Mice, See How They Vote
The Supreme Court botched another important case today by disallowing the Louisiana law that allowed the death penalty to be administered to child rapists. Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, writing for the majority, said there was “a distinction between intentional first-degree murder on the one hand and non-homicide crimes against individual persons,” even such “devastating” crimes…
Obama’s Agenda for Judges
Here’s one more reason not to vote for Barack Obama, as any more were needed. According to his campaign, Mr. Obama, if elected to the presidency, has every intention of seating liberal, activist judges. "Barack Obama," explained spokesman Tommy Vietor, "has always believed that our courts should stand up for social and economic justice, and…
Terrorists Victims Now?
The Wall Street Journal took on apologists for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed (KSM) today, saying: These are not ordinary crimes. "For sure, I’m American enemies," said KSM in his broken English. "When we made any war against America we are jackals fighting in the nights. . . . the language of the war are killing." The…
Torture, a
At Pharyngula, PZ Meyers lets off a blast of anti-torture steam that must have been building up for some time: Here is all that torture is good for: inspiring fear in a population. … When the US government announces it’s support for torture, they aren’t talking about intelligence gathering: they are simply saying “Fear us.”…