by TChris

Even states that aggressively prosecute pot smokers agree that California is entitled to try its own approach -- permitting patients to use medicinal marijuana, at least where the weed doesn't travel in interstate commerce -- without federal interference. It remains to be seen whether the Supreme Court will agree (TalkLeft's coverage of the issue, argued in Ashcroft v. Raich, is collected here), but Jonathan Adler today takes a serious look at the federalism concerns underlying California's struggle to chart its own course on this divisive issue.

by TChris

November was a deadly month for U.S. troops in Iraq.

At least 135 combat deaths were reported in Iraq between 10 a.m. New York time on Oct. 29 and the same time on Nov. 30, according to the casualty toll posted on the Department of Defense Web site. That surpasses the toll from April this year, when 131 soldiers, Marines and other military personnel were killed between March 31 and April 30, the Web site showed.

The death toll for U.S. military members in Iraq is now 1,254. More than 16,000 civilians have been killed in Iraq.

The Washington Post has obtained a non-published report of an investigation by retired Col. Stewart Harrington. The upshot: Task Force 121 was abusing Iraqi detainees and the Government knew it early on.

A confidential report to Army generals in Iraq in December 2003 warned that members of an elite military and CIA task force were abusing detainees, a finding delivered more than a month before Army investigators received the photographs from Abu Ghraib prison that touched off investigations into prisoner mistreatment.

Herrington's findings are the latest in a series of confidential reports to come to light about detainee abuse in Iraq. Until now, U.S. military officials have characterized the problem as one largely confined to the military prison at Abu Ghraib -- a situation they first learned about in January 2004. But Herrington's report shows that U.S. military leaders in Iraq were told of such allegations even before then, and that problems were not restricted to Abu Ghraib. Herrington, a veteran of the U.S. counterinsurgency effort in Vietnam, warned that such harsh tactics could imperil U.S. efforts to quell the Iraqi insurgency -- a prediction echoed months later by a military report and other reviews of the war effort.

Time for Rumsfeld to go? Where does the buck stop, if not with him?

The City of Portland, Oregon will pay out $300,000 in damages to protesters affected by excessive police force during anti-Bush and anti-war demonstrations last year:

In the two lawsuits, the plaintiffs argued that the city, Mayor Vera Katz, then-police Chief Mark Kroeker and several officers violated their rights to free speech and free assembly by dousing them with pepper spray at close range and firing rubber stingballs into a crowd. Those who brought the suits used videotaped footage to support the claims.

"We hope that getting a settlement of this size will send a message and result in some more accountability than the police have had to date," said Liz Joffe, one of the lawyers representing the group. "If they continue to attack peaceful protesters and use excessive force to suppress free speech activity, we'll come back again and again until the city recognizes it's too expensive and makes needed reforms."

The settlement has been approved by all necessary parties. [link via Cursor.]

Update: NBC execs who visited Dick Ebersol in the hospital comment on his condition - and on Charlie's heroic rescue of his dad.

******************
The plane crash in Colorado Sunday that took the lives of three people, spared two and left one in critical condition in the burn unit of a Denver hospital, is just so incredibly sad. The Ebersol family has released this statement.

In the wake of this tragedy, we are touched by the overwhelming outpouring of love from people all over the world. We will miss Teddy, our sweet boy, forever. He was a deeply cherished brother to his sister, Sunshine, and his brothers Harmony, Charlie, and Willie.

Teddy was a warm, loving, energetic young man. He had developed a wonderfully quirky sense of humor way beyond his years that kept the whole family laughing.

Jurors are hearing evidence in the penalty phase of Scott Peterson's murder trial. The prosecution gave its opening argument, the defense has reserved the option to make one at the beginning of its case. Only four witnesses will testify for the prosecution, all members of Laci Peterson's family.

Update: Because this is a defense site, we will not be commenting or providing news updates of the prosecution's evidence in the death phase. We're not even following the tv versions--prosecutor analysts are a dime a dozen. We're not a fan of victim impact evidence and firmly believe that jurors should be life-qualified at the beginning of a capital case, not death qualified. We'll return to the case when Geragos begins presenting evidence in support of a life sentence.

The 1st Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the Mass. Transit Authority violated free speech rights in refusing to carry advertisements supporting the legalization of marijuana.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority rejected three ads submitted by the group Change the Climate in 2000, claiming they encouraged children to smoke pot. The transit authority argued that it has the right to protect riders from offensive or illegal messages.

But the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found Monday that the MBTA, a quasi-government agency, does not have the right to turn down ads based on its viewpoint. Doing so violates the First Amendment, the court ruled.

"MBTA advertising space is literally a billboard for the expression of opinions to citizens at large. As a government agency, they shouldn't have the right to pick and choose what opinions they allow to be advertised," said Harvey Schwartz, an attorney for Change the Climate.

The word blog has officially arrived:

A four-letter term that came to symbolize the difference between old and new media during this year's presidential campaign tops U.S. dictionary publisher Merriam-Webster's list of the 10 words of the year. Merriam-Webster Inc. said on Tuesday that blog, defined as "a Web site that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments and often hyperlinks," was one of the most looked-up words on its Internet sites this year.

Blog will be a new entry in the 2005 version of the Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition. The complete list of words of the year is available here.

Based on a series of leaked White House memos, Human Rights First and other civil rights groups have strong reservations about Alberto Gonzales' record on human rights and adherence to established domestic and international law. Human Rights First, has launched a campaign to ensure that the Senate obtains all the necessary information regarding Mr. Gonzales.

As the New York Times reported today, the Red Cross is calling the U.S. treatment of detainees “tantamount to torture”. Yale law prof Jack Balkin weighs in, as does law prof Michael Froomkin of Discourse.net.

As White House Counsel, HRF says the leaked memos show:

by TChris

An ordinance in Provo, Utah prohibits pet owners from keeping a cat and dog in the same home.

Tis the Season. Tom Ridge resigns as Chief of Homeland Security. Kwesi Mfume resigns as head of the NAACP. Mr. Mfume's departure is a loss.

by TChris

TalkLeft has reported (here and here and here) that police may be tempted to rely on Tasers, a "non-lethal" weapon, in situations where lesser force would suffice. TalkLeft has also reported (here) that Tasers may not be as "non-lethal" as the manufacturer claims.

Amnesty International has joined the growing symphony of voices calling for a ban on Tasers until the weapon's safety can be independently evaluated. The group contends that 70 people have been killed by "non-lethal" Tasers.

In a report released Tuesday, Amnesty International says "police abuse Tasers" and recommends authorities "stop using them until scientific evidence can show they don't kill."

Other troubling reports of Taser abuse appear here and here.