HuffPost: Alex Jones just lost two Sandy Hook cases.
Judge Maya Guerra Gamble on Monday issued her ruling for default judgments against Jones in two different cases, which means he and the conspiracy-theory-spewing outlet Infowars have been found liable for all damages and a jury will now be convened to determine how much he will owe the plaintiffs. The new rulings became public Thursday. In the filings, Gamble eviscerated Jones and reasoned that default judgments should be ordered because “an escalating series of judicial admonishments, monetary penalties, and non-dispositive sanctions have all been ineffective at deterring the abuse,” caused by Jones’ unwillingness to turn over documents related to the cases, the Texas judge ruled. Vox: The nihilism of Neil Gorsuch. In his four years on the Court, Gorsuch has staked out a more ambitious agenda than many preceding justices articulated in four decades, and he has seized every opportunity to implement as much of this agenda as possible. He arguably has a better sense of where he wants to take the law than any other member of the Court. He is broadly anti-government, skeptical of democracy and the institutions that make it possible, and eager to centralize power within the judiciary. AP via WKBN: Judge questions whether Jan. 6 rioters are being treated unfairly. Reason: The Innocence Files examines the workings behind wrongful convictions. Across nine episodes, Netflix's The Innocence Files documents several of these cases, showing how bad forensics, faulty witness testimony, and misconduct by police and prosecutors let us down. Reuters: Trump asks court to force Twitter to reinstate his account. More links and stories on our Facebook page!
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By Gretchen Schuldt
The state's prison population is growing again after a long decline due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The number of adults incarcerated in state facilities declined to 19,381 on May 14, down significantly from the June 2019 level of almost 23,600 reported by the Wisconsin Policy Forum in its 2021-23 state budget brief. At the height of the outbreak DOC basically closed its doors to new inmates, shoving the problem of housing them downstream to local jails. And courts shut down or dramatically reduced operations, which also reduced the flow of inmates to prison. Then, this spring, prisons began accepting people again. The prison population ticked upward the week of May 21 and has increased every week since, according to Department of Corrections data. On Sept. 24, 20,132 people were incarcerated in the state's adult facilities. Current inmate numbers are likely to increase further as courts resume normal operations and more people are sentenced. CNN: U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor – There will be "a lot of disappointment in the law."
Roll Call: U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh tests positive for COVID-19. Crosscut: Seattle-area mental health responders ask for clarity on police participation. “Our community’s ability to adequately respond to behavioral health crisis events is itself in crisis, reads a letter from the providers addressed to Mayor Jenny Durkan and King County Executive Dow Constantine, as well as members of county and city councils and law enforcement agencies. “Without urgent action, people living with behavioral health conditions, the staff and organizations who care for them, and the community at large are at serious risk,” the letter continues. Their call for a meeting was granted, with a summit set to take place Oct. 5. The summit will occur at a time when Seattle and King County continue to wrestle with the role of police in society, a controversial and often rocky introspection following the mass protests of summer 2020. The New York Times: The U.S. Justice Department says Texas' mask ban may violate the rights of disabled children. The department filed a formal statement on Wednesday with the federal district court in Austin that is hearing one of the lawsuits, saying that the ban violates the rights of students with disabilities if it prevents the students from safely attending public schools in person, “even if their local school districts offered them the option of virtual learning.” The move signals a willingness by the federal government to intervene in states where governors and other policymakers have opposed mask mandates, using federal anti-discrimination laws like the Americans with Disabilities Act. The Justice Department has often used similar statements of interest to step in to cases involving civil rights. WAOW: Wisconsin in top 10 for OWIs, report says. More links and stories on our Facebook page! |
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