The District of Columbia has agreed to pay $13.7 million to settle a class action suit brought by protesters arrested during a demonstration in 2000, lawyers in the case announced at court today.
Lawyers for the protesters said it would be the largest amount ever paid in the U.S. to compensate protesters who were wrongfully arrested. The plaintiffs alleged that police officers detained nearly 700 people attending an April 15, 2000 march against “the prison industrial complex,” which was timed to overlap with an IMF / World Bank meeting. Many of those arrested were tied up for long periods of time, they said.
“It sends a message to every city and every law enforcement officer that there is going to be a steep price to pay for violating protesters’ First Amendment rights,” said Mara Verheyden-Hilliard of the Partnership for Civil Justice, which filed the suit in 2001.
Verheyden-Hilliard said she believed that U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman’s decision to set a trial date had pushed the District to settle.
“Faced with the reality of trial and a potentially huge loss, the district was able to come to the table,” she said.
The case is the second major protester suit the District has settled in recent weeks. It agreed earlier this month to pay $450,000 to eight individuals who were allegedly interrogated by police during a 2002 demonstration related to the Iraq War.
Monday, November 23, 2009
DC Govt to pay $13.7 mil to wrongfully arrested protesters
Link
I know this is bribery and the Dems know it is also
The Republicans, of course, did the same thing when they were in power.
His crime: Refusal to Tweet
Link
Police arrested a vice president from Bieber's record label, Island Def Jam Records, saying he wasn't cooperating with attempts to disperse the crowd.
James Roppo, 44, of Hoboken, N.J., was charged with a series of misdemeanors, including endangering the welfare of children and obstructing governmental administration.
"We asked for his help in getting the crowd to go away by sending out a Twitter message," said Nassau County Police Det. Lt. Kevin Smith. "By not cooperating with us, we feel he put lives in danger and the public at risk."
Facebook Group to STOP Congress from
returning to session after the December recess.
We are going to show the politicians in DC that we are serious about stopping them from destroying OUR Country and trampling on the Constitution. We are going to physically block the congress from coming back after the december recess by human blockade and take OUR Country back.
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Petition for Metro Government in Maury County
Link
For the second time this decade, efforts are under way to consolidate Columbia and Maury County into a metropolitan government similar to the one in Nashville.
A petition is being circulated that would create a joint city and county committee to develop a charter for the new government, the first step in the consolidation process.
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Kisber and Bredesen luv them some corporate
welfare for big flashy multi-national corporations...and oh, by the way they are going to raise taxes on ALL EXISTING Tennessee businesses that have been creating jobs in Tennessee year after year without so much as Bronx cheer from ECD. (Oh PLEASE don't misunderstand, I am not suggesting ECD "do something" for existing businesses.)
Hundreds of millions in corporate welfare for companies that wouldn't otherwise urinate on us if we were on fire....and a huge tax hike for all existing Tennessee employers. Ain't politics grand?
Indiana School Referendums giving voters a say
Link
Lawmakers in 2008 went to a referendum process for most construction projects when property tax increases are at stake. It already existed for operational increases though it was used rarely.
Both types of referendums, when approved, are kept outside any calculation of property tax caps. This means homeowners and other property taxpayers have to pay for the projects even if they have reached the established limits on property taxes.
"I think people are showing a lot of common sense," Daniels said. "If somebody makes a good case locally for more spending or more taxes to pay for it, Hoosiers are showing they are willing to go for that.
"If you can’t make the case, they’re turning it down, sending people back to the drawing board."
Saturday, November 21, 2009
The Fightin Double Zero Congressional District
Reporter Grant Bosse talks about his campaign in New Hampshire's Phantom Congressional District, the Fightin' Double Zero
William Jefferson's legal bills to be paid by taxpayers
during his appeal.
Their fees will be covered by the court, though the rates will be similar to those provided public defenders and far less than the prominent white collar attorneys generally charge.
Ellis also said that a transcript of the eight-week trial, which the court reporter estimated would cost $26,000, will be paid for by the court. As part of the appeal, expected to be filed next week with the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va., Jefferson's lawyers are required to provide a copy of the massive transcript from the lengthy court proceedings.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
That nasty, dirty ole profit motive and Memphis Schools
Bill Gates, along with many others, produced a computer operating system that made personal computers easy to use.
The result: customers voluntarily gave Bill Gates company LOTS of money.
The result: Bill Gates company made HUGE profits.
The result: Bill Gates decided to take the wealth created by those huge profits and give it away to LOTS of people.
The result: Memphis City Schools have an incentive to change the way they have been operating for many, many years. A way of operating that has failed tens of thousands of students year after year after year.
The result: customers voluntarily gave Bill Gates company LOTS of money.
The result: Bill Gates company made HUGE profits.
The result: Bill Gates decided to take the wealth created by those huge profits and give it away to LOTS of people.
The result: Memphis City Schools have an incentive to change the way they have been operating for many, many years. A way of operating that has failed tens of thousands of students year after year after year.
Gov Phil says every member of Congress should
be forced to sit with him in the budget hearings on Medicaid to appreciate how much extra expense they will be adding to State Budgets because of Congress healthcare "reform" proposals.
William Jefferson will get his taxpayer funded pension
of $50k while serving jail time for bribery. Bribery which occurred WHILE he was in Congress
After serving 18 years in Congress, former Rep. William Jefferson of Louisiana, a Democrat, will continue his service in a different federal institution -- prison. He was sentenced recently to serve 13 years for bribery.
But his fellow prisoners will have to forgive Jefferson if he grins and whistles as he stamps out license plates. That's because he is still eligible for a guaranteed $50,000 pension in his first year of retirement, which will increase each year thereafter with the cost of living.
Another Tax Free Weekend for buying Guns in SC
Link
COLUMBIA, SC (AP) — South Carolina shoppers will get a second chance to buy tax-free guns.
The state Revenue Department sent out a reminder Wednesday of the upcoming "Second Amendment Weekend." The 48-hour tax break begins just after midnight the Friday after Thanksgiving.
Shoppers will pay no state or local sales taxes on handguns, rifles and shotguns, which can total 9 percent. Taxes still apply to ammunition and accessories.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Search Tennessee Court Opinions via Google Scholar
You can now specify the State to search and the time period.
TwitterFall.com-Great way to monitor whasup on Twitter
Twitterfall.com is a web app that streams tweets in real time. They drop on your screen almost instantaneously based on your search terms:
Here is a search based on the conservative hashtag "tcot" and "http" showing all conservative tweets with an embedded link for example.
Here is a search based on the conservative hashtag "tcot" and "http" showing all conservative tweets with an embedded link for example.
Alternate Day Fasting Diet
Link
"We wanted to see if they could actually do it by themselves -- because what's the point of studying this diet if you have to feed people meals prepared at metabolic kitchens all the time?" said Varady.
Weight loss ranged from 10 to 30 pounds; the researchers expected an average loss of only five pounds. Blood pressure and heart rate were also lowered, along with total cholesterol and circulating fat levels.
Varady hopes now to study the effects of staying on the diet for at least six months, looking for evidence of self-motivation and to see if the diet helps in maintaining proper weight.
"Why are some able to do it but others not? It takes about two weeks to adjust to the diet, after which people don't feel hungry on the fast day," she said.
House Democrats propose yet ANOTHER TAX
Link
The idea is attractive (Ben's note: attractive to whom) because it’s very small, likely 0.25 percent of each trade. And since Wall Street is perceived by many as having caused the economic slump, brokers have little political standing to try to stop it.
It also has the support of the nation’s largest labor union.
The AFL-CIO, one of the Democratic Party’s most powerful allies, suggested the idea in August.
The group’s policy director, Thea Lee, estimated the tax could raise between $50 billion and $100 billion per year.
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