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November 2016

Posted by Andrew Branca on November 18, 2016 11 Comments
Readers may recall the 2014 trial of Michael Dunn for the killing of teenager Jordan Davis, as well as three counts of attempted murder of Davis' friends, in an incident apparently triggered by Dunn's annoyance with the teens' loud music.  We covered this trial in great detail right here at Legal Insurrection.  Following his conviction Dunn filed an appeal "on the ground that the State failed to present evidence rebutting his self-defense claim." Yesterday, Florida's 1st District Court of Appeal unanimously affirmed Dunn's conviction in a concise 6-page opinion.  (That opinion is embedded below.)

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on November 18, 2016 20 Comments
Earlier this morning, reports indicated Trump's transition team had selected an Attorney General, CIA Director, and National Security Advisor. AG: Sen. Jeff Sessions CIA Director: Rep. Mike Pompeo National Security Advisor: Retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn Politico confirms those individuals have accepted the posts:

Posted by Leslie Eastman on November 18, 2016 41 Comments
Once upon a time, soccer and piano lessons were the preferred extra-curricular options for teens. Now social justice warfare may be the thrilling, new, after-school activity. A group of American kids are suing the federal government demanding "climate action."
“We are standing here to fight and protect everything that we love—from our land to our waters to the mountains to the rivers and forests,” Xiuhtezcatl Martinez, a 16-year-old plaintiff in the case told supporters after a hearing in Eugene, Ore. this fall. “This is the moment where we decide what kind of legacy we are going to leave behind for future generations.”

Posted by Mike LaChance on November 18, 2016 15 Comments
Try to imagine for a moment, what would happen if public schools in a conservative community were offered a lesson plan in 2008 which was in any way critical of then President Elect Barack Obama. We all know what would have followed, don't we? Of course, the reverse of this situation never would have happened because the driving force behind this is a teachers union and we all know which party they support. Just remember as you read this, that this is a public school system.

Posted by Toni Airaksinen on November 18, 2016 34 Comments
Last week, a Columbia University student blog published a series of leaked chat room messages, leaked to a Columbia student blog, that were sent between school wrestling team players. The team was then suspended, as Legal Insurrection reported, Columbia Suspends Men’s Wrestling Season Over Lewd Texts. These leaked messages, which were sent in the assumed privacy of a group chat, are described at the student blog as follows: “mock women’s appearances, make jokes about rape, use homophobic and racist slurs, and engage in other distasteful interactions.” Indeed, many of the messages, which can be seen at this link, would most likely be considered problematic by many on campus.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on November 17, 2016 16 Comments
Oberlin College certainly is an "exciting" place to be these days. Oberlin just fired a professor after antisemitic Facebook posts, students are petitioning to become a sanctuary campus, and the President of Oberlin just circulated an email about antisemitic vandalism at an unnamed professor's house. That come just after calls from Black Lives Matters supporters on campus to boycott Gibson's Bakery, near the Oberlin College campus. The spark was the arrest of a black student for shoplifting and assault, and two other students for assault on the shop owner. In response, Oberlin College appears to have ceased purchasing baked goods from Gibson's, in apparent sympathy with the boycott call:

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on November 17, 2016 14 Comments
Even President Obama recognizes some Constitutional boundaries. Who knew? Thursday, House Democrats petitioned President Obama, requesting a pardon for DREAMers (kids who would benefit under the contentious DREAM Act). The pardon would nullify any legal ramifications accrued because of their lack of legal status. DREAMers would've been brought to the U.S. as children. Their parents or legal guardians entered without inspection and settled without legal status, leaving their children without any legal presence. DREAM proponents often argue its not the fault of the child their parents brought them to the country illegally.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on November 17, 2016 40 Comments
Keith Ellison, Democratic Congressman from Minnesota, is the favorite to become Chair of the Democratic National Committee. He has the support of big names like Chuck Schumer, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and Harry Reid, among others. Yet for years there have been questions about Ellison's past association with Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam, as well as his association with anti-Israel groups. We touched upon Ellison's background in two recent posts: Scott Johnson of Power Line, who is based in Minnesota, has been following the career of Ellison for a decade. Scott talked about some of what he has learned about Ellison in a recent radio interview, Ten Years On The Ellison Case:

Posted by Mary Chastain on November 17, 2016 22 Comments
After a deadly school shooting in October that killed a six-year-old student, South Carolina Rep. Joshua Putnam (R) introduced a new bill that would allow teachers to carry a gun to protect children:
“It would incorporate mostly live shooter scenarios. So then teachers are familiar with how to approach that gunman on campus, how to interact with getting children away from... danger situations and how to confront that until law enforcement arrives,” said Putnam.

Posted by Mary Chastain on November 17, 2016 15 Comments
House Republicans have chosen to go with a short-term spending bill to fund the government through March 31 instead of a full year bill:
Appropriations Chairman Rep. Hal Rogers, R-Kentucky, said in a statement that his committee would immediately start working on “a Continuing Resolution (CR) at the current rate of funding to extend the operations of our government through March 31, 2017.”
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