Criminal

Okay, I Thought People Were Using “Affluenza” as a Joke

That is, like "the Twinkie Defense"—a label people were using, not something specifically argued. But "affluenza" does seem to have come out of the mouth of a person who was being serious at the time. Specifically, an expert witness who…



Good Reason to Kill #40: Denied Access to Family Cat

Not that it would matter, but the denial was not just out of spite—the cat was apparently in isolation for medical reasons: [The defendant] had just returned home from a Thanksgiving trip, and asked his parents to see the pet…


Good Reason to Kill #39: Took All the Crab Legs

Now that I'm researching this I see it happened a while ago, but it's still a good reason. The incident took place in August 2011, at the Star Buffet in East Lampeter Township, Pennsylvania. The 48-year-old victim later testified that…


Police Warn of Alarming Clown Epidemic

That's basically the headline of this Guardian article. Technically, I think there should be a hyphen there, because this isn't about an alarming epidemic that just happens to involve clowns, it's about an epidemic of clowns who are themselves alarming. But…




No Quantum of Solace

There are lots of posts out there about the horrifying Eckert case (including mine), and lots of them are good, but you should definitely read this one posted today by Ken White at Popehat, entitled "What Is The Quantum of Proof Necessary…


Plaintiff in Deming Case Was Held for 15 Hours [Updated]

Via Reason.com, here's the complaint in Eckert v. City of Deming, which I also wrote about yesterday. In general the KBO News report summarized it correctly, but there are some additional facts alleged here (in addition to more horrible details of…


Do NOT Clench Your Buttocks in Deming, New Mexico

Why not, you ask? Because it may be interpreted as probable cause to conduct an anal-cavity search. Or six. According to this KOB News report, police in Deming, New Mexico, and some doctors they convinced to help them, conducted no…