The first story Andy & Paul talked about involved texting and driving. Well, almost. As an auto accident attorney, Paul has a special pet-peeve against people who text while driving. A case now going on in New Jersey, where two people on a motorcycle were hit by an errant teenager texting while driving his car, involves claims against the person who sent the text to the teenager. The victims both lost their left legs, truly an unnecessary tragedy brought about by a very bad habit many people engage in… the crux of this case is whether the person who sent the text to the driver knew, or should have known, that the driver was driving… if not, it might be hard to hold the sender responsible.
Next, Andy asked Paul about New York’s highest court recently ruling that watching child pornography was not against the law. Explaining the ruling, technology is involved. The NY court found that because some images are captured automatically in temporary files on your computer, this was not “exercising dominion and control” over the image, as it would be if you printed, saved or downloaded the image. The distinction is probably moot now in NY, because, thankfully, the NY legislature is moving to make watching child porn illegal, however you do it.
The last story they guys talked about involved the curious situation of convicted thief OJ Simpson. It seems he has found an attorney to try to overturn his conviction from 4 years ago. Paul wondered why the attorney would take the case, but beyond, offered that the “ineffective assistance of counsel” claim probably is not going to work.
Paul’s tip of the day involved Identity Theft. To learn how to minimize the potential damage if you are a victim, listen to the clip.
Andy asked Paul about another 1st Amendment Supreme Court case. A guy in California lied to a public audience about receiving the Medal of Honor. This is a violation of the Stolen Valor Act, that prohibits lying about receiving military honors, awards and medals. The 1st Amendment, of course, protects speech, so the Supreme Court must now decide if this speech is protected. We hope not! Our military men and women deserve the distinctions they earn and there should be a penalty for lying about such things. Andy wanted to know what would happen if he lied about receiving some radio broadcaster’s award… Paul offered that he didn’t know of any law prohibiting such, but that Andy certainly deserved that type of recognition.
Next, Paul and Andy talked about Virginia’s anti-abortion efforts. Governor McDonnell indicated he wasn’t going to sign a proposed law requiring an invasive sonogram for pregnant women, before they would be allowed to have an abortion. This is a major change for the Governor, who probably changed his mind because of both political pressure, and political aspirations. The bill as modified, not now requiring the invasive procedure, passed Virginia’s House late yesterday, after our show, and the Senate sponsor indicated she was going to withdraw it. Good. It was a draconian invasion of women’s rights.
Paul”s legal tip involved phony cell phone apps. Listen for the details!
Press the Play button ► on the cassette player below to hear this week’s show. You can pause, rewind and fast forward to listen to your favorite parts.
This week a powerful program from Samakow Law with theme’s important to all of us: Privacy & Security vs. Freedom. How much of your freedom and privacy are you willing to trade for security? Listen carefully to the headlines and issues that came up this week and consider writing to your representatives to express your views.
The program begins as Paul checks in with Qur’an burning Terry Jones, (we hesitate to use the title “pastor” with this man), who continues to disrespect the Muslim world by degrading their Holy Book. Paul suggests an appreciation of our right to free speech by making sensible decisions about how we use our freedoms. Here at home, technology has handed law enforcement the tools to extract information from cells phones that even you may not be able to retrieve. Should our police officers have access to this information without a search warrant? In New Mexico, a woman is killed by Pit Bulls and Paul suggests a nation wide ban on the breed. Paul acknowledges his stand may be too much for those “in the know” about the breed but, then again, how many times are we going to have to report this kind of story before comprehensive action is taken?
In his Legal Segments, Paul helps us understand the dynamics of Case Management in the legal profession and describes precisely how his firm processes cases. We get another look inside his book, 8 Critical Things Your Auto Accident Attorney Won’t Tell You. On the criminal front, another look at ID theft with the loss of your information at Sony Corporation last week. What do to when your personal information is compromised and tips to help you fight phishing attacks along with FTC recommendations should you become an ID Theft victim.
Albert Hayensworth makes the Celebrity Legal News segment while Lindsay Lohan reprises, what has become, a repetitive and starring role in the segment each week. This time, after being found in violation of her probation, Lohan received a standing ovation on Jay Leno’s show and announced, “I’m in the clear.” Do we now applaud convicted felons? Samakow Law hopes the judge in her case will slap a not so fast young lady memo in her fan mail basket. Finally, former Miss USA Susie Castillo claims she was molested by the TSA. For a frightening account of what happened, listen to the interview given minutes after the incident.
Press the Play button ► on the cassette player below to hear this week’s show. You can pause, rewind and fast forward to listen to your favorite parts.
Today’s show features a variety of legal questions raised at several trials around the country. In one case, a self-proclaimed, personal growth guru. James Arthur Ray, is charged with manslaughter in the deaths of his seminar students. BP executives may also face manslaughter as well as perjury charges in the oil rig explosion that has wreaked havoc in the lives of so many while Toyota was vindicated in the first of the sudden acceleration suits. Will Donald Trump run for President? What constitutes a hostile work environment? Are the aftermarket parts used to repair your car a fair trade for the premium savings? These and other legal questions are all asked and answered by Paul during a show that also featured the return of discussion about the dangers of Identity Theft when email is stolen and the perpetrators go on phishing expeditions. With baseball season just underway, an assault at Dodger Stadium on a San Francisco Giant’s fan gives the sport more than just a black eye while former Giant, Barry Bonds case of lying to a grand jury is now in the hands of his peers.
From a June 4th, 2009 Washington Post article, yet another Identity Theft problem is revealed, this time by the State of Virginia. More than 1/2 Million people’s social security numbers might have been stolen from the state’s prescription drug database in April. Hackers apparently tried to blackmail the state and demanded over $10 Million for the return of the personal pharmaceutical records from Virginia’s Prescription Monitoring Program. The state mailed letters to those affected.
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