Paul had an interesting retrospective today.  He discussed the 3 most internet searched-for Supreme Court cases during 2011.  All of the top 3 had to do with civil rights and civil liberties.  Next, Andy and Paul discussed a case from Arizona, where the Supreme Court there denied a woman the right to be on the ballot for a local city council position, because of poor English skills.  Finally, Paul shared a case from Florida about a man who was sentenced to take his wife to Red Lobster and then bowling, to avoid an assault conviction.

Listen to the audio, as there is more good and interesting information.

With Congressman Ernest Istook sitting in as guest host for Andy, he and Paul discussed the 9th Circuit’s decision on California’s Proposition 8, which banned same sex marriage.  In a most interesting and informative conversation, they disagreed about why the Court ruled that same-sex marriage is unconstitutional.

Next, Ernest asked Paul about the Huguely trial, which started today.  He’s the UVA Lacrosse player charged with 1st degree murder in the death of his ex-girlfriend, Yeardley Love.  Paul offered that the evidence described thus far in the prosecutor’s opening statement seems overwhelming.

Finally, “justice” in the context of an auto collision was described by Paul as being improbable…  who would agree to money for the damage being involved in a collision can cause?

Paul’s book, The 8 Critical Things Your Auto Accident Attorney Won’t Tell You, fully discusses this subject, and the book is available on his website for free to Maryland and Virginia residents, and through Amazon.com.

Paul and Andy discussed “the deep web;” beyond the normal search engines, Paul described that there are numerous websites that allow searching over 550 Billion documents (compared to the “surface web,” places like Google, Yahoo, MSN, which most of us use and which contain only about 1 Billion documents).  Paul says he uses it frequently for all measure of research, including things legal.

Next, Andy wanted to know what was going on with the BP Gulf Oil Spill lawsuit.  Paul told us that like all lawyers who’d prefer to have negative things about their case not considered as evidence, the BP lawyers are making motions to exclude quite a bit of damaging evidence.  The BP trial begins February 27th; Paul promised to keep us up to date.

Finally, as the Super Bowl approaches, the “munchiest” day of the year finds Frito Lay in hot water with claims of false advertising…  claiming Tostitos are made of all “natural” ingredients, a class action lawsuit claims not so much…

And Paul’s legal tip of the day:  People often don’t realize that they do not need to purchase the “physical damage waiver” insurance when they rent a car.  Your own insurance considers the rental vehicle a substitute for the damaged car and your insurance covers anything that may happen while in the rental car.

Andy and Paul talked about two Supreme Court decisions.  The first involved the right to privacy vs. the right to be safe theme, where the police put a GPS tracking device on a suspected drug dealer’s car.  First convicted, the dealer claimed his 4th Amendment right to privacy was violated.  The Supreme Court eventually got the case and agreed, indicating that police needed a Warrant before placing such a device intended for “extended” use.  Thus the question becomes, what is extended use?

Next, Andy asked Paul about another Supreme Court recent decision, where the Justices ruled that a binding arbitration provision in a consumer credit card contract was legal.  Here, poor consumers who were not told about onerous expense provisions were denied of their right to file a lawsuit against the credit card companies because of a provision in the contract requiring binding arbitration.  Guess who picks the arbitrator?

Finally, Andy asked Paul about the movement in Montgomery County, Maryland to fine drivers who illegally pass school buses when the bus has it lights and STOP sign arm displayed.  Debate is going on in the county now about the amount of this potential fine, specifically whether the fine should be $100 or $250.  Paul offered that it should be $1500.

Paul’s legal tip for the day involved picking the “right” doctor if you are involved in an auto accident.   If the doctor works for insurance companies doing what they call “Independent Medical Exams,” stay away!

Paul’s first time on the air with Andy found Andy asking him about his background and his interest in the law.   Paul tells us he’s a native Washingtonian who early on wanted to be a lawyer, after watching numerous Perry Mason TV programs.  Andy had Paul talk about his 31 year career a bit, and Paul made clear he is a victim’s advocate.  Paul’s legal tip of the day focused on getting good insurance coverage.  He said there’s no such thing as “full coverage” as some insurance agents would tell you, and that the premium increase from what you probably have, to obtain even $1M in liability coverage, is very small.

Do you need a lawyer?  Want legal advice?  Join attorney Paul Samakow, his time is yours, Wednesdays, on Andy Parks, Live From The Washington Times.  Join him for legal analysis of the latest in local and national news, and his tips for staying ahead of the game legally, and why the insurance industry seemingly never pays you enough when things go bad.  No hot air, just plain talk.  Listen on Wednesdays at 5:15pm, or go to washingtontimes.com/andyparks for information on Paul Samakow.

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Today we have an incredible show for you starting with John Hinckely … he’s the I love Jodie Foster so I shot the President person that now wants his freedom – should his petition be granted?  Conrad Murray was sentenced for his involvement in the death of Michael Jackson and the very difficult news out of Penn State and Syracuse University continues with both Jerry Sandusky and Bernie Fine now accused of multiple instances of molesting young men.

In cases that have spanned years now, the FCC is now before the Supreme Court to find resolution to their rulings on Indecency.  Pepper Spray has become a very dangerous weapon of choice, a Florida Student dies in a Hazing Incident and the makers of Vioxx have to pay 950 Million.

In our visit with Paul at his law office today … Things you Absolutely have to know about your Personal Injury Case, and answers to your email questions.  In News Follow up, two missing persons cases out of Aruba are back in the news this week and Mel Gibson, Lindsay Lohan and Courtney Love all make it to our Celebrity News.

Today news about sex abuse and children top the news….the Penn State fiasco continues and now we have another University case in Syracuse.  While these situations are just now reported, the Catholic Church settled two child, sex abuse cases….one in Chicago and the other in Miami.  Paul has some help for us on Child Sex abuse and what we can all do to help

A man claiming to be the second  coming of Jesus Christ shoots at the White House and in Arizona, James Ray, the man responsible for three deaths in a sweat lodge ceremony is sentenced.  Inside the White House, Immigration law is better defined while across America…growing numbers of citizens are joining the pro marijuana ranks.

In financial legal news, the Bank of America will be paying back Military personal for foreclosure actions and Paul has some help for us on “rights,” Rights in an emergency room as well as for airline passengers.  I will be asking Paul later in the show what he does when a client shows up asking for help … but that help includes switching attorneys in an ongoing Personal Injury Case.

In celebrity news, Justin Beiber is apparently off the paternity hook and Demi and Ashton will be going their separate ways … oh, and you can read all about their parting feelings on Twitter??  Janet Jackson’s famous Wardrobe Malfunction is tossed out of court but not before empowering the FCC … Dr. Paul White is fined for contempt in the Conrad Murray Trial, A U.S. Soldier pleads not guilty in Ft. Hood and a foreclosure buyer ends up with nothing…nada…zip!

The events at Penn State became one of the nation’s top legal stories this week – we will be looking at the crime and the victims and questioning the priority given to protecting the University’s football staff.  After weeks of covering the Conrad Murray Trial in the death of Michael Jackson, the jury came back with their verdict and Paul will help us sort out the aftermath.  In a very sad story of war, a U.S. Soldier is found guilty of murdering civilians in Afghanistan while a Ft. Hood serviceman faces more serious charges than in his original indictment.

Big business takes a hit as both a pharmaceutical company and several insurance companies are hit in the corporate pocket book … Texas is once again the focus of a capital punishment case and in our visit with Paul at his law offices this week, we take a look at the final stages of a personal injury case. I

n Celebrity News we ask, what do Justin Beiber and Mel Gibson have in common?  For Lindsay Lohan, after making promises local authorities say there’s no room at the County Jail, the Texas judge that took a belt to his teenage daughter and was caught on tape screaming at her to “submit” was not charged with a crime and, in a quest for a good news piece…Gabrielle Giffords spoke with a clear voice in her first interview since her horrific injuries 10 months ago…