October 28, 2010

PITTSBURGH – The American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania filed a federal lawsuit today on behalf of a Newcastle couple, Elizabeth Mort and Alex Rodriguez, whose newborn daughter was seized and held for five days by Lawrence County Children and Youth Services (LCCYS) after the mother failed a hospital drug test because she had recently eaten a bagel with poppy seeds.

“No parent should have to go through what this couple did,” said ACLU of Pennsylvania staff attorney Sara Rose, who is representing Mort and Rodriguez. “This case is a tragic illustration of the harm that can result when the government removes a child based only on the accusation of a third party and without any independent investigation.” (more…)

By Denise Lavoie
Associated Press / October 13, 2010

The US Department of Justice yesterday defended the federal law defining marriage as between a man and a woman in its appeal of two rulings in Massachusetts by a judge who called the law unconstitutional for denying federal benefits to gay married couples.

In two separate cases, US District Judge Joseph Tauro in July ruled the federal Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional because it interferes with a state’s right to define marriage and denies married gay couples an array of federal benefits given to heterosexual married couples, including the ability to file joint tax returns. (more…)

On April 16, 2010, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court granted Attorney Andrew Shubin’s petition for allocatur in Commonwealth v. Zortman, a 2006 drug trafficking case prosecuted by the Attorney General’s office. The Supreme Court will hear argument on whether Zortman, the then girlfriend of a Clearfield County drug dealer, should be hit with a five year mandatory minimum state prison sentence based upon the presence of an inoperable firearm in the residence. Shubin, who represented Zortman in the appellate proceedings, expects the case to be briefed and argued before the end of the year.

Proposed act unconstitutional, group says
Mike Joseph
STATE COLLEGE — A proposed borough ordinance to curb the impact of rowdy parties by holding hosts responsible for the illegal activities of guests has come under fire from a national organization that advocates individual rights.

The American Civil Liberties Union told State College in a letter Friday that the borough’s proposed “nuisance gathering ordinance,” which is scheduled for a public hearing Monday night, violates the U.S. Constitution.

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Attorney Andrew Shubin called the case “doomed from the beginning,” yet a Daily Collegian photographer faced misdemeanor charges for months after the October 2008 downtown State College riot.
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On Oct. 25 last year, thousands of students rushed into Beaver Canyon to celebrate Penn State’s victory over rival Ohio State.

We didn’t know it, but the First Amendment was on the line.

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By Kevin Cirilli  
Collegian Staff Writer

A judge dismissed Wednesday the remaining charge against a Daily Collegian photographer who was arrested while on assignment photographing the Oct. 25 riot following a Penn State football team victory over Ohio State.

Citing “unclear” evidence, Centre County Judge David E. Grine dismissed the failure to disperse charge against the photographer, Michael R. Felletter, according to Grine’s ruling.

“The justice system did its part,” Felletter (senior-visual journalism) said. “Hopefully, journalists will feel freer to go out and gather the news without fearing they’ll be charged for breaking the law.”

Now Centre County officials are reviewing Grine’s ruling to determine whether to appeal or re-file the charges against Felletter, Centre County District Attorney Michael Madeira wrote in an e-mail.

Felletter photographed the riot, during which thousands of Penn State students flooded Beaver Canyon. Police initially arrested 14 people in connection with the incident.

Police said Felletter’s photographing caused the crowd to become “more exuberant, excited and destructive,” according to the criminal complaint.
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[Posted by The Associated Press July 20, 2009, 21:12PM]

A sex offender’s bid to overturn the state prison system’s pornography ban was ended Monday by the state Supreme Court, which sided unanimously with the Department of Corrections.

The justices said inmate Shannon R. Brittain, 34, failed to refute the department’s arguments in a meaningful way. They reversed a lower court ruling that had allowed Brittain’s case to continue.

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Inmate’s wife claims authorities failed to follow procedure
and monitor husband
By Phil Ray
JOHNSTOWN — The wife of a man who committed suicide while incarcerated at Blair County Prison has filed a federal lawsuit contending that jail authorities violated procedures by not placing him on suicide watch. Jeremy Shane Corbin, 32, of Bellwood used a bedsheet to hang himself in his cell in October.

At the time, the jail contained 313 inmates, and some were housed in the gymnasium.  Corbin was in jail on an allegation that he violated a protection-fromabuse order issued Oct. 9.  County officials said Corbin was upset because he couldn’t see his children because of the PFA order.  According to the lawsuit, Corbin told sheriff’s deputies transporting him to a hearing that he was suicidal, the lawsuit stated.

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By Alyssa Owens

Although an extensive debate between Penn State Judicial Affairs and Olivia Guevara ended last week, the motives behind her prosecution are still being questioned.

Over the past five months, Guevara, a graduate student in the department of labor, has repeatedly challenged Penn State’s decision to prosecute her for vandalism and accused the university of singling her out to squelch her anti-sweatshop activism.

The battle has grown to involve 48 professors, labor departments from other universities, labor unions, concerned students from across the country and a local attorney who said Guevara’s First Amendment rights were at risk.

The charges stem from an incident on Sept. 27, when Guevara and several other activists chalked anti-sweatshop messages on several university buildings, including Old Main. Criminal charges against Guevara were dismissed because of a lack of evidence. However, Judicial Affairs asked for damage fees and issued a seven-year citation on her academic record.

Penn State officials have maintained that Guevara’s Judicial Affairs hearing was fair and that her prosecution was solely a matter of vandalism.

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