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Buffalo Chip takes quest to become town before Supreme Court
Law & Court News |
2019/09/16 22:52
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The South Dakota Supreme Court will once again hear oral arguments in Buffalo Chip's quest to become a municipality, after a lower court ruled in February that the popular motorcycle rally campground near Sturgis must be dissolved as a town.
The Rapid City Journal reports that oral arguments are scheduled for Sept. 30.
Attorneys for the state have argued that Buffalo Chip was improperly incorporated in 2015 because it had fewer than 100 legal residents or 30 voters, as was required by law at the time. The city of Sturgis has also opposed Buffalo Chip's incorporation for years.
Buffalo Chip officials have argued that the area had more than 30 voters.
Kent Hagg, an attorney representing the campground, said the case could come down to the difference between the words "and" and "or." He said the law in place in 2015 required municipalities to have at least 100 residents "or" 30 voters. In 2016, the state Legislature changed the law to require municipalities to have at least 100 residents "and" 45 voters.
Hagg said about 53 voters listed the Buffalo Chip as their address of record in 2015.
The campground fills with thousands of visitors during the Sturgis motorcycle rally, but has few, if any, year-round residents.
In February, Fourth Circuit Judge Gordon Swanson ruled that the town must be dissolved. The city has said in a statement that the judge's decision was based on common sense and plain language of the law. "It would not make sense for the Legislature to authorize the incorporation of a municipality with no residents." |
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Louisiana high court rejects ‘NOLA No-Call’ suit against NFL
Law & Court News |
2019/09/08 10:00
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A New Orleans Saints fan’s lawsuit against the NFL and game officials over the failure to call a crucial penalty against the Los Angeles Rams in a January playoff game was dismissed Friday by the Louisiana Supreme Court.
The ruling appeared to be a death blow to the last remaining lawsuit over what’s come to be known as the “NOLA No-Call.” It also means that, barring a reversal, Commissioner Roger Goodell and game officials will not have to be questioned under oath in New Orleans, as a lower court had previously ordered.
There were no dissents among the seven court members in the reversal of the lower court’s ruling.
Attorney Antonio LeMon had sued, alleging fraud and seeking damages over game officials’ failure to flag a blatant penalty: a Rams player’s helmet-to-helmet hit on a Saints receiver with a pass on the way. The lack of a penalty call for pass interference or roughness helped the Rams beat the Saints and advance to the Super Bowl.
LeMon was reviewing the decision Friday afternoon and was expected to comment later on whether he might seek a rehearing.
The unsigned opinion invoked precedent in a nearly 75-year-old case, stating that Louisiana law gives the ticket to a “place of public amusement” is a license to witness a performance. “Applying this reasoning to the case at bar, we find plaintiffs’ purchase of a ticket merely granted them the right of entry and a seat at the game,” the ruling said. “Plaintiffs have not alleged that these rights were revoked or denied in any way.”
LeMon, who filed with three other ticket-holders, had argued that the circumstances of the game ? and his lawsuit ? are unique. The suit wasn’t simply filed over a missed call, his filing said. Among its allegations are claims that fraud and “implicit or unconscious bias” on the part of game officials from the Los Angeles area led to the decision not to flag the penalty. |
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Brazil court overrules Rio mayor on gay kiss book ban
Law & Court News |
2019/09/04 09:58
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A Brazilian Supreme Court justice has blocked efforts by Rio de Janeiro's conservative mayor to have a book fair remove a comic book showing two men kissing.
Mayor Marcelo Crivella had ordered the Bienale to remove the "Avengers" comic that included the kiss, saying he was acting to protect children against "sexual content."
That set off a legal battle as federal Attorney General Raquel Dodge challenged the move by Crivella, a former evangelical pastor. She said allowing the mayor to remove books goes against freedom of expression and the free exchange of ideas.
A lower court sided with Crivella. But chief justice Jose Dias Toffoli ruled in favor of Dodge on Sunday, blocking the mayor from removing any books. Crivella's office said he will appeal to the full court.
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Court rules Rams lawsuit can be heard in St. Louis courtroom
Law & Court News |
2019/08/30 09:55
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The Missouri Supreme Court has ruled that a lawsuit filed over the Rams' departure from St. Louis will be heard in a St. Louis courtroom, a defeat for the NFL team's owner who sought to send the case to arbitration.
The court issued its ruling Tuesday in a lawsuit filed by St. Louis city and county and the St. Louis Regional Convention and Sports Complex Authority, which owns the domed stadium where the Rams formerly played. It named Rams owner Stan Kroenke, who moved the team to Los Angeles for the 2016 season, the NFL and league owners.
It wasn't immediately clear if an appeal was planned. Messages left Wednesday with the Rams, Kroenke's attorney and the NFL were not immediately returned
The lawsuit alleged that the Rams' departure violated a 1984 league guideline that was established after the Raiders moved from Oakland to Los Angeles. The league, the Rams and Kroenke have argued that the disagreements should be settled behind closed doors in arbitration.
The suit seeks financial damages, but a win for the city, county and dome authority would not return the team to St. Louis.
The Rams' departure left a bitter taste in St. Louis, which lost an NFL team for the second time in 30 years ? the Cardinals moved to Arizona in 1987.
Last month, a judge gave preliminary approval to the settlement of a separate suit filed on behalf of fans who bought St. Louis Rams tickets and team merchandise. The settlement could be worth up to $25 million. The
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US appeals court: Another conflict in New Orleans courts
Law & Court News |
2019/08/22 09:53
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A state magistrate judge in New Orleans has a conflict of interest when he sets bail for criminal defendants because bail fees help fund court operations, a federal appeals court said Thursday ? the second time in a week it has found such a conflict in New Orleans courts.
The ruling was in response to an appeal filed by Orleans Parish Criminal District Court Magistrate Judge Harry Cantrell ? often the first court official to preside over a newly arrested defendant’s case, and the one who initially sets bond.
A three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeal rejected Cantrell’s appeal and upheld a lower court finding that there was a conflict because fees collected as part of bail go to a judicial expense fund.
The lower court’s ruling came in response to a lawsuit filed by two state criminal defendants, one of whom was jailed for two weeks until money for a bail bond was raised, and another who was never able to come up with the money and stayed in jail for a month.
“Because he must manage his chambers to perform the judicial tasks the voters elected him to do, Judge Cantrell has a direct and personal interest in the fiscal health of the public institution that benefits from the fees his court generates and that he also helps allocate,” Judge Gregg Costa wrote for the appeals panel. The bond fees, the opinion said, contribute between 20% and 25% of the amount spent by the court in recent years.
Last Friday, a separate 5th Circuit panel said the district court judges who hear cases and preside over trials have a conflict of interest when they are faced with deciding whether some defendants are able to pay fines and fees that partially fund their court’s expenses. That decision was in response to a lawsuit filed by criminal defendants who accused the New Orleans-based court of operating what amounted to a debtors’ prison. |
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