The Daily Citizen, Dalton, GA

Opinion

Discussion

Welcome to our online comments feature. To join the discussion, you must first register with Disqus and verify your email address. Once you do, your comments will post automatically. We welcome your thoughts and your opinions, including unpopular ones. We ask only that you keep the conversation civil and clean. We reserve the right to remove comments that are obscene, racist or abusive and statements that are false or unverifiable. Repeat offenders will be blocked. You may flag objectionable comments for review by a moderator.
comments powered by Disqus
February 8, 2012

Charles Oliver: Male-dominated legislature draws the line

Charles Oliver charlesoliver@daltoncitizen.com

The Virginia state Legislature is considering a bill that would force women to undergo an ultrasound before having an abortion. State Sen. Janet Howell, D-Fairfax, attempted to amend the bill to require men to receive a rectal exam and cardiac stress test before receiving a prescription for any drugs for erectile dysfunction drugs. The Republican-controlled Senate defeated that amendment 21 to 19.



Police in Lancashire, England, have ordered the Salt and Light Coffee House to stop displaying Bible verses on a video screen, calling it a breech of public order. The cafe uses a DVD that shuffles through the entire Bible, and one customer has complained that parts of the Bible are “insulting” and “homophobic.”



Santa Monica, Calif., police arrested Antonio Montejano on misdemeanor shoplifting charges for allegedly pilfering a $10 bottle of perfume. Montejano bought more than $600 worth of merchandise at a local store but accidentally dropped a $10 bottle of perfume into his bag and didn’t pay for it. Those charges were quickly dismissed, but cops held him in jail for four nights on an immigration hold, even though Montejano is a U.S. citizen. It took the intervention of the American Civil Liberties Union to get him freed.



It is a feature of British and American common law going back to at least the 1500s that juries can “nullify” laws they believe to be unjust by refusing to convict those who break those laws. Julian P. Heicklen, a retired biochemistry professor, wants people to be aware of that right. So he often stands outside the U.S. Courthouse in Manhattan, handing out literature to passersby advocating “jury nullification.” Federal prosecutors apparently don’t appreciate these free history lessons. They’ve charged him with jury tampering.



The family of Lee Christie has sued the Lee County, Fla., sheriff’s office for its role in his death. Christie, who suffered from mental illness, had been arrested for trespassing and taken to the Lee County jail. Jailers say he was combative, so they stripped him naked, bound him to something called “the devil’s chair” and pepper-sprayed him 10 times over a two-day period. A jail trainee later said she was concerned about Christie, who repeatedly complained he could not breath. Someone finally realized just how bad his condition was and had him transported to a local hospital where he died of cardiac arrest. The local coroner ruled his death was a homicide, but prosecutors refuse to indict anyone.



Meanwhile, former Indianapolis police officer Jesse Russell Jr. has been found guilty of arson for setting a fire that caused $30,000 to an apartment building. He also pleaded guilty to setting a truck on fire. The judge sentenced him to six years probation, saying he feared for Russell’s safety if he sent him to prison.



Pompton Lakes, N.J. police pulled Darren Richardson over on a traffic charge. They later claimed his car had a “strong odor of raw marijuana,” and they called in a drug-sniffing dog which indicated the presence of drugs. So they seized the BMW 325i and spent the next three weeks tearing it apart. They found nothing. When they turned the car back over to him, it was so damaged the insurance company declared it totaled.



Charles Oliver is a staff writer for The Daily Citizen. Got a suggestion for It Couldn’t Happen Here? Email it to him at charlesoliver@daltoncitizen.com.

Text Only
Opinion