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EFF: Radical Library/Publisher and Prison Support Group Settle Lawsuit with FBI and UC-Berkeley Police over Improper Raid
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Berkeley, CA - Two radical groups have settled their lawsuits over an armed, over-broad police raid after the law enforcement agencies agreed to delete improperly seized computer data and pay $100,000 in damages and attorney's fees. Moreover, the University of California-Berkeley Police Department (UCBPD) acknowledged that at the time of the raid one of the groups qualified for federal protections designed to protect journalists, publishers, and other distributors of information from police searches, despite the police's persistent denial of that status throughout the lawsuit.

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Eight Planned Parenthood organizations sued Texas on Wednesday for excluding them from participating in a program that provides contraception and checkups to women, saying the new rule violates their constitutional rights to freedom of speech and association.

The groups, none of which provide abortions, contend in the ...

SANFORD, Fla. — After weeks of mounting tension and protests across the U.S., a special prosecutor has decided to bring charges against neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, a law enforcement official said Wednesday.

The official, speaking to The Associated Press on condition of ...

Law.com: Can the Government Force the Surrender of Encryption Keys? by Joshua A. Engel:

Encrypted data is accessible only through the use of a password or encryption key, and this encryption raises several questions. What happens when the government wants to read encrypted documents? Can the government make you turn over your password or encryption key? Does the right to remain silent or the privilege against self-incrimination provide any protection? Some believe that the answer to this question may be one of the most important technology-related legal questions of the next decade.

In a number of cases starting to wind through state and federal courts, the government has sought to compel suspects to provide passwords and encryption keys despite claims of Fifth Amendment privilege by witnesses and suspects. This issue has appeared infrequently in courts. However, a decision last month by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, United States v. John Doe, has started to provide some guidance. The court concluded that the Fifth Amendment privilege applied because the provision of this information is essentially an admission that the person had possession and control over, and access to, the computer, files, or data.

WASHINGTON — Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. said Wednesday that the Justice Department will take appropriate action in the killing of Trayvon Martin if it finds evidence that a federal criminal civil rights crime has been committed.

The attorney general made the comments in an appearance before a civil ...

The court rejects the government’s contention that an arrest warrant for a suspect causes him to not have a standing in hotel room where he was located. At any rate, defendant was arrested in the hallway, but his companion opened the hotel room door to see what was going on outside, and that made a protective sweep reasonable. United States v. Marrero, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 49494 (S.D. Ind. April 6, 2012).*

The warrant for child pornography was based on an IP address, and probable cause was shown, so the good faith exception need not be reached. [The USMJ seems uncomfortable with the fact that he issued the search warrant, too, but his decision is subject to de novo review. United States v. Nolan, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 50046 (E.D. Mo. March 6, 2012).*

A knock-and-talk does not violate the Fourth Amendment, and defendant consented to a search. United States v. Major, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 49665 (W.D. La. February 16, 2012).*

PALMVIEW, Texas (AP) — At least nine suspected illegal immigrants were killed and six more were injured when the van they were packed into crashed and rolled not long after a border patrol traffic stop in a South Texas town, police said Wednesday.

The van was demolished in the accident ...

SANFORD, Fla. (AP) — George Zimmerman's former attorneys say the man who fatally shot 17-year-old Trayvon Martin is said to be losing weight and suffering from high levels of stress from the intense public scrutiny he is under. Meanwhile, a special prosecutor said she soon will make an announcement in ...

CORCORAN, Calif. (AP) — A California prison panel has denied parole to mass murderer Charles Manson parole in his 12th bid for freedom.

The panel acted Wednesday after a parole hearing.

Manson, now a gray-bearded, 77-year-old, did not attend the hearing.

He orchestrated a series of gruesome murders on consecutive ...

SAN FRANCISCO — A University of California task force said Wednesday that UC Davis police should not have used pepper-spray on student demonstrators in an incident that prompted national outrage and calls for the chancellor's resignation after online videos of the confrontation went viral.

The officers' decision to douse pepper-spray ...

Attorneys for George Zimmerman announced Tuesday that their client has cut off contact with them, forcing them to withdraw as his legal counsel in the fatal shooting of an unarmed teenager in Florida.

Mr. Zimmerman, who has claimed self-defense in the death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, has not returned their ...

CALIFORNIA

College holds memorial for 7 shooting victims

OAKLAND | The founder of an Oakland college where a gunman went on a deadly shooting rampage says the school's been encouraged by an outpouring of support from around the world.

Jongjin Kim spoke Tuesday at a memorial service held outside Oikos ...

PHILADELPHIA | Officials promised on Tuesday to conduct a careful review of dozens of other large buildings across the city and look into whether criminal charges are warranted as fire marshals search for the cause of a blaze at a vacant warehouse that killed two firefighters.

The fire broke out ...

ATLANTA — After fourth-grade teacher Jarretta Hamilton went to the principal of her Christian school with the news she was pregnant, he responded: You're fired.

Her lawsuit against the school came before the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday, and the three-judge panel is wrestling with its decision.