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October 15, 2008 9:22:19 PM CDT

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Stories related to: law

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  • September 2008

    • Iraq Passes Election Law, But Skirts Key Issues

      New York Times  |  Sep 24, 08 1:29 PM CDT

      Iraq Passes Election Law, But Skirts Key Issues

      (Newser) - The Iraqi parliament today passed a long-delayed law establishing provincial elections, a step the government hopes will protect recent security gains by opening the political process. The first elections are expected in January, the New York Times reports, but questions remain about how to ensure representation for Iraq’s religious minorities, and the control of the northern oil city of Kirkuk. More »

      Tags

      Iraq  • law  • Iraq security  • political reform  • Iraq parliament  • Kirkuk  • provincial elections

    • Feds Mandate Nation-of-Origin Labels for Meat, Produce

      Chicago Tribune  |  Sep 14, 08 2:19 PM CDT

      Feds Mandate Nation-of-Origin Labels for Meat, Produce

      (Newser) - Grocery shoppers will soon be able to tell their Argentine steak from their Midwest chicken at a glance, as a new federal law mandating nation-of-origin labels kicks in Sept. 30. Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) will cover everything from fruit and nuts to beef, lamb, and chicken, reports the Chicago Tribune, but critics are denouncing the measure as limited and toothless. More »

      Tags

      food  • law  • meat  • beef recall  • label  • produce  • imported food

    • Monster Bans, Other Crazy Illinois Laws

      CBS2 Chicago  |  Sep 7, 08 9:21 AM CDT

      Monster Bans, Other Crazy Illinois Laws

      (Newser) - Sure, every state has some bizarre laws on the books, but Illinois might take the cake for the oddest. Some highlights from WBBM-TV's compilation of the most perplexing: In Chicago, it is illegal to eat in a burning building. In Eureka, a man with a mustache is prohibited from kissing women. Evanston: No bowling allowed. More »

      Tags

      Chicago  • Illinois  • law  • weird  • CBS2 Chicago

    • Fla. Law Changes Terms to Make Divorce Less Toxic

      Tampa Tribune  |  Sep 1, 08 7:18 AM CDT

      Fla. Law Changes Terms to Make Divorce Less Toxic

      (Newser) - Divorcing parents won't be making deals on "custody" and "visitation" in Florida in the future; a new law scrubs the terms from its legal code in a bid to reduce acrimony and give kids a better shot at continuing relationships with both parents. Starting next month, custody will be renamed “shared-parental responsibility,” and visitation becomes “time-sharing.” More »

      Tags

      children  • Florida  • divorce  • parenting  • law  • courts

  • August 2008
  • July 2008

    • Is Killing Liberals a Hate Crime?

      Slate  |  Jul 31, 08 5:45 PM CDT

      Is Killing Liberals a Hate Crime?

      (Newser) - The suspect in last weekend’s Knoxville church shooting told police that “liberals should be killed because they were ruining the country.” But Tennessee, like the federal government and most states, doesn’t extend hate-crime law to political affiliation, explains Chris Wilson in Slate. In fact, legal experts say politically motivated hate crimes are rarely prosecuted. More »

      Tags

      law  • Tennessee  • hate crime  • church shootings  • liberals

    • French Fight Ban on Insulting Civil Servants

      Times (UK)  |  Jul 26, 08 7:40 PM CDT

      French Fight Ban on Insulting Civil Servants

      (Newser) - A Paris publisher has launched a high-profile crusade to legalize an increasingly popular crime: the insulting of public officials, the London Times reports. After being fined €150 for calling a cop a connard —or stupid bastard—Jean-Jacques Reboux got even angrier, and accused civil servants of abusing the law to make money. "It's like something from the ancien régime," Reboux said. More »

      Tags

      France  • law  • free speech  • insult  • French government  • civil service

    • Rome Cracks Down on Revelers

      Reuters  |  Jul 11, 08 5:50 PM CDT

      Rome Cracks Down on Revelers

      (Newser) - Rome's residents and visitors had best behave themselves for the next 4 months: An experimental ordinance bans eating and drinking in the streets of the Eternal City, and cracks down on hooligans who want to "shout, sing or be noisy," Reuters reports. The newly elected mayor enacted the law, which applies through October in "areas of historic, cultural or artistic value." More »

      Tags

      food  • Italy  • wine  • law  • Rome  • singing  • drinks

    • No Charges for Texas Man Who Shot Neighbor's Burglars

      Houston Chronicle  |  Jul 1, 08 2:59 PM CDT

      No Charges for Texas Man Who Shot Neighbor's Burglars

      (Newser) - A Texas grand jury’s decision to take no action against Joe Horn, who killed two burglars on his front lawn, has focused attention on the state’s “deadly force” laws, the Houston Chronicle reports. Horn’s life was not in danger until he confronted the thieves fleeing his neighbor’s house, but his actions were legally protected by a statute dating from the 1850s. More »

      Tags

      Texas  • shooting  • gun control  • law  • property  • protection  • vigilante justice

  • June 2008
  • May 2008

    • Aussies Ditch Dueling Law

      Sydney Morning Herald  |  May 3, 08 12:56 PM CDT

      Aussies Ditch Dueling Law

      (Newser) - There's no longer a law against challenging somebody to a duel in Queensland, the Sydney Morning Herald reports. As part of an effort to get old laws off the books, the Australian state is also scrapping laws against piracy on the high seas, and mayors will no longer have to read the Riot Act to mobs of angry townspeople before rioters can be charged. More »

      Tags

      Australia  • gun  • law  • piracy  • Queensland

  • February 2008

    • LA Lawmaker Targets Paparazzi

      Los Angeles Times  |  Feb 2, 08 6:09 AM CST

      LA Lawmaker Targets Paparazzi

      (Newser) - A Los Angeles councilman is pushing for a "personal safety zone" for celebs after a 12-cop police escort—cost to the city, $25,000—was needed to get Britney Spears past paparazzi to a hospital this week, the Los Angeles Times reports. Councilman Dennis Zine said camera-toting hoards present a real danger. "We are in a celebrity town," he said. "Celebrities have a right to live in peace and freedom." More »

      Tags

      Hollywood  • Britney Spears  • paparazzi  • law  • photographers

  • January 2008

    • 31 States Ring In New Laws for New Year

      USA Today  |  Jan 2, 08 3:15 AM CST

      31 States Ring In New Laws for New Year

      (Newser) - Anyone planning to import shoes made of kangaroo hide into California can legally begin this year—but they'd better not try to sell any foreign-made US flags in Minnesota. Both states are among 31 that launched a host of new laws beginning New Year's Day, some of them rather unusual, U SA Today reports. More »