Category Archives: Supreme Court

Supreme Court – The latest news about Supreme Court from the Lawstarz Blog – Latest news and coverage of the U.S. Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court hears two cases that could ruin the internet

Gonzalez v. Google and Twitter v. Taamneh seek to conscript big tech into the war on terror; the results could be disastrous.

By Ian Millhiser  Feb 16, 2023, 6:00am EST

In 2015, individuals affiliated with the terrorist group ISIS conducted a wave of violence and mass murder in Paris — killing 129 people. One of them was Nohemi Gonzalez, a 23-year-old American student who died after ISIS assailants opened fire on the café where she and her friends were eating dinner.

A little more than a year later, on New Year’s Day 2017, a gunman opened fire inside a nightclub in Istanbul, killing 39 people — including a Jordanian national named Nawras Alassaf who has several American relativesISIS also claimed responsibility for this act of mass murder.

In response to these horrific acts, Gonzalez’s and Alassaf’s families brought federal lawsuits pinning the blame for these attacks on some very unlikely defendants. In Gonzalez v. Google, Gonzalez’s survivors claim that the tech giant Google should compensate them for the loss of their loved one. In a separate suit, Twitter v. Taamneh, Alassaf’s relatives make similar claims against Google, Twitter, and Facebook.

The thrust of both lawsuits is that websites like Twitter, Facebook, or Google-owned YouTube are legally responsible for the two ISIS killings because ISIS was able to post recruitment videos and other content on these websites that were not immediately taken down. The plaintiffs in both suits rely on a federal law that allows “any national of the United States” who is injured by an act of international terrorism to sue anyone who “aids and abets, by knowingly providing substantial assistance” to anyone who commits “such an act of international terrorism.”

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FBI Most Wanted List – OMAR ALEXANDER CARDENAS

Featured News Item:

July 20, 2022

Omar Cardenas Added to Ten Most Wanted Fugitives List

Omar Alexander Cardenas, wanted for his alleged involvement in the murder of a man and unlawful flight to avoid prosecution, has been added to the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.


Additional News


Date(s) of Birth UsedMarch 23, 1995
Place of BirthCalifornia
HairDark Brown
EyesBrown
HeightApproximately 5’6″ to 5’7″
WeightApproximately 240 to 300 pounds
SexMale
RaceWhite (Hispanic)
NationalityAmerican

Reward:

The FBI is offering a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to the arrest of Omar Alexander Cardenas.

Remarks:

Cardenas often has a beard and wears prescription glasses.

Caution:

Omar Alexander Cardenas is wanted for his alleged involvement in the murder of a man that occurred on August 15, 2019, in a large outdoor shopping center in Sylmar, California, immediately next to Los Angeles.  It is alleged that he fired several rounds from a semi-automatic handgun at the victim, striking him in the head and causing his death.  A local arrest warrant was issued for Cardenas on April 3, 2020, in the Superior Court of Los Angeles County after he was charged locally with murder.  A federal arrest warrant from the United States District Court, Central District of California, was issued for Cardenas on September 2, 2021, after he was charged with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.

Cadaver dogs scour suspected serial killer’s former Westfield property in renewed push to find remains

Cadaver dogs found several areas Sunday where investigators will check further for human remains. Those areas are marked with red flags.

WESTFIELD, Ind. — Police renewed an effort Sunday to find human remains at Fox Hollow Farm in Westfield, where the decomposed and charred remains of at least two dozen people were found 26 years ago. 

For the first time, cadaver dogs on Sunday searched the property that once belonged to suspected serial killer Herb Baumeister. They did it because many of Baumeister’s victims have never been identified. 

Investigators believe Baumeister targeted gay men, killing at least 25 people in the 1990s. In 1996, police found 10,000 bone fragments in the woods surrounding his home. 

To date, eight victims have been identified. But, over the past 15 years, the current owner of Fox Hollow Farm has found more bones and bone fragments.

“We don’t go looking for them, but they do turn up and I take them to the University of Indianapolis,” said Robert Graves, who has lived on the property for the last 15 years. 

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Justice Department Announces Charges Against Alleged Gun Trafficker

Over 70 Guns Purchased in Just Six Months

The Justice Department announced today that a man who allegedly purchased guns later used in multiple incidents in the United States and Canada has been charged with federal firearm crimes. According to court documents, Demontre Antwon Hackworth, 31, allegedly purchased at least 92 guns from federally licensed firearms dealers, including 75 guns in just six months from a single dealer that later relinquished its seller’s license.

“As part of the Department-wide anti-violent crime strategy we launched last year, we are marshalling the resources of every one of our U.S. Attorneys’ offices, law enforcement agencies, grant-making entities, and other components to work in partnership with state and local law enforcement to disrupt violent crime,” said Attorney General Merrick B Garland. “We are cracking down on the criminal gun-trafficking pipelines that flood our communities with illegal guns, and we have instructed our federal prosecutors and law enforcement agents to prioritize prosecutions of those who are responsible for the greatest gun violence. The case we are announcing today is just one example of those efforts.”

“The second amendment protects the rights of law-abiding citizens – but not prohibited persons, or those who arm them,” said U.S. Attorney Chad Meacham for the Northern District of Texas. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office, ATF Dallas, and the entire Department of Justice is working our level best to keep guns away from dangerous offenders before they can put finger to

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One of Ten Most Wanted Fugitives

Notice: The official FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list is maintained on the FBI website. This information may be copied and distributed, however, any unauthorized alteration of any portion of the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives posters is a violation of federal law (18 U.S.C., Section 709). Persons who make or reproduce these alterations are subject to prosecution and, if convicted, shall be fined or imprisoned for not more than one year, or both.

Unlawful Flight to Avoid Prosecution – Murder

EUGENE PALMER

Aliases:

Eugene K. Palmer, Eugene Kenneth Palmer, Eugene Kevin Palmer

Date(s) of Birth UsedApril 4, 1939
Place of BirthNew York
HairGray – Balding
EyesBrown
Height5’10”
Weight220 pounds
SexMale
RaceWhite
NationalityAmerican
Scars and MarksPalmer’s left thumb is deformed.

Reward:

The FBI is offering a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Eugene Palmer.

Remarks:

Palmer is known to be interested in auto racing and is a car enthusiast.  He is also an experienced hunter and outdoorsman.

Caution:

Eugene Palmer is wanted for allegedly shooting and killing his daughter-in-law on September 24, 2012, in Stony Point, New York.  After a local arrest warrant was issued for Palmer in Rockland County and he was charged with murder, a federal arrest warrant was issued on June 10, 2013, by the United States Court for the Southern District of New York after Palmer was charged with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.