Posts

After settling their bill for breakfast at a Texas restaurant, a gay couple said the waitress decided to give them a tip of her own. “We don’t serve f–s here,” the waitress told the couple, reports KRLD NewsRadio, before telling them never to return. Can a business refuse to serve gay people? Big Earl’s Bait House The restaurant, Big Earl’s Bait House and Country Store in Pittsburgh, Texas (where a sign on the front door reads, “Welcome to Big Earl’s where men act like men, women act like ladies”), is owned by Earl Cheney....

The Supreme Court may have extended the right to marry to same-sex couples this year, but the fight for equality, benefits, and rights is not over. Just a month after the Supreme Court’s decision in Obergefell v. Hodges Walmart is defending itself against a lawsuit that claims gender discrimination when it refused to extend health insurance to same-sex spouses of employees. Jackie Cote worked at Walmart stores since 1999. In 2004, when Massachusetts became the first state to allow same sex marriage, Cote married her wife Diana Smithson, who also worked for Walmart....

We normally think of bullying as an activity confined to the playground. But it turns out it can happen in the classroom, too. And the aggressors aren’t always fellow students – teachers have also been known to be bullies. The vast majority of teachers are caring, conscientious, and hard-working. But every bunch has a few bad apples, and some teachers can take educational encouragement too far. So what can you do if you find out a teacher is bullying your child?...

Carpool (or HOV - high occupancy vehicle) lanes are a pretty common way for people to get to and from work. All you have to do is drive in a big metro area to understand the appeal. No one likes to deal with traffic, especially when there’s an accident. Carpools help to eliminate the grind of daily commuting. But what happens if you’re in a carpool accident? Are you liable for, well, anything?...

Is your iPhone secure? Can your CrackBerry be trusted? Is your Droid the Noid? (Yes, that was an 80’s Domino’s pizza reference.) Lame jokes aside, privacy advocates and consumers are becoming concerned that our precious little smartphones are storing, tracking and sharing all kinds of unwanted information. Or, more specifically, the apps are tracking them. Concerned about apps tracking? You probably should be. “In the world of mobile, there is no anonymity,” says Michael Becker of the Mobile Marketing Association, an industry trade group....

For at least 10 years, a serial rapist and killer terrorized both Northern and Southern California, committing an estimated 50 rapes in the Sacramento and Contra Costa areas during the mid-1970s and murdering at least 12 people in Orange County and Santa Barbara from 1979 through 1986. Dubbed, at various times, as the Original Night Stalker, East Area Rapist, the East Bay Rapist, the Diamond Knot Killer, and finally the Golden State Killer, the suspect had eluded identification and capture for decades....

When separated parents share custody, vacations can often be a contentious issue. Although spring break can be a great time for a family trip, if you don’t plan properly, it might lead to family drama, and potentially a court petition to modify a custody order. Custody orders will often specify how vacations or school breaks are handled, but sometimes the orders are silent on these issues, or there might not be a custody order in place....

A personal injury lawsuit can be incredibly complex, from proving fault to assessing damages. That’s why, in many cases, those who have been injured in an accident turn to a personal injury lawyer for help. Before your lawyer can start working on your case, however, he or she will have a few important questions about what happened. What facts will your personal injury lawyer need to know? Here are five:...

In the wake of the discovery of 11 decomposing bodies in Anthony Sowell’s home more than a month ago, many women in the Cleveland area seeking help with drug abuse. As previously discussed, Sowell, a convicted Ohio rapist, faces 85 counts including murder, rape and kidnapping charges following the discovery of the remains at his home. Drug counselors say many women in Cleveland seeking help with drug addiction were motivated to call by the discovery of the women who disappeared into the house, where Sowell, a registered sex offender, lived....

Arizona’s superintendent of schools John Huppenthal has declared that the Tucson Unified School District’s Mexican-American Studies Program violates state law. Arizona’s ethnic-studies law forbids classes that are promoting the overthrow of the U.S. government or resentment toward other ethnicities. The Mexican-American Studies Program is supposed to “promote the understanding and appreciation of cultural similarities and differences that exist within our communities,” and to advance students’ understanding of different Latino populations and cultures throughout the U....

It seems to happen every few months – a new, “best ever” smartphone gets released and everyone scrambles to their carriers wondering how long they have left on their current cell phone contract before they can get the latest and greatest. While the contract commitment seems like a great way to save a few (hundred) bucks on a new phone, they can seem downright onerous a year later when a new new phone comes out....

Federal authorities arrested Dr. Meera Sachdeva in August and indicted her on 15 counts of Medicare and Medicaid fraud. She’s accused of diluting cancer drugs and reusing needles at the Rose Cancer Center in Summit, Miss. When the clinic was closed in July, the Health Department urged patients to get screened for Hepatitis B and C and HIV. There have been no reports of positive results – until now. The family of James Ralph Patterson Sr....

Almost 1.8 million young illegal immigrants may qualify for temporary legal status under President Obama’s deferred action program. This is more than double what experts initially expected when first Obama announced the program. A big reason for the increase in numbers of people affected is that the guidelines for the deferred action program are far more expansive. It includes young people under 30 who did not graduate high school or receive a G....

Female prison guards are more likely to be involved in sexual misconduct with inmates. This information is part of the latest findings from a new Department of Justice study. The study shows that the prevalence of sexual assault in state and federal prisons found that 58 percent of staff perpetrators of sexual misconduct were female prison guards. In each of the five cases, Michael Murphy was the victim who allegedly seduced the female prison staff....

A new trend in employment law, California companies have recently been experiencing a barrage of meal break lawsuits, challenging state labor rules and the extent to which an employer must provide time to rest. One of these lawsuits, filed against Terminix, ended earlier this week with a federal judge approving a $1.5 million settlement that will compensate termite inspectors for overtime and missed meal breaks. Brinker and Brinkley, two other multi-million dollar class-action meal break lawsuits, are also currently awaiting review by the state’s highest court....

It goes without saying that small businesses are having to let go of more employees than they’d like. A larger number of laid off workers means more likelihood that some of those laid off will have taken leave at some point under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Because its illegal to punish employees for taking FMLA leave, extra care need be taken in firing anyone who has taken or plans on taking FMLA leave....

A jury found James Alex Fields Jr. guilty of first degree murder, as well as aggravated malicious wounding, hit and run, and leaving the scene of an accident, for driving his car into a sea of counterprotesters in Charlottesville, Virginia in August of 2017. The incident left Heather Heyer, a 32-year-old paralegal and civil rights activist, dead, and around three dozen others injured. During the evening in question, white nationalists had gathered for a “Unite the Right” rally to protest the removal of Confederate Gen....

Drug abuse is often cited as a reason for couples to divorce. Not only does the person dealing with a substance or drug abuse problem suffer, it is likely that their spouse also suffers from indirect consequences. The consequences can be even worse if there are children. While most states do not require a couple to provide a material reason for their divorce, if one spouse abuses drugs or alcohol, this can have a direct impact on a divorce case....

These days, more people than ever are turning to online reviews on sites including Yelp to review businesses. Like all technology, businesses are finding it to be a bit of a double edged sword. It’s great when people say nice things about your business. It’s terrible when they say awful things about it. There are legal options when someone says defamatory things about your business in online reviews. However, suing or threatening to sue is often a mistake....

Illicit drug use by Americans over 50 has dramatically increased, while illicit drug use among young people has declined, according to the latest survey on drug use by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The data was gleaned from 70,000 Americans who were surveyed about their “past month use” of a variety of drugs, including marijuana, heroin, cocaine and prescription drugs (used in “nonmedical” contexts)....