The VLW Blog

Virginia Supreme Court Chief Justice Leroy Hassell will address the free speech implications of the state’s cross burning statute today at U.Va..
According to the Daily Progress, Hassell will give the presentation at 5 p.m. in the University of Virginia School of Law’s Caplin Auditorium.
The chief justice will focus on Virginia v. Black, the 2003 U.S. [...]

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Former corporate lobbyist Neil MacBride is among the top contenders for the U.S. attorney post in the Eastern District.
The Washington Post reports that MacBride is up against at least six other candidates. They include: Dwight C. Holton, a 12-year federal prosecutor and the brother-in-law of Gov. Kaine, and three assistant U.S. attorneys in Alexandria: [...]

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Virginia is being cited for providing a good example on a subject that might not have occurred to you – providing kosher meals to Jewish prison inmates.
Maryland says it is adopting Virginia’s policy – and apparently its recipes – to take effect on Passover, which begins April 8.
The state is a defendant in two cases, [...]

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The city of Portsmouth has settled with the Justice Department in a lawsuit that claimed a written exam discriminated against African-American firefighter applicants.
According to the Justice Department, as of Oct. 7, 2008, Portsmouth employed about 226 firefighters. Just over 12 percent are African American, while the city’s civilian labor force is more than 45 percent [...]

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Madison County Commonwealth’s Attorney George Webb III has decided not to prosecute a woman for wearing a McCain T-shirt to the polls during last November’s election.
The American Civil Liberties Union had taken on the case, appointing four lawyers to defend Leigh Purdum, who was arrested for refusing to cover her political T-shirt at the Brightwood [...]

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A new prosecutor’s “open file” policy opened the door to a new trial for a man convicted of a sex offense.
Michael Thorsen Youssef was convicted in 2006 of two offenses, based on a woman’s accusations that he forced himself on her after a “night of alcohol and narcotic-influenced partying,” according to a new decision from [...]

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Free speech advocates are urging an Illinois court to protect the anonymity of people who post comments on Web publications.
The case, which has now reached the Illinois appellate court, stemmed from comments left on a local newspaper Web site, reports Online Media Daily. Anonymous posters responded to an article that profiled a couple who was [...]

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The judge in the Gloucester recall petition case says he will give the petitioners another hearing on who has to pay the $80,000 attorney fee award he ordered.
The case has become a lightning rod for citizen activists and free speech advocates who  criticized the decision by substitute Judge Westbrook J. Parker to impose defense costs [...]

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Demand for legal help is up at the Legal Aid office in Winchester.
The Winchester Star reports that, due to the financial crisis, lawyers at the Blue Ridge Legal Services’ Winchester branch are having trouble keeping up with the demand for free legal services from low-income residents. The office is on “emergency intake,” taking on only [...]

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The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to consider a halt to JMU’s plan to make certain cuts in its athletic programs.
The high court on Monday refused to consider a request from Equity in Athletics, Inc., to immediately stop James Madison University from eliminating 10 athletic teams while its lawsuit is pending, reports The Examiner.
The [...]

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