Religion & Law

Maryland marriage protection bill hearing tomorrow

Posted on January 27, 2010
Family Protection Lobby: "HB 90 would ensure that marriage remains defined as a union of one man and one woman (as current Maryland law reads)."

David Cameron: ?Teach children to treat gay people equally?

Posted on January 27, 2010
Telegraph: "'We do need good sex and relationship education. That education should teach people about equality, that we treat people the same whether they are gay or straight,' he said. 'I think that is really important that we embed that in the ethos of our education...

The future of the European Court of Human Rights

Posted on January 27, 2010
International Law Observer: "The Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has just published conclusions on the future of the Strasbourg Court and enforcement of ECHR standards . . . One subject of particular significance, discussed at the hearing, was the need to enhance the authority and direct application of the Strasbourg Court?s findings in domestic law...

The new world of campaign finance law: D.C. Circuit questions FEC restraints

Posted on January 27, 2010
SCOTUS Blog: "Clearly operating on the premise that the Supreme Court last week changed the entire legal landscape for money in politics, the D.C. Circuit Court appeared on Wednesday to be leaning strongly toward giving even more freedom to campaign groups that are set up to operate independently of candidates and parties ...

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ACLU reviews Brownsville teacher dispute

Posted on January 27, 2010
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "The American Civil Liberties Union is looking into the case of a Fayette County high school teacher who was suspended from her job after someone posted photos of her with a male stripper to an online social networking site...

Why have so many abortion workers been ?mugged by the ultrasound??

Posted on January 27, 2010
David Daleiden and Jon A. Shields writing in the Weekly Standard: "In fact, with the exception of communism, we can think of few other movements from which so many activists have defected to the opposition . . . Ultrasound and D&E bring workers closer to the beings they destroy...

House of Lords Today Debates Religious Hiring By Faith Schools

Posted on January 27, 2010
Religion Clause Blog: "In Britain today the House of Lords will debate a series of amendments proposed by Baroness Turner of Camden to limit the extent to which voluntary-aided faith schools can hire teachers on the basis of religion."

Jordan Lorence: Give churches space in vacant city schools

Posted on January 27, 2010
ADF Attorney Jordan Lorence writing in the NY Daily News: "All these groups are asking from the city is the ability to use vacant space on weekends just as virtually any other group - from Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts to unions to local choruses - can. The churches apply the same way every other group does...

Canada: ?Saving Isaiah: Couple Fights Hospital for Baby?s Life

Posted on January 27, 2010
CBN: "On October 24, 2009, baby Isaiah James May was born with his umbilical cord wrapped around his neck. As a result, the baby suffered severe brain damage. Doctors diagnosed that the child had no hope for recovery. Now, the doctors want to remove the baby's ventilator ...

Austin R. Nimocks on the Jody Hice Show Last Week: The Prop. 8 Trial

Posted on January 27, 2010
ADF attorney Austin R. Nimocks appeared on the Jody Hice Show last week (Jan. 18th) to discuss the Proposition 8 trial. The MP3 runs just under 19 minutes.

German Homeschooling Family Granted Political Asylum

Posted on January 27, 2010
"The Romeikes are Christians from Bissinggen, Germany, who fled persecution in August 2008 to seek political asylum in the United States."

AFA of Indiana: Senate Addresses Teen ?Sexting? with Indiana Law and Parents in Mind

Posted on January 27, 2010
AFA of Indiana: "Yesterday, the Senate Committee on Corrections, Criminal and Civil Matters held a hearing on a bill authored by Senator Jim Merritt regarding the dissemination of indecent material. The bill has been called the ?sexting? bill because it mostly focuses on the problem of youth and teens sending and receiving sexually explicit mater in text, cell phone or electronic messaging...

Family Breakdown in the United Kingdom

Posted on January 27, 2010
NCPA: "Most shocking of all, the government now admits that 200,000 children live in homes where there is a known high risk case of domestic abuse and violence. The figures also show that a child living with a non-biological father is eight times more likely to be on the 'at risk" register and 50 times more likely to die from injuries inflicted by an adult living in the home," says Smith...

Doug Napier on AFR Focal Point: Prop 8 Trial Update as of Tues., Jan. 26th

Posted on January 27, 2010
ADF attorney Doug Napier appeared on AFR Focal Point with Bryan Fischer to discuss the Proposition 8 trial. The MP3 runs approximately 13 minutes.

Liberty Counsel Report Documents Obama?s Radical Nominees and Appointments

Posted on January 27, 2010
"Liberty Counsel releases a 72-page report today detailing information on each of the nominations and appointments of President Barack Obama. This report documents the beliefs, words, and actions of the radical group Obama has hand-picked to ?change? our nation...

Democrats woo Snowe, Collins in hope of saving health reform legislation

Posted on January 27, 2010
The Hill: " . . . Democrats such as Sens. Blanche Lincoln (Ark.), Bill Nelson (Fla.) and Max Baucus (Mont.) have approached Snowe within the past week to discuss her potential support for various healthcare proposals . . . "

Second defense witness takes stand in Prop 8 trial

Posted on January 27, 2010
KCBS: "David Blankenhorn, the founder and president of the Institute for American Values, took the witness stand Tuesday afternoon in the federal same-sex marriage trial . . . Defense Attorney Austin Nimocks said Miller's central point about gay political power withstood the five-hour legal assault...

?Prop 8 witness says gay marriage undermines traditional marriage?

Posted on January 27, 2010
Anchorage Daily News (Sacramento Bee): "David Boies, an attorney for the plaintiffs, questioned Blankenhorn's credentials and conclusions and noted that Blankenhorn had written in a book that 'we would be more American' if gays were permitted to wed and their children would be better off ...

Details Emerge on Hispanic New York Woman Killed in Botched Legal Abortion

Posted on January 27, 2010
LifeNews: "More details are emerging on a botched legal abortion that killed a New York Hispanic woman that took place on Monday at an abortion center in Queens."

Justice Roberts Hints He Could Overturn Roe

Posted on January 27, 2010
NewsMax: "Chief Justice John Roberts last week made it clear that the Supreme Court over which he presides will not hesitate to sweep away its own major constitutional rulings when doing so is necessary to defend America?s bedrock governing document. The announcement of that guiding core principle means two very big things ...

ADF update on Prop 8 trial proceedings: Tuesday, January 26th

Posted on January 27, 2010
Update from ADF Attorney Austin R. Nimocks: "The plaintiffs? case, in some part, has hinged upon the premise that reasonable people reflect upon their viewpoints and sometimes change their opinions . . . We saw this theme today in the cross-examination of Professor Kenneth Miller, a Harvard lawyer and political science professor at Claremont McKenna College ...

Georgia governor proclaims ?Marriage Week?

Posted on January 27, 2010
Via the Georgia Family Council, the proclamation begins: "WHEREAS: God ordained the sanctity of marriage as a holy and sacred union between two people who promise to love, honor and respect each other and to give themselves faithfully to each other for as long as they both shall live; ...

eHarmony agrees to settle ?gay discrimination? suit

Posted on January 27, 2010
Under a proposed settlement filed Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, eHarmony will link its straight and gay Web sites and allow people to use both without paying double fees.

Judge put lawyers on long leash in federal challenge to Prop 8

Posted on January 27, 2010
"The same day he chided Herrera, Walker complimented James Campbell from the Alliance Defense Fund on a deposition he took."

Street preacher?s case to be decided in 2 weeks

Posted on January 27, 2010
Vicksburg Post: "Municipal Judge Nancy Thomas said she will rule in about two weeks on whether Vicksburg police were correct in charging street preacher Micah Bishop and a videographer with disorderly conduct and failure to obey a lawful order of a police officer...

?Planned Parenthood lacks standing in abortion case?

Posted on January 27, 2010
WorldNetDaily: "The friend-of-the-court brief has been filed by Alliance Defense Fund in a case in which Planned Parenthood originally challenged a newly adopted South Dakota law requiring disclosure of accurate information to mothers-to-be seeking abortions ...

Lawyers for the California marriage amendment make their case

Posted on January 27, 2010
"'In their eyes, the problem is religion,' Nimocks said, 'and if people of faith would just quit being involved in the political process and not go to the ballot box, the universe would be OK as far as they're concerned.'"

UMass law school proposal faces vote next week

Posted on January 27, 2010
Telegram.com: "The Board of Higher Education is scheduled to vote on the plan on Tuesday. If approved, UMass could start enrolling students in the fall."

Prop 8 trial, day 10: Initiative supporters call first witness

Posted on January 27, 2010
Baptist Press: "Each day during the trial Baptist Press will post a blog entry from someone in the courtroom. Following is commentary on day 10 of the trial from Austin R. Nimocks, senior counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund, which supports Prop 8: 'As we moved into the third week of the trial, there was a sense that the winds were about to shift and, shortly before noon on the 10th day, the winds did change...

Super Bowl ads rival game in 2010, according to Hanon McKendry

Posted on January 27, 2010
PR Newswire: "Super Bowl ads remain a big draw for viewers, with over 57 percent of U.S. adults who expect to watch Super Bowl XLIV planning to tune in as much or more for the commercials as for the game . . . Hanon McKendry is a national brand consulting and advertising firm that excels at helping clients shift perceptions beyond what their brands offer to what their brands mean ...

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