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Hungarian Gypsies Lose Bid For Asylum In U.S.
Legal World News |
2008/06/02 08:16
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The 8th Circuit denied asylum to two Hungarian citizens who claimed they were attacked by skinheads in their native country because they are Roma, or gypsies.
Istvan Beck and Hilda Beckne Aranyi claimed they often ran into trouble in Hungary due to their Roma ethnicity. They were allegedly teased in school, denied employment opportunities and attacked by skinheads.
However, Judge Loken ruled that the plaintiffs did not show a clear probability of future persecution. The Hungarian government did not direct or condone the crimes, and the police had tried to find their alleged attackers.
Loken also cited a report by the State Department stating that the situation in Hungary is improving. The government has been fining companies that discriminate against Roma, and it is even considering an affirmative action program.
Beck and Aranyi have overstayed their U.S. visas by two years. |
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Harry Potter The Librarian's Lawsuit
Legal World News |
2008/05/28 08:24
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The Poplar Bluff Public Library constructively fired an assistant because her religious beliefs prohibited her from working on Harry Potter Night, Deborah Smith claims in Federal Court.
Smith says her Southern Baptist Church prohibits promotion of the worship of the occult. She considers Harry Potter part of the occult.
Smith says she told her supervisor she could not take part in the library's Harry Potter Night on July 20, 2007 to promote the release of the latest book in the series. But, she says, library director Jacqueline Thomas told her she would have to work behind the scenes, out of sight of other church members, and questioned Smith's sincerity, the suit states.
When Smith refused, Thomas suspended her without pay for 10 days. Upon Smith's return, her hours were cut and she was demoted to shelving, a more physically demanding job, she says.
Smith says she had to resign due to the physical demands. She claims the City of Poplar Bluff and Thomas caused her to lose income, suffer physical and emotional distress and humiliation and violated her constitutional rights to freedom of religion. Smith seeks punitive damages and is represented by Anthony Rothert of St. Louis. Poplar Bluff is 150 miles south of St. Louis. |
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Monopoly Alleged In Crane Certification
Legal World News |
2008/05/07 07:45
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In an antitrust lawsuit, a man who was denied accreditation as a crane operator claims the National Commission for Certification of Crane Operators and the International Assessment Institute conspire to monopolize training schools in California, and that the Institute pays kickbacks to Commission for the tests it administers.
Plaintiff Timothy Maxwell claims he passed all the required courses and tests but the defendants denied him certification anyway, costing him a job.
He demands punitive damages for antitrust violations, breach of contract, unfair competition, false advertising and interference with prospective business.
He is represented in Alameda County Court by James Dombroski of Petaluma. |
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Texas Judge Sets Execution for Mexican National
Legal World News |
2008/05/06 07:55
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| pA Texas court Monday set the execution date for Mexican national and Texas prisoner Jose Ernesto Medellinnbsp; for August 5, after the US Supreme Court ruled in March that President George W. Bush did not have the authority to direct state courts to comply with a ruling from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) granting new court hearings. The government of Mexico and Medellin's lawyers had requested that the judge hold off on setting an execution date, but Judge Caprice Cosper scheduled the lethal injection after refusing to allow a legal adviser to the Mexican Foreign Secretary to speak before the court./ppMedellin, a Mexican national sentenced to death for raping and murdering two teenage girls, had appealed a Texas Court of Criminal Appeals November 2006 ruling that Bush had exceeded his constitutional authority by ordering state court rehearings for 51 Mexican nationals, including Medellin, convicted in US courts. The president's February 2005 memorandum instructed the Texas courts to follow a March 2004 ICJ decision that held that Medellin and the other Mexican nationals tried in US courts had been denied their right under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations to contact the Mexican consulate for legal assistance and that the US was obligated to grant review and reconsideration of their convictions and sentences./p |
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Illegal Imimrants Sue Employer, Employer Sues Back
Legal World News |
2008/05/02 07:43
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A business that two employees sued for $35,000 in back wages has countersued the workers and the California Labor Commissioner in a federal class action, claiming undocumented workers should not be able to file such claims, and the Labor Commissioner lacks authority to award them back pay, as such awards violate the Immigration Reform and Control Act.
Kaji Enterprise dba Sushi Sharin and Masayoshi Kaji sued California Labor Commissioner Angela Bradstreet, and Tranquilino Cruz Garcia - who claims he is owed $5,797 in pay, plus penalties of $84 a day - and Rutilino Cruz Garcia - who claims he is owed $29,978 plus daily penalties.
The Cruzes sued Kaji on Feb. 5, alleging wages owed and Labor Code violations. The case is scheduled for trial before the Labor Commission on May 22.
Kaji claims he cannot get a fair trial because the Labor Commissioner is biased in favor of illegal immigrants, and that the Commissions policies are calculated to undermine the enforcement of Federal Immigration Law.
Kaji is represented by Ernest Franceschi Jr. |
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