Public Defender

* A lawsuit alleges Florida police used excessive force after mistaking Star Trek memorabilia for weapons. They should have set their phasers to stun… [Hill]

* The Trump Organization has hired a criminal defense lawyer. [Wall Street Journal]

* A public defender is suing her boss for allegedly being told to dress more modestly to avoid the sexual interest of male prisoners. [Daily Mail]

* Three Michigan lawyers have been charged in a scheme to collect debts on money that was allegedly never owed. [Fox News]

* Check out this article on how Originalism is being used by state court judges. [Juris Lab]

* A man’s death after participating in a taco-eating contest has spawned a lawsuit against a minor-league baseball team. [Washington Post]

* The Biden Administration is asking a judge to dismiss a climate change lawsuit filed on behalf of kids. Hope they can handle the heat… [Hill]

* Sorry to ruin your childhood, but a Pennsylvania judge found that there is enough evidence for Bill Cosby to stand trial for his felony assault charge in the Andrea Constand case. Cosby has waived his right to a formal arraignment, and could face up to 10 years in prison if he’s convicted. Cosby has been free on $1 million bail since December. [Associated Press]

* “You need to have order in a courtroom. And there needs to be proper decorum with attorneys.” A Las Vegas Justice of the Peace ordered that a deputy public defender be handcuffed for interrupting him as she tried to represent a client. A tipster has referred to this judge as “demented.” We may have more on this. [Las Vegas Review-Journal]

* According to inside sources, Hunton & Williams is in advanced merger talks with Addelshaw Goddard, a London-based firm. These talks have reportedly been going on for months, and Addelshaw partners supposedly met last night to discuss the tie-up. If successful, the combined firm would have more than 1,300 lawyers. [Big Law Business]

* Silicon Valley staple Fenwick & West is opening up an office outpost in New York City. The firm’s clients in Manhattan include BuzzFeed, FanDuel, Blackrock, Citi, and JPMorgan. Associates will be working around the clock in the city that never sleeps — with a roster like that, they won’t be getting shuteye anytime soon. [WSJ Law Blog]

* AG Loretta Lynch announced yesterday afternoon that the Justice Department would be seeking the death penalty against Dylann Roof, the suspect alleged to have gone on a shooting spree in a Charleston church last summer, killing nine and wounding numerous others. It’s said Roof hoped to incite a race war as a result of the massacre. [USA Today]

* Carl Buchholz, managing partner of DLA Piper’s Philadelphia office, RIP. [Philadelphia Business Journal]

* Florida public defender disbarred over sex and drugs with inmates. Amazingly, this is not just an update of this story about… a Florida public defender allegedly caught banging an inmate. What’s going on with these Florida public defenders? [NY Daily News]

* Law firms know they need to radically change their model and yet haven’t done anything about it. But they’re telling GCs it’s the clients’ fault for not pushing firms harder to change. Holy blame the victim, Batman. [Law360]

* As some of you may have heard by now, Milbank Tweed is ditching its downtown home for relatively law firm-free Chelsea. Cue Steve Winwood: “Back on the High Line again…” [Real Estate Weekly]

* Law school rechristening its building over its namesake’s KKK ties. Political correctness run amok — remember when you could support lawless acts of terrorism against minorities and be venerated by institutions of higher learning? [CBS News]

* Judge Alan Simon has already received a suspension after a commission found a “history of bullying and verbally abusing court staffers” and now he may be losing his job. [Law360]

* Cass Sunstein explains the Constitution with Darth Vader’s help. As it turns out he’s got a book about it too (affiliate link). [National Law Journal]

* A panel discusses the labor and employment implications of legalized marijuana. Pretty sure Afroman already covered these when he intoned: “I was gonna go to work but then I got high/I just got a new promotion but I got high/now I’m selling dope and I know why yea hey/cause I got high/cause I got high/cause I got high.” [Corporate Counsel]

* A breakthrough, “gotcha” moment on cross-examination in a big case is such a holy grail achievement of Matlockian proportions that we should celebrate it whenever it happens. Skadden managed to net one in a $2.1 billion suit this week. [Litigation Daily]

* Kirkland & Ellis offering “emotional fitness training” at its offices. Pretty sure the curriculum for Biglaw attorneys should be a primer on Wheaton’s Law and this video with the word “baseball” replaced with “law.” [Kirkland & Ellis]

* Harvard Law professor Larry Lessig is now depending on a future President Trump to enact the campaign finance reforms he built his failed presidential bid upon. He’ll be waiting for a while. [The Crimson]

* Ted Cruz has pretty much always been a douche. [Funny or Die]

* The People v. O.J. Simpson explores racism, sexism, and more — all through costume. [Fashionista]

* U.S. Senators: They’re just like us! Claire McCaskill live-tweets her jury duty experience. [The Slot]

* How can you avoid burnout as a lawyer? [Associate’s Mind]

* Why are embattled public defender offices actually excited about the lawsuits against them? [Christian Science Monitor]

* Practical advice for taking advantage of the opportunities that are staring you right in the face. [Guile is Good]

* Get the inside scoop on why Rudy Giuliani jumped ship to Greenberg Traurig. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg BNA]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dso0lnNsoRA&feature=youtu.be

* Living the goddamn dream! This Biglaw attorney is retired… at age 33. [Mr. Money Mustache]

* Law school lecture goes viral! In fairness, “don’t talk to the police” seems like extra relevant advice after binge-watching Making a Murderer. [The Blaze]

* Pissed off about price gouging on Super Bowl tickets? Well, the Third Circuit sure isn’t going to help. [Bloomberg BNA]

* Is there a way to wish anger away? It may not be easy, but here are some tips to help with anger management. [Katz Justice]

* The ACLU has filed a class action over Louisiana’s underfunding of the public defender system. [ACLU]

* Great advice for keeping your firm’s (and client’s) sensitive information out of the hands of hackers. [Reboot Your Law Practice]

* Congratulations to Elizabeth Wydra, longtime chief counsel of the Constitutional Accountability Center, who takes over as CAC’s new president. [National Law Journal]

* That Anheuser-Busch/SABMiller deal is going to make a lot of people a lot of money in fees. [Dealbreaker]

* Thank you, John Oliver! Publicity from Last Week Tonight helped the Orleans Parish Public Defenders Office meet their fundraising goals. Though why a public defenders officer has to resort to crowdfunding in the first instance just boggles the mind. [New Orleans Advocate (last story)]

* More states release the bar passage rate for the July exam — which means more bad news. [Bar Exam Stats]

* The battle over whether Kim Dotcom should be extradited to the United States to face racketeering and copyright infringement charges begins, with legal heavyweights taking sides. [Computer World]

* GOP candidates are throwing Justice Roberts under the bus faster than a contestant on Big Brother. [Jost on Justice]

* This is how to handle typos Biglaw style. [Daily Lawyer Tips]

* If you’re in the Boston area, check out Lat’s latest event for his book Supreme Ambitions (affiliate link) on Thursday. [Supreme Ambitions]

* A new paper by Professors Josh Blackman and Howard Wasserman on the process of marriage equality. For those of you who get really excited over civil procedure. [SSRN]

* Fresh off the threat of Supreme Court sanctions, partner Howard Shipley, formerly of Foley & Lardner, has landed at Gordon & Rees. Good fit… there’s no way he’ll embarrass that firm. [Gordon & Rees]

* We had some fun at the expense of a very predictable Norwegian prison escape the other day, but it’s worth recognizing an outlier for what it is — here’s a detailed look at Norway’s usually successful prison system. [New York Times]

* With public defenders like these… An interpreter employed by the public defenders’ office scammed immigrants seeking bribes with promises to pull strings to avoid deportation. [Times-Picayune]

* Is “Office Temperature-Gate” worthy of a Title VII claim? [Adjunct Law Prof Blog]

* A guy sat in prison for over 3 months after he completed his sentence because the system is as awful as it is incompetent. [Mother Jones]

* If you’re looking for CLE and have tickets to New York Comic Con on Thursday, October 8, then here’s the panel for you. [NY Comic Con]

* Most employers in New York City can no longer check credit history in making employment decisions. Time to hit up Saks for that shopping spree. [DLA Piper]