Findlaw News

Case Summaries

Criminal Law & Procedure

[06/28] McDonald v. City of Chicago
In an action against the City of Chicago alleging that the City's handgun ban left plaintiffs vulnerable to criminals, judgment for defendants is reversed where the Fourteenth Amendment incorporates the Second Amendment right, recognized in Heller, to keep and bear arms for the purpose of self-defense.

[06/25] People v. Bloom
Conviction of defendant for resisting arrest and other related charges, arising from making more than 40 harassing calls to 911 in a single evening, is affirmed over a challenge to a denial of a motion to suppress as a dispatcher lawfully arrested defendant for making the calls and she was not required to physically restrain him or to be present at the time of the arrest.

[06/24] People v. Int'l Fid. Ins., Co.
In a prosecution of defendant for attempted murder and other crimes, trial court's denial of a motion to vacate a forfeiture and exonerate bail is affirmed where: 1) the trial court did not err in denying the motion as, although defendant was subject to a greater potential maximum penalty under the first amended information than he had been under the original complaint, the charges in the first amended information were based on the same acts alleged in the complaint; and 2) the certificate of mailing of the notice of forfeiture which was signed by a deputy clerk on behalf of the clerk of the court was properly executed.

More...

Family Law

[06/24] Doe v. Reed
In a First Amendment case arising out of a state law extending certain benefits to same-sex couples, involving a challenge to the Washington Public Records Act based on its provision permitting the disclosure of referendum petition signers' names and addresses, the Ninth Circuit's reversal of the district court's preliminary injunction in favor of plaintiffs is affirmed where disclosure of referendum petitions does not as a general matter violate the First Amendment.

[06/23] In re Marriage of Hartman
Trial court's denial of wife's motion to vacate an order restraining her from interfering with ex-husband's child custody time is affirmed as the restraining order is neither ambiguous nor overbroad.

[06/22] In re Kyle E.
In juvenile dependency proceedings, the juvenile court's visitation order is reversed and remanded as it unlawfully delegated the responsibility of whether or not the father's visitation would occur at all to the Sacramento County Department of Health and Human Services.

More...