Steve Horner has been agressively suing bars and clubs that offer women free admission or special drink deals for discrimination since the early '90s. Now he's apparently moving on to more substantial targets. "I've put my money to frying bigger fish," he tells Denver's Westword. He's filed a complaint against the alt-weekly for publishing "at least 30 discriminatory ads" featuring the dreaded ladies' night over a five month period, and is asking for $15,000 in damages (roughly $500 per ad).
Former South Florida Sun-Sentinel writer Buddy Nevins has sued the New Times Broward-Palm Beach writer and VVM for defamation and invasion of privacy/false light, the Sun-Sentinel reports. Nevins claims that Norman falsely stated that he was forced out from the daily paper over a story that later had to be corrected. Nevins also alleges that Norman falsely claimed he had an "unholy alliance" with lobbyist Ali Waldman that "ruined" him as a reporter. "This may get interesting, but there is no joy in Pulpville tonight," Norman writes on his blog, the Daily Pulp. "I like Buddy and believe he's done awesome work in his career ... but I stand by my work and wish Buddy the best."
A coalition led by OpentheGovernment.org yesterday sent a letter (PDF file) to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales protesting a 2004 U.S. District Protective Order (PDF file) that doesn't require the government to retain a set of records relating to detainees at Guantanamo Bay. The letter, which was signed by AAN and over twenty other media and non-profit organizations, was also sent (PDF file) to Archivist of the United States Allen Weinstein, Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) and the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Last week, the alt-weekly sued the Tennessee Department of Corrections (DOC) for information about its review of the state's execution protocol. The City Paper reports that Davidson County Chancellor Claudia Bonnyman ruled yesterday that all documents relating to the review must be turned over to the Scene. "We're thrilled," says Scene editor Liz Garrigan. "This isn't really about the paper, this is about accountability in government." Bonnyman gave the state until Thursday to file an appeal. With the May 2 deadline for the DOC's recommendations looming, it's unclear what the Scene will be able to do with the documents, especially if the state continues to delay the process with an appeal. "Time is of the essence," Garrigan says, adding that she'd like to publish a story about the DOC's deliberations by the paper's next publishing deadline.
In February, Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen issued an executive order halting all executions for 90 days so the Department of Corrections (DOC) could perform "a comprehensive review" of the state's execution protocol. Soon thereafter, the Scene filed an open-records request seeking information on the DOC's deliberations, but it was denied. With the May 2 deadline for the DOC's recommendations looming, the Scene filed suit yesterday in Davidson County Chancery Court. "We're talking about how we're going to go about killing people in this state," editor Liz Garrigan tells the Nashville Post. "We think that ought to be an open discussion." Nashville's City Paper reports the DOC has conducted its review entirely behind closed doors, with the exception of one 40-minute public forum.
The OPEN Government Act will now head to the full Senate for debate, according to a statement released today by the Sunshine in Government Initiative, a coalition of media groups that includes AAN and has promoted FOIA reform since 2005. Last month, the House of Representatives passed a similar bill by an overwhelming margin. Both bills would restore meaningful deadlines for government agencies; require agencies to create hotlines and tracking systems for requests; create an ombudsman to resolve disputes and avoid litigation; ease the recovery of legal fees if a requester is forced to sue; and penalize agencies for delays. AAN members are encouraged to contact their senators to voice support for the bill.
In Dec. 2004, a jury awarded $950,000 to Maryland prosecutor Marc Mandel in a libel suit against the Boston alt-weekly. Twenty months later, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit overturned that ruling and ordered a new trial, which gets its first hearing before a judge today, the Boston Herald reports. Former staff writer Kristen Lombardi, editor Susan Ryan-Vollmar and attorneys for the Phoenix will argue that Mandel was a public figure.
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