Free Republic

Researchers Say Notification Laws Not Lowering ID Theft Over the past five years, 43 U.S. states have adopted data breach notification laws, but has all of this legislation actually cut down on identity theft? Not according to researchers at Carnegie Mellon University who have published a state-by-state analysis of data supplied by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC). "There doesn't seem to be any evidence that the laws actually reduce identity theft," said Sasha Romanosky, a Ph.D student at Carnegie Mellon who is one of the paper's authors. Romanosky's team took a state-by-state look at FTC identity theft complaints filed...

A resilient society depends on active, engaged citizens. The way for Washington to encourage resilience is not to throw more money at problems or to place new burdens on business. Government should harness the inherent strength of the American people and the private sector in order to build a society that may bend--but not break--if catastrophe does strike. The American people are ready, willing and able to take a more active role in our civil defense. As the White House's own Lessons Learned report on the federal response to Hurricane Katrina notes, faith-based organizations and community groups successfully provided support...

Bill Clinton Calls On NH to Make 'Independent Judgment' By Fred Lucas CNSNews.com Staff Writer January 04, 2008 Nashua, N.H. (CNSNews.com) - Before introducing his wife at a rally here this morning, former President Bill Clinton was dismissive of the Iowa caucus results, where his wife came in third place, nine points behind Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, and called on New Hampshire to make an "independent judgment." "New Hampshire is given the chance to prove you are the first primary," the former president told the cheering crowd. "You have the chance to show you're well known and deeply deserved...

Not being a lawyer, this question will exist more as a philosophical one, much as we treated it on Saturday's Northern Alliance broadcast. Mitch Berg and I debated the efficacy of gun-free zones in the wake of the Omaha mall shooting that left nine people dead, but before the two shootings at New Life church facilities that left eight dead. In at least the first shooting, the perpetrator conducted his murder spree in a commercial facility whose owners had marked it as a gun-free zone, a designation that keeps concealed-carry licensees from bringing their weapons into the building. We both...

Woman mauled by home-invading pit bulls 07:45 PM PDT on Tuesday, August 21, 2007 KING5.com Staff Animal control officers say the victim was covered in blood after the dogs attacked PIERCE COUNTY, Wash. - In what deputies describe as the worst mauling they've ever seen, two pit bulls entered a Wauna-area home via the pet door and attacked a woman in her bed. Pierce County Sheriff's Dept. spokesman Ed Troyer said a neighbor's Jack Russell terrier also entered the home in the 10600 block of 132nd St. Court NW through the dog door and the pit bulls attacked the terrier...

The recent indictment of two Rider University administrators following the alcohol-related death of a student at a fraternity is prompting colleges and universities across the state and country to review their alcohol policies. But perhaps a bigger worry for schools is the amount of liability they might be asked to bear for students' dangerous behavior. "I can assure you there are a lot of conversations taking place on campuses about this," said George Brelsford, dean of students at Rowan University in Glassboro. "Certainly we are watching this case very closely. We are reviewing everything we do as it relates to...

Two decades ago, 2-year-old Adam Matyaszek was thrown from a Ford Bronco II after the sport utility vehicle driven by his father rolled over three times along Interstate 77 in Cleveland. The boy's skull was fractured and his brain bled after his head hit the pavement. The crash injuries left him prone to seizures and unable to sleep and caused memory problems, his lawyers say. This week, a federal jury will decide if the Bronco II had a faulty design that contributed to the crash. "It is unfair to blame Ford for Adam's injuries, which were caused by his father's...

California taxpayers forked out $10.2 billion for public employee pensions in 2003-04 and are likely to face even greater liability in future years, according to a study released Monday. The study prepared for the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association by the Center for Government Analysis at Newport Beach analyzed 130 public pension systems statewide and found taxpayer outlays doubled from 1997-98 to 2003-04. "State and local governments are going to have to put more money into these systems and that means less money for police, less money for teachers, less money for schools, less money for roads, less money for parks...

The greatest differentiator between OS vendors is no longer a question of features, function, performance, customer support, security, reliability or any feature of the product itself. The future of computing may depend on the lawyers.The last month has seen both Oracle and Microsoft take their gloves off in their competition with open source software. Where Oracle has taken a seemingly straightforward approach of copying the competition and undercutting their prices, Microsoft's move to invoke intellectual property and the terms of the GNU Public License (GPL) to counter open source competition is much more potentially damaging. What's more, while Oracle's success...

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A person who has reason to believe he or she has HIV may be sued by sexual partners if they become infected, the California Supreme Court ruled on Monday, broadening the state's view of when liability arises from the disease. Knowingly passing along HIV, which leads to AIDS, is already illegal in California and people who do so may be sued for damages in state court. The California Supreme Court's decision widens the scope for law suits against sexual partners over negligent transmission. In their decision, a majority of the court's justices held that they "cannot...

The safety of Tasers, the electric pistols that are widely used by police, is under new scrutiny after a study by a Wisconsin scientist showed that shocks from the guns cause the hearts of healthy pigs to stop beating. The finding contradicts previous studies that showed that Taser shocks did not cause heart disturbances in pigs, whose hearts are similar to those in humans. John G. Webster, a professor of biomedical engineering at the University of Wisconsin who conducted the new study, said the earlier studies contained serious errors because they did not account for the fact that pigs have...

CAMDEN, N.J. -- A flea market will have to pay the record industry to compensate for the pirated CDs and cassettes sold there, a federal judge has ruled. U.S. District Judge Jerome M. Simandle issued a written opinion on Friday finding the Columbus Farmers Market liable for sales of thousands of pirated recordings sold at the massive indoor-outdoor flea market in Burlington County. The exact amount will determined later, but the Recording Industry Association of America, which sued the flea market for copyright infringement on behalf of 14 big record companies, said damages could range from $500,000 to as much...

A PUB must pay a fine for a murder on its premises more than 300 years ago. Auditors discovered the long-forgotten penalty for The Swan in Ipswich, Suffolk, while balancing the books for the town’s St Mary Le Tower Church Charities. The annual bill of 40 shillings, equivalent to £2, seems to be a punishment for a killing in 1664 when Charles II was king. --------- It was a huge amount of money in 1664 — a labourer would have to work for six months to earn 40 shillings.

A near-unanimous state Supreme Court has swept aside an $8.3 million civil judgment against the state for the vicious beating in 1999 of a Somali refugee by a group of teenagers living in a West Seattle foster home.

A recent episode of the television animated comedy "South Park" mocked Tom Cruise -- suggesting that he is homosexual, and lying to hide that fact. Could Cruise bring a defamation suit against the show?

Merry-go-rounds, seesaws and tall metal slides are gone. East Valley schools also forbid tackle football, jumping off swings and hanging upside down from monkey bars. Students can still play tag — but they must "power walk" or skip at some schools because running is too dangerous. Pioneer Elementary School in Gilbert prohibits tag altogether. And that’s just the beginning of the rules that principals, playground aides and lawmakers have created in recent years to keep schoolchildren safe. Johnson Elementary School in Mesa banned flip-flops this semester to protect children from twisted ankles and stubbed toes. Sonoran Sky Elementary School in...

When faced with a new battle, the enemies of gun manufactures, tobacco companies, fast food chains, and free enterprise in general usually adhere to the following well-tested pattern for whipping-up some public sympathy: Step 1: Identify people who knowingly and willfully caused harm to themselves or others. For example, a good selection would be someone who smoked for 30 years despite the large warning with the word "cancer" prominently featured on the side of every single pack of cigarettes they ever touched. Another good selection would be someone who loaded a Beretta 92, walked into a 7-Eleven, and shot the...

A state appeals court yesterday reinstated the indictment of a Hunterdon County man charged with obtaining the heroin used by a friend who died of an overdose. Lewis Morrison of Raritan Township had been charged with strict liability for a drug-induced death, manslaughter and distribution of a controlled dangerous substance and faced up to 35 years in prison. Morrison got the trial judge to dismiss the indictment, and the state appealed. In its decision yesterday, a two-judge panel of the appellate division reinstated the strict liability and controlled substance charges while dismissing the manslaughter count. The case was sent back...

WASHINGTON, July 29 - The Senate agreed to shield gun manufacturers and dealers from liability lawsuits on Friday, as Congress broke for a monthlong recess after sending President Bush energy and transportation bills that had been years in the making. Long sought by the gun lobby, the Senate measure - approved 65 to 31 - would prohibit lawsuits against gun makers and distributors for misuse of their products during the commission of a crime. Senate supporters said the plan was needed to protect the domestic firearms industry from a rash of lawsuits that threatened its economic future. "This bill is...

The nation's gun lobby is close to realizing a long-sought goal of protecting firearms manufacturers and dealers from being held legally responsible for violent crimes committed with their handguns and automatic weapons. Supporters believe they have the votes in the Senate to pass as early as today a bill making it virtually impossible for victims of gun violence to file civil suits against the industry -- a testimony to the political clout of gun manufacturers, which have become increasingly vulnerable to civil lawsuits in the District and several states. Twelve Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid (Nev.), are...