An Orthodox Jewish police detective will get $350,000 from the Las Vegas police department to settle a lawsuit after he was prohibited from having a beard and wearing a yarmulke.
Liesl Freedman, the department's attorney, said Jan 26 that plainclothes Detective Steve Riback would be allowed to have a neatly trimmed beard no longer than a quarter inch.
Freedman said Riback also would be allowed to wear a baseball hat without a logo or with the department's logo.
Under the settlement in the religious-accommodation case, Riback has agreed to not to seek a promotion or transfer for at least two years.
Freedman said that if Riback transferred in the future to a section that doesn't allow hats or beards, he would have to file a new religious-accommodation request.
Showing posts with label law suit. Show all posts
Showing posts with label law suit. Show all posts
Sunday, February 01, 2009
Monday, December 29, 2008
From the Archives: Australia To Dow Jones: Stay Awhile
There's no disputing that the Internet is the first freely accessible and truly global medium. Now, following an Australian High Court ruling on Tuesday, it appears that all Web vendors--publishers, retailers and the like--should prepare to realize those global consequences.
In a case pitting an Australian businessman against U.S.-based publisher Dow Jones (nyse: DJ - news - people ), the High Court of Australia ruled that the company must stay in the land Down Under to defend itself against a two-year-old defamation suit in the Australian state of Victoria.
In denying a Dow Jones appeal to dismiss the case based on jurisdiction, the opinion is the latest in a growing list of cases and judgments establishing the global legal ramifications of Internet commerce and content. The Australian High Court decision deems that widely disseminated Web content is bound by the same laws that govern print. That means Web information is liable at the point of download, not the location of the server. In its ruling, the Court admits the difficulties in coming to such a conclusion but insists that "the human right to protection by law for the reputation and honor of individuals must also be defended to the extent that the law provides." That means the case stays at home, where the defamation is said to have occurred.
According to Joel Reidenberg, who specializes in international law at Fordham University's Law School in New York City, the case reinforces that there is little difference between a physical border to a country and an electronic one. Reidenberg says that a firm that knowingly does or could potentially do business in a jurisdiction must be willing to comply with that jurisdiction's law.
The suit, brought in November 2000, concerns an article that appeared in the print and online versions of Barron's, a weekly financial newspaper published by Dow Jones. The story questioned the dealings of Australian businessman Joseph Gutnick. After Gutnick told an Australian paper that he was planning to gain more business in the U.S., Barron's wrote a cautionary piece about Gutnick's work as a stock promoter to religious charities. In the article, Barron's drew conclusions that Gutnick found defamatory.
Though Gutnick declined comment for that story, he sued Dow Jones in the Australian state of Victoria shortly after the piece was published. The first thing Gutnick's lawyers had to establish in the suit was why it should be tried there. Dow Jones claimed that the correct jurisdiction was in New Jersey, the location of the Internet file servers that dish out Barron's online content.
Gutnick claimed that, though Barron's is not widely distributed in print in Victoria, its content was available through Barron's Online and WSJ.com, the Web site of The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones' lawyer conceded that there are at least 1,700 WSJ.com subscribers with Australian credit cards. Additionally, Gutnick claimed the damage to his reputation occurred in Australia and not in New Jersey, where Dow Jones wanted to move the trial. Following this decision, the case will proceed in Australia.
In a statement, Dow Jones said it will continue its defense and was encouraged by the High Court's admission of challenges brought by Internet publishing. Dow Jones' position was supported by the likes of Amazon.com (nasdaq: AMZN - news - people ), The New York Times, and the Time and CNN units of AOL Time Warner (nyse: AOL - news - people ).
Web portal Yahoo! (nasdaq: YHOO - news - people ), which also backed Dow Jones, recently encountered jurisdictional issues as well. A French court ruled that its Yahoo.com site should not be accessible to French citizens, due to Nazi memorabilia available on its auction service. The French version of Yahoo! was already in compliance. That judgment, however, has yet to be enforced. The company is currently seeking a declaratory relief action in U.S. federal court in California. That action, which seeks to say that the French court lacked jurisdiction, would run counter to today's Australian opinion.
Other jurisdictional issues related to the Internet include commerce and taxation. Internationally, such issues are being debated under the Hague Convention. In the U.S., there has been some advancement on how to tax interstate e-commerce. Last month, representatives from 33 states and the District of Columbia reached a tentative agreement on tax and use issues--but its implementation would require states to enact new business legislation.
Record companies chasing music-sharing services like Kazaa are also running into jurisdictional issues. Because attempts to bring down such services have hit legal snags, the recording industry's new tactic is to pursue companies and individuals that facilitate the illegal trade of copyrighted materials.
Reflecting on these and similar cases, Fordham's Reidenberg says, "The technology has to evolve in a way that will allow and empower states to enforce their domestic laws within their own borders."
"The Internet isn't changing this basic legal principle," he add
In a case pitting an Australian businessman against U.S.-based publisher Dow Jones (nyse: DJ - news - people ), the High Court of Australia ruled that the company must stay in the land Down Under to defend itself against a two-year-old defamation suit in the Australian state of Victoria.
In denying a Dow Jones appeal to dismiss the case based on jurisdiction, the opinion is the latest in a growing list of cases and judgments establishing the global legal ramifications of Internet commerce and content. The Australian High Court decision deems that widely disseminated Web content is bound by the same laws that govern print. That means Web information is liable at the point of download, not the location of the server. In its ruling, the Court admits the difficulties in coming to such a conclusion but insists that "the human right to protection by law for the reputation and honor of individuals must also be defended to the extent that the law provides." That means the case stays at home, where the defamation is said to have occurred.
According to Joel Reidenberg, who specializes in international law at Fordham University's Law School in New York City, the case reinforces that there is little difference between a physical border to a country and an electronic one. Reidenberg says that a firm that knowingly does or could potentially do business in a jurisdiction must be willing to comply with that jurisdiction's law.
The suit, brought in November 2000, concerns an article that appeared in the print and online versions of Barron's, a weekly financial newspaper published by Dow Jones. The story questioned the dealings of Australian businessman Joseph Gutnick. After Gutnick told an Australian paper that he was planning to gain more business in the U.S., Barron's wrote a cautionary piece about Gutnick's work as a stock promoter to religious charities. In the article, Barron's drew conclusions that Gutnick found defamatory.
Though Gutnick declined comment for that story, he sued Dow Jones in the Australian state of Victoria shortly after the piece was published. The first thing Gutnick's lawyers had to establish in the suit was why it should be tried there. Dow Jones claimed that the correct jurisdiction was in New Jersey, the location of the Internet file servers that dish out Barron's online content.
Gutnick claimed that, though Barron's is not widely distributed in print in Victoria, its content was available through Barron's Online and WSJ.com, the Web site of The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones' lawyer conceded that there are at least 1,700 WSJ.com subscribers with Australian credit cards. Additionally, Gutnick claimed the damage to his reputation occurred in Australia and not in New Jersey, where Dow Jones wanted to move the trial. Following this decision, the case will proceed in Australia.
In a statement, Dow Jones said it will continue its defense and was encouraged by the High Court's admission of challenges brought by Internet publishing. Dow Jones' position was supported by the likes of Amazon.com (nasdaq: AMZN - news - people ), The New York Times, and the Time and CNN units of AOL Time Warner (nyse: AOL - news - people ).
Web portal Yahoo! (nasdaq: YHOO - news - people ), which also backed Dow Jones, recently encountered jurisdictional issues as well. A French court ruled that its Yahoo.com site should not be accessible to French citizens, due to Nazi memorabilia available on its auction service. The French version of Yahoo! was already in compliance. That judgment, however, has yet to be enforced. The company is currently seeking a declaratory relief action in U.S. federal court in California. That action, which seeks to say that the French court lacked jurisdiction, would run counter to today's Australian opinion.
Other jurisdictional issues related to the Internet include commerce and taxation. Internationally, such issues are being debated under the Hague Convention. In the U.S., there has been some advancement on how to tax interstate e-commerce. Last month, representatives from 33 states and the District of Columbia reached a tentative agreement on tax and use issues--but its implementation would require states to enact new business legislation.
Record companies chasing music-sharing services like Kazaa are also running into jurisdictional issues. Because attempts to bring down such services have hit legal snags, the recording industry's new tactic is to pursue companies and individuals that facilitate the illegal trade of copyrighted materials.
Reflecting on these and similar cases, Fordham's Reidenberg says, "The technology has to evolve in a way that will allow and empower states to enforce their domestic laws within their own borders."
"The Internet isn't changing this basic legal principle," he add
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Hanukkah ceremony may rekindle spiritual fire
"Every drop is a blessing, according to tradition," said Langer. "May you be drenched by rain."
Reframing common events, even rain in darkness, in religious terms is at the essence of Langer's work: trying to bring secular Jews into greater religious practice. Though Chabad Lubavitchers like him occupy a tiny piece of the Jewish diaspora, they have had a pronounced effect on defining Hanukkah in the American public sphere.
And, in many ways, the story of that impact can be told through the menorah in Union Square.
The Bay Area's most public and frenzied shopping mecca is a peculiar place for lighting a menorah, a sacred eight-night event normally reserved for the intimacy of a home. But for Langer, who sees most Jews as having fallen far from true observance, that's the point. He and other Chabadniks, as they are known, are bringing Judaism out to the world - wherever it may be. There are Chabad Houses around the world, including Mumbai, where the rabbi and his wife were killed in the recent terrorist attacks.
At Hanukkah, Langer said, "the marketplace is where Jews are at."
The organizers are among the strictest followers of Jewish law. Langer told the audience that lighting a menorah at night is a metaphor for how simple acts of kindness add light to a dark world. Those acts multiplied, he said, will prompt the resurrection of the messiah, who will unite all Jews and lead them to Israel while also bringing everlasting peace to the world.
The event at Union Square offers a rare glimpse into the breadth of contemporary Jewish identity, particularly its margins.
On Sunday, there were young couples making out in the rain while others danced to the Hasidic rock band, Isaiah and the Prophets, who hail from the center of the Chabad universe, the Crown Heights neighborhood in Brooklyn. Several attendees said the Union Square menorah lighting is the only religious event they'd attend all year.
"I worship the universe," said Nissim Lanyadoo, 59, who was born in Baghdad and moved to Israel and Montreal before settling in Tiburon. He doesn't attend synagogue at all - "it's a long story," he said - but he's been coming to the Union Square menorah lighting for years.
He said of the people gathered, dancing, playing with dreidels and eating latkes: "It's the way it's supposed to be: a joyous occasion."
David Moudgil grew up in a house where his father was Hindu and his mother was Jewish, but the parents didn't want to impose any one religious view. The San Pablo resident is raising his two daughters with the Catholic faith of his wife, but he still wants his children to have some connection to their Jewish roots.
"I just want my kids to learn more and expose them to more so they have more choices as they grow up," said Moudgil, 42.
That many have a peripheral connection to Jewish faith is, for Langer, emblematic of a larger dilemma. A poll conducted by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life found that only 16 percent of Jews attend synagogue on a weekly basis.
But Langer said the contrast between his observance and many in the audience doesn't make the public menorah lighting any less important.
"You may never light a menorah again, but for that moment, you're totally immersed in an internal relationship with your maker," he said.
Now in its 34th year, the Union Square menorah lighting was a key to making Hanukkah a well-known holiday, despite its relatively minor role in Judaism. In 1975, Langer, two other Chabad rabbis and rock promoter Bill Graham held the first lighting of a large menorah in Union Square.
It was a concept the Lubavitcher Rebbe, the head of the denomination, saw as an opportunity, given how popular Christmas was in America, said Sue Fishkoff, an Oakland resident and author of the 2003 book, "The Rebbe's Army: Inside the World of Chabad-Lubavitch."
There are now hundreds upon hundreds of menorah lightings across the world, including ones in synagogues not run by Chabadniks. But the Chabad tradition has not been without controversy.
As rain poured on Union Square on Sunday night, Rabbi Yosef Langer called upon those gathered for the lighting of a giant menorah to imagine the cold downpour within the context of Jewish theology.
In 1986, several Jewish organizations and the American Civil Liberties Union sued Chabad and the city of Pittsburgh over that city's public menorah. Jews have often been at the forefront of church-state battles, given their history of being victimized by state-sanctioned religion.
In what has become a landmark case, the court ruled in 1989 in favor of Chabad, saying the menorah was an expression of free speech.
But at the lighting ceremonies, which continue through the week, several see it as an important stand for religious freedom.
Eric Perez, 49, of San Mateo, a rare synagogue attender, says the event protects his religious identity by allowing his faith "to be seen."
E-mail Matthai Kuruvila at mkuruvila@sfchronicle.com
Reframing common events, even rain in darkness, in religious terms is at the essence of Langer's work: trying to bring secular Jews into greater religious practice. Though Chabad Lubavitchers like him occupy a tiny piece of the Jewish diaspora, they have had a pronounced effect on defining Hanukkah in the American public sphere.
And, in many ways, the story of that impact can be told through the menorah in Union Square.
The Bay Area's most public and frenzied shopping mecca is a peculiar place for lighting a menorah, a sacred eight-night event normally reserved for the intimacy of a home. But for Langer, who sees most Jews as having fallen far from true observance, that's the point. He and other Chabadniks, as they are known, are bringing Judaism out to the world - wherever it may be. There are Chabad Houses around the world, including Mumbai, where the rabbi and his wife were killed in the recent terrorist attacks.
At Hanukkah, Langer said, "the marketplace is where Jews are at."
The organizers are among the strictest followers of Jewish law. Langer told the audience that lighting a menorah at night is a metaphor for how simple acts of kindness add light to a dark world. Those acts multiplied, he said, will prompt the resurrection of the messiah, who will unite all Jews and lead them to Israel while also bringing everlasting peace to the world.
The event at Union Square offers a rare glimpse into the breadth of contemporary Jewish identity, particularly its margins.
On Sunday, there were young couples making out in the rain while others danced to the Hasidic rock band, Isaiah and the Prophets, who hail from the center of the Chabad universe, the Crown Heights neighborhood in Brooklyn. Several attendees said the Union Square menorah lighting is the only religious event they'd attend all year.
"I worship the universe," said Nissim Lanyadoo, 59, who was born in Baghdad and moved to Israel and Montreal before settling in Tiburon. He doesn't attend synagogue at all - "it's a long story," he said - but he's been coming to the Union Square menorah lighting for years.
He said of the people gathered, dancing, playing with dreidels and eating latkes: "It's the way it's supposed to be: a joyous occasion."
David Moudgil grew up in a house where his father was Hindu and his mother was Jewish, but the parents didn't want to impose any one religious view. The San Pablo resident is raising his two daughters with the Catholic faith of his wife, but he still wants his children to have some connection to their Jewish roots.
"I just want my kids to learn more and expose them to more so they have more choices as they grow up," said Moudgil, 42.
That many have a peripheral connection to Jewish faith is, for Langer, emblematic of a larger dilemma. A poll conducted by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life found that only 16 percent of Jews attend synagogue on a weekly basis.
But Langer said the contrast between his observance and many in the audience doesn't make the public menorah lighting any less important.
"You may never light a menorah again, but for that moment, you're totally immersed in an internal relationship with your maker," he said.
Now in its 34th year, the Union Square menorah lighting was a key to making Hanukkah a well-known holiday, despite its relatively minor role in Judaism. In 1975, Langer, two other Chabad rabbis and rock promoter Bill Graham held the first lighting of a large menorah in Union Square.
It was a concept the Lubavitcher Rebbe, the head of the denomination, saw as an opportunity, given how popular Christmas was in America, said Sue Fishkoff, an Oakland resident and author of the 2003 book, "The Rebbe's Army: Inside the World of Chabad-Lubavitch."
There are now hundreds upon hundreds of menorah lightings across the world, including ones in synagogues not run by Chabadniks. But the Chabad tradition has not been without controversy.
As rain poured on Union Square on Sunday night, Rabbi Yosef Langer called upon those gathered for the lighting of a giant menorah to imagine the cold downpour within the context of Jewish theology.
In 1986, several Jewish organizations and the American Civil Liberties Union sued Chabad and the city of Pittsburgh over that city's public menorah. Jews have often been at the forefront of church-state battles, given their history of being victimized by state-sanctioned religion.
In what has become a landmark case, the court ruled in 1989 in favor of Chabad, saying the menorah was an expression of free speech.
But at the lighting ceremonies, which continue through the week, several see it as an important stand for religious freedom.
Eric Perez, 49, of San Mateo, a rare synagogue attender, says the event protects his religious identity by allowing his faith "to be seen."
E-mail Matthai Kuruvila at mkuruvila@sfchronicle.com
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Chabad of Nova gets OK to go ahead with zoning suit
COOPER CITY - An orthodox Jewish congregation that claims Cooper City's zoning laws discriminate against religious institutions can move forward with several counts of its lawsuit, a federal judge ruled.
Chabad of Nova Inc., filed an eight-count complaint against Cooper City in May claiming that the city's zoning laws are illegally designed to protect the city's tax base by banning all tax-exempt houses of worship from commercial districts.
The city filed a motion to dismiss the suit in June, but United States District Judge Cecilia Altonaga ruled against dismissing at least three of the eight counts on Monday.
In one of the counts upheld, the Chabad claim Cooper City violates the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act because they permit day care centers, a non-religious assembly, to operate in the business district but prohibits religious assemblies.
Fort Lauderdale attorney Franklin Zemel, who is representing the Chabad of Nova, said, "We're very pleased with the results.''
But Fort Lauderdale attorney Michael Burke, who is representing Cooper City in this case, said the judge's ruling was a mixed since some of the counts were dismissed and some the city will have to answer.
According to the lawsuit, the city has discriminated against houses of worship for 30 years by relegating them to the western, agriculturally-zoned borders in order to protect its tax base. Houses of worship do not pay property taxes.
Zemel said Rabbi Shmuel Posner opened a Chabad Outreach Center in the Timberlake shopping plaza last year, but was booted out by Cooper City because of its codes. Posner has temporarily moved the outreach center to 8276 Griffin Road in Davie.
Last October, Cooper City relaxed its ordinance by including houses of worship in office parks and recreational facilities, but the commercial district ban remained.
Despite the changes, Zemel said the city is still violating federal law because new religious congregations tend to start by renting in a commercial district and they don't have that option in Cooper City.
Fort Lauderdale attorney Franklin Zemel, who is representing the Chabad of Nova, said, "We're very pleased with the results.''
But Fort Lauderdale attorney Michael Burke, who is representing Cooper City in this case, said the judge's ruling was a mixed since some of the counts were dismissed and some the city will have to answer.
According to the lawsuit, the city has discriminated against houses of worship for 30 years by relegating them to the western, agriculturally-zoned borders in order to protect its tax base. Houses of worship do not pay property taxes.
Zemel said Rabbi Shmuel Posner opened a Chabad Outreach Center in the Timberlake shopping plaza last year, but was booted out by Cooper City because of its codes. Posner has temporarily moved the outreach center to 8276 Griffin Road in Davie.
Last October, Cooper City relaxed its ordinance by including houses of worship in office parks and recreational facilities, but the commercial district ban remained.
Despite the changes, Zemel said the city is still violating federal law because new religious congregations tend to start by renting in a commercial district and they don't have that option in Cooper City.
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