Michael Flynn Resigns as National Security Adviser

Last night, National Security Adviser Michael Flynn handed in his resignation. This announcement came after a lot of controversy surrounding his phone call with the Russian ambassador to the U.S. in December, before Donald Trump was president. The phone call reportedly took place the same day that President Barack Obama sent home a bunch of Russian officials and imposed sanctions on Russia for interfering in the U.S. election. Flynn claimed that he didn’t discuss those sanctions with the ambassador, and VP Mike Pence initially defended Flynn to the media. But last week, intelligence officials claimed that Flynn hadn’t exactly been honest.

Worth noting that acting AG Sally Yates (!) first alerted Trump WH about Flynn’s vulnerability to Russian blackmail… several weeks ago. https://t.co/I1qar11JXi

— Alex Wagner (@alexwagner) February 14, 2017

A private citizen, which is what Flynn was at the time, is prohibited from discussing foreign relations with other countries. Flynn also allegedly lied about his conversation to Trump and Pence, which according to the Justice Department made him a target for blackmail from Russia. But a lot of people are also questioning who in the White House knew what:

But let’s not forget: GOP majority in Congress was silent. If Flynn had not shamed the VP, he might still be on job – and still compromised https://t.co/9iLgfHUrBC

— David Frum (@davidfrum) February 14, 2017

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post RantCrush Top 5: February 14, 2017 appeared first on Law Street.

Welcome to the RantCrush Top 5, where we take you through the top five controversial and crazy stories in the world of law and policy each day. So who is ranting and who is raving today? Check it out below:

Senator Ben Sasse’s Epic Facebook Rant

Senator Ben Sasse (R-Nebraska) went on a pretty intense Facebook tirade against both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton on Facebook, calling for a third party candidate to join the scuffle. Part of the “never Trump” brigade, Sasse also took to Twitter to voice his displeasure with his party’s seemingly inevitable nominee.

Thought experiment: Why shouldn’t America draft an honest leader to focus on 70% solutions for the next four years as a caretaker? An adult?

— Ben Sasse (@BenSasse) May 5, 2016

Joe Paterno May Have Known About Jerry Sandusky’s Abuse in 1976

Newly released court documents about the Jerry Sandusky abuse scandal have sparked outrage. The Penn State University is suing its former insurance company in an attempt to determine who is liable to pay the victims of Sandusky’s abuse. These papers revealed that “PMA claims … in 1976, a child allegedly reported to PSU’s Head Football Coach Joseph Paterno, that he (the child) was sexually molested by Sandusky.” That’s a horrific 12 years before the previous earliest-known allegation of abuse against Sandusky.

Trump’s Epic Fail of a Cinco de Mayo Tweet

Trump sent out quite a whopper of a Cinco de Mayo tweet yesterday:

Happy #CincoDeMayo! The best taco bowls are made in Trump Tower Grill. I love Hispanics! https://t.co/ufoTeQd8yA pic.twitter.com/k01Mc6CuDI

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 5, 2016

There are many, many horrifying things that can be said about this tweet, but the flawless Samantha Bee summed it up perfectly with her own taco bowl pic, captioned: “The best taco bowls are made by hardworking immigrants who don’t like being called rapists by a rich prick. I love inauthentic Mexican food!”

Tow Trucks Get Political

A tow truck driver who supports Donald Trump for president refused to provide service to a woman with a Bernie Sanders sticker on her car in Greenville, South Carolina. After seeing her sticker, as well as a Sanders lawn sign, he claimed that “every business dealing in recent history that I’ve had with a socialist-minded person, I haven’t got paid.” Then, he encouraged her to call the government to tow her car, and drove off. Needless to say, I think we all know how Bernie would react:

Pope Francis Gives Tough Speech on Migrants in Europe

Pope Francis just gave a pretty hard-hitting speech about the treatment of migrants in Europe. He was speaking as the recipient of the Charlemagne prize for his work on behalf of European solidarity, and asked: “What has happened to you, the Europe of humanism, the champion of human rights, democracy and freedom?” After that speech, we’ll have to see if Europe can get its act together.

Rant Crush

RantCrush collects the top trending topics in the law and policy world each day just for you.

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The headlines always describe a similar situation, one exemplified by the well know Sandusky case, or possibly closer to home, by one of the scandals in our local schools. Ringing any bells? Dirty coach found amidst a sex scandal, abusing their power in the locker room. This story becomes old news right after headlines break, with the coach rightfully being fired or placed in jail. However, the state of Iowa is allowing coaches to get away with this sexual exploitation without penalty, causing heated debate over Iowa legislation. How is this possible?

On Friday, April 11, 2014 the Iowa Supreme Court in a vote of 5-2, ruled to overturn the sexual exploitation conviction of Patrick Nicoletto because of a loophole stating he was not hired as a licensed teacher. This means that Nicoletto’s current employment title prevents him from being charged with sexual exploitation under Iowa law.

This case first arose in 2012, when 36 year old Nicoletto was accused of sexual exploitation. This case arose when another school employee uncovered the Bloomfield basketball coach’s sexual relationship with a 16 year old high school junior on his team. Nicoletto was sentenced to five years in jail, but posted bond while his case was on appeal.

This ruling was reversed on Friday by Justice Brent Appel due to the fact that Nicoletto was hired as an assistant coach, rather than a licensed teacher or school administrator. Thus, he could not legally be prosecuted under the current Iowa legislation because coaches are not specifically mentioned by Iowa Code. This solely outlines sexual exploitation by a counselor, therapist, or other school employee (not including coaches or assistant coaches).

This new ruling is causing a stir within the Iowa community, noted by  Governor Terry Branstad’s calls for legal revisions. Other states such as Alabama specifically label coaches and assistant coaches as falling within sexual exploitation statutes– Iowa should do the same. Advocates such as Executive Director of the Iowa Coalition Against Sexual Assault, Beth Barnhill, are making their concerns regarding this case very clear. They feel that the sexual exploitation statute should clearly extend to a case such as Nicoletto regardless of his current status. They agree this case creates an opportunity to clarify exactly who falls under the sexual exploitation statute and who can be convicted.

This case is not the first to present the idea that Iowa sexual exploitation legislation is too broad. This past November presented a similar debate regarding exploitation statutes, but outside of a school setting, as pastor Patrick Edouard was convicted of sexual exploitation, as a counselor. The defense attorneys argued that Iowa Supreme Court had previously labeled “counseling” as a professional activity that did not include the type of relationship that Edouard had with his parishioners. The Iowa attorney general’s office has appealed the ruling and both sides of the argument have been heard by the Supreme Court, although there is no current ruling.

Both of these cases underline the fact that legislators need to write criminal statutes with a clear voice and Iowa must specifically define who can receive penalties for sexual exploitation. The fact that someone such as a coach, who is placed in a position of authority, can take advantage of his power by having sex with a student is absurd. The fact that in Iowa this can be done without penalty is even more absurd. This means that legally due to a loophole labeling Nicoletto as a coach rather than a licensed school official, he had sexual relations with a 16 year old student that is on his team. On the other hand a teacher would reap the consequences for these exact actions. We can find solace in the fact that while Nicoletto may not under Iowa law, be charged with sexual exploitation, he may be brought up on other charges. Although, 16 is on the cusp of consensual sex. On a broader level, this case demonstrates that laws with loopholes may create injustice. It would be right for this coach to be penalized regardless of his job title, but simply because the law is not specific enough, Nicoletto was able to escape through the cracks unscathed. In the future, laws as serious as these must have specific definitions with specific consequences.

[The Des Moines Register] [Iowa Code]

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Taylor Garre (@TaylorLynn013)

Featured image courtesy of [Gage Skidmore via Flickr]

Taylor Garre

Taylor Garre is a student at Fordham University and formerly an intern at Law Street Media. Contact Taylor at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post This is Legal: Iowa Coaches Can Sexually Exploit Their Students appeared first on Law Street.

On Monday, October 29, the horrifying case that has consumed Penn State University came closer to completion. In recent years it has come out that Jerry Sandusky, a former assistant football coach for the Penn State Nittany Lions, had waged years of systematic sexual abuse against young boys left in his care. To date, 32 young men have come forward with evidence of abuse: 6 have been dismissed and 26 have been deemed conclusive. While more are likely to come out, it was announced on Monday that these 26 men have concluded settlements with Penn State University.

The settlement dictates that approximately $60 million will be split among the 26 victims. That works out to about $2.3 million each, although some of that will obviously go to legal fees for each victim. As of Monday afternoon, 23 of the victims had signed their settlements and the others are still working on documentation but are expected to sign soon. A stipulation of these settlements is that the victims will not be able to sue anyone else, including Sandusky’s charity, The Second Mile, through which he became familiar with a large number of his victims.

Jerry Sandusky’s criminal case had concluded well before these settlements. On October 9, 2012, he was sentenced to 30-60 years in prison. At 69, he is almost guaranteed to spend the rest of his life incarcerated, and rightly so.

After the settlement was announced, the University President Rodney Erickson released a statement, saying “We hope this is another step forward in the healing process for those hurt by Mr. Sandusky, and another step forward for Penn State. We cannot undo what has been done, but we can and must do everything possible to learn from this and ensure it never happens again at Penn State.”

The finances that will pay for these settlements will not come from the University itself, but rather from various insurance policies that Penn State has in case there is ever a suit pursued against the University.

While this is another huge step forward in providing closure for the young men abused at Penn State University, the case as a whole is by no means over. Earlier this summer, a judge ruled to try former Penn State Vice President Gary Schultz, former Penn State President Graham Spanier, and former Penn State Athletic Director Tim Curley. These three men will be charged with various crimes related to the cover-up of Jerry Sandusky’s actions. These trials are still forthcoming.

These young men who were abused by a man whom they trusted had their lives irreversibly and horribly altered as children. In reality, there is probably no amount of money that can make up for what happened to them. Technically speaking, they may have been able to get more money in court. The idea of a settlement is essentially a type of game theory—both sides settle on a compromise that is low-risk, and low-reward as opposed to pursing a high-risk, high-reward strategy.

As The Atlantic pointed out after news of this settlement broke, it makes sense that this case was settled out of court, as many sex-abuse cases are. If this case were in court, the victims would have to testify to a room of people about their abuse, reliving the most traumatizing experiences of their lives.

But worse, they would also be subject to cross-examination, one of the tenants of our justice system. They would be subject to questions on their bias and opposing attorneys would probe them with the aim of poking holes in their stories. Essentially, they would be questioned thoroughly about what happened to them for the purpose of disproving the abuse they suffered. That is one of the main reasons why this case settled quickly, out of court, and for fairly cheaply. The goal was to put at least this part of this abhorrent incident to rest for those involved. As impossible as it seems, hopefully some closure will develop from the conclusion of these settlements.

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Anneliese Mahoney (@AMahoney8672) is Lead Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

Featured image courtesy of [drocpsu via Flickr]

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Penn State Settles With Some of Jerry Sandusky’s Victims appeared first on Law Street.