Welcome to RantCrush Top 5, where we take you through today’s top five controversial stories in the world of law and policy. Who’s ranting and raving right now? Check it out below:

NSA Contractor Charged with Leaking Classified Info on Russian Hacking

Yesterday, more information came to light about a top-secret NSA report regarding the Russian involvement in the presidential election last year. The document stated that Russian hackers did attack at least one company providing voting software, just days before the election. It also states that Russian military intelligence was responsible for the cyber attack.

.@theintercept blew its source’s cover by giving the NSA a copy of the leaked document, according to @nytimes https://t.co/PG73Pqe4ZX

— Josh Rogin (@joshrogin) June 6, 2017

Barely an hour after the article was published online by the Intercept, the Justice Department charged the suspected leaker with sharing classified material with a news organization. The suspect is Reality Winner, a 25-year-old federal contractor at the NSA. According to the government, there is evidence that Winner printed the documents and was in touch with the Intercept. She is the first alleged leaker arrested under President Donald Trump, who has said he wants to crack down on leaks. Now a lot of people are applauding Winner for sharing the information, and for having a pretty cool name.

Daily Recap: Woman named Reality Winner leaked info showing Russia tried to hack elections that gave us a POTUS many think is Surreal Loser.

— Ana Navarro (@ananavarro) June 6, 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: June 6, 2017 appeared first on Law Street.

A Miami woman, commonly known as the “toxic tush” doctor, was sentenced to a decade behind bars Monday for administering botched buttocks injections that left one woman dead.

Oneal Ron Morris, 36, pled no contest last month to manslaughter and practicing medicine without a license. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison followed by five years probation.

‘Toxic tush doctor’ who ‘injected women’s bums with sealant and cement’ jailedhttps://t.co/8S3N0Z4Mmv pic.twitter.com/VhihBW5cr8

— Daily Mirror (@DailyMirror) March 28, 2017

Morris, who was known by her patients as “Duchess,” was accused of injecting toxic materials–cement, silicone mineral oil, bathroom caulking, Fix-a-Flat tire sealant, and superglue–into women’s backsides to cosmetically enhance their curves.

In 2012, Shatarka Nuby, died in prison from complications related to Morris’ procedures. Prior to her death, the 31-year-old mother of three had penned a letter to the state’s health department claiming that her butt had hardened and turned black, and that she felt sick. She had allegedly paid Morris $2,000 for as many as 10 injections between 2007 and 2010. Officials began an investigation and interviewed Nuby, but four months later she was pronounced dead.

According to the Washington Post, the medical examiner listed the official cause of death as respiratory failure from “massive systemic silicone migration” from injections to Nuby’s buttocks and hips.

“My daughter died the most inhuman death,” Nuby’s mother, Sherri Pitts, said at the hearing. “Eighteen months she suffered not knowing the full of what [was] put in her body.”

However, Morris’ defense lawyer, William Lanphear, disagreed with the sentence, claiming that her patients knew they were not dealing with a real doctor.

“All parties share the responsibilities and the blame for their own actions and the role they played,” he said. “There was an assumption of risk obligation from the victims.”

Morris was previously convicted in Miami-Dade County for practicing without a license and served one year in prison.

In 2013, Morris–and her butt–became a viral sensation after photos of her were released; the attention resulted in the media dubbing it the “toxic tush” case. She reportedly injected herself with the same toxic cocktail she used on her clients, disfiguring her own body.

During the sentencing, Morris denied that she knowingly injected household materials into women’s bodies, stating: “I’ve been found guilty by the media and outside sources based on lies.”

“I have never ever or would dare ever to inject or have injected any human with any type of unknown substance,” Morris said.

The judge ordered Morris, who was born male, to serve her time in a men’s prison because Florida law doesn’t have exemptions for transgender inmates. While the punishment may very well fit the crime, Morris’ lawyers argued that she could become a victim herself in an all-male prison.

According to a 2011-2012 survey conducted by the Bureau of Justice, 39.9 percent of transgender prison inmates and 26.8 percent of transgender jail inmates reported some type of sexual assault. That’s 10 times higher than for the general prison and jail populations, according to the New York Times.

“This isn’t ‘Orange Is the New Black.’ This isn’t going to be all fun and games for her,” said her attorney, Kirstie Cohen. “She’s at risk, and a very high risk, to be abused by not only inmates but guards.”

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post “Toxic Tush” Doc Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison For Deadly Butt Injections appeared first on Law Street.

When NFL player Joe McKnight was shot to death in an apparent case of road rage last Thursday, the suspect was not charged immediately, despite reportedly telling the police officers that he was the shooter. The incident caused an uproar; many drew parallels between McKnight’s shooter–a white man–and the numerous instances of white police officers or individuals killing black people. On Tuesday, almost a week later, Sheriff Newell Normand announced that he had charged Ronald Gasser with with manslaughter. He also defended the delayed arrest, explaining that the police wanted to wait until they found reliable witnesses before moving forward.

Sheriff Normand held a news conference on Tuesday in Louisiana to explain the circumstances of Gasser’s arrest. Gasser is a 54-year-old white man who had an altercation with McKnight on a bridge while they were both driving. The two men kept racing each other and shouting, driving into a New Orleans suburb, until they both came to a stop. McKnight allegedly exited his car and walked up to Gasser, who took out his gun and shot the 28-year-old football player three times. He confessed immediately when police arrived at the scene, but initially told officers that he feared for his life and that the shooting was an act of self defense. Gasser was taken into custody but released after hours of questioning.

the craziest thing about the mcknight case is it’s being treated as if the outcome should be in any sort of doubt.

— El Flaco (@bomani_jones) December 6, 2016

When he announced the arrest at the news conference on Tuesday, Sheriff Normand seemed agitated and defensive, slamming his fists on the podium repeatedly and emphasizing that the department had done nothing wrong. “This isn’t about race. Not a single witness has said… a single racial slur was uttered,” he said. Despite the lack of racial slurs, the incident could have easily been about race. But at this point, the evidence does point to a case of plain road rage.

Says they didn’t charge Gasser Thursday night bc not enough evidence & he was cooperating without atty. Got consent to search Gasser’s home.

— T.J. Quinn (@TJQuinnESPN) December 6, 2016

The sheriff read aloud some of the racist and foul-mouthed verbal attacks that he, other officers, and lawmakers have received on social media and via email for not dealing with the case fast enough. He read a few out loud that were offensive enough that MSNBC cut away from the live broadcast and apologized for the language. The sheriff said that had they made an arrest right away, witnesses might have been hesitant to come forward. They’ve now found 250 possible witnesses based on license plates placed in the surrounding area.

Gasser’s temperament is certainly at issue–he had a similar fight with another man ten years ago at the exact same intersection. In 2006, he was driving a truck, when a fellow motorist called a number printed on the side of the truck to say that the driver was driving erratically. The number actually went to Gasser’s phone. The two men got into a fight over the phone and Gasser followed the man to a gas station where he confronted him and beat him up. The only consequence for Gasser was a misdemeanor summons that was later dismissed.

McKnight played three seasons for the New York Jets and one for the Kansas City Chiefs. The Jets held a moment of silence in his honor on Monday night before playing a game in New York.

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 Man Who Allegedly Killed NFL Player Joe McKnight Charged with Manslaughter appeared first on Law Street.

Officer Yanez asked Castile to produce his driver’s license and proof of insurance. Castile first provided him with his insurance card. Castile then, calmly, and in a non-threatening manner, informed Officer Yanez, ‘sir, I have to tell you that I do have a firearm on me.’ Before Castile completed the sentence, Officer Yanez interrupted and calmly replied, ‘okay’ and placed his right hand on the holster of his own, holstered, gun. Officer Yanez then said, ‘okay, don’t reach for it, then.’ Castile tried to respond but was interrupted by Officer Yanez, who said, ‘don’t pull it out.’ Castile responded, ‘I’m not pulling it out,’ and Reynolds also responded by saying, ‘he’s not pulling it out.’ Then Officer Yanez screamed, ‘don’t pull it out!,’ and quickly pulled his own gun with his right hand while he reached inside the driver’s side window with his left hand. Officer Yanez pulled his left arm out of the car, then fired seven shots in rapid succession into the vehicle.

The immediate aftermath of the bloody scene was captured by Reynolds, and streamed to millions of people on social media. The graphic video fueled weeks of protests around the country, and an outcry of support for Reynolds and her four-year-old daughter.

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Officer Who Killed Philando Castile Charged with Manslaughter appeared first on Law Street.

Betty Shelby, the police officer who shot Terence Crutcher on a highway in Tulsa, Oklahoma last week, was formally charged with manslaughter. Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler announced on Thursday that he had charged officer Shelby with first-degree manslaughter, which would amount to a minimum of four years in prison if convicted.

In a brief statement about the charges, Kunzweiler said, “The tragic circumstances surrounding the death of Mr. Crutcher are on the hearts and minds of many people in this community.” Shelby was booked at the local county jail early Friday morning before being released on a $50,000 bond. Crutcher’s family members said that they approved of the charges and hope that Shelby’s prosecution will lead to a conviction.

Crutcher’s twin sister, Tiffany, said after the announcement, “This is a small victory. The chain breaks here. We’re going to break the chains of police brutality.”

Tulsa Police Officer Betty Shelby will face first-degree manslaughter charges in death of Terence Crutcher: https://t.co/qgCni2r96U pic.twitter.com/cKXAxAqiw6

— Complex (@ComplexMag) September 22, 2016

Crutcher’s car broke down on the interstate last Friday and a woman called 911 reporting that a man was running away from the vehicle as if it was about to blow up. Betty Shelby, who was responding to another 911 call about domestic abuse, came across Crutcher and his car. She got out and started asking Crutcher what was wrong, but he reportedly ignored her questions and kept mumbling to himself. As the interaction unfolded, backup arrived at the scene and Crutcher was later shot and killed.

The court documents claim that Shelby shot Crutcher “unlawfully and unnecessarily.” The filing argues that she became emotionally involved and overreacted to the situation. Shelby’s attorney Scott Wood said that Crutcher was acting erratically, which led Shelby, who Wood said is a drug recognition expert, to believe he was on drugs. She claims to have feared for her life before she fired the shot, and said that Crutcher kept patting his pockets and she couldn’t tell if he had a gun. Crutcher was unarmed and there was no weapon in the car.

A video of the incident shows Crutcher with his hands raised in the air shortly before he was shot. Shelby apparently ordered him to go back to his car and another officer tasered him as he approached the driver-side door. Shelby then shot Crutcher shortly after he fell to the ground.

Police say that Crutcher was reaching into the window before he was shot, but the attorney for the Crutcher family, Benjamin Crump, later said, “The window was up, so how can he be reaching into the car if the window is up and there’s blood on the glass?”

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 Tulsa Officer Charged With Manslaughter in Terence Crutcher’s Death appeared first on Law Street.

Matt Cordle created a stir on the internet when he posted a video to Youtube entitled “I Killed a man.”  In the video, Cordle admits to driving extremely intoxicated down the wrong side of the highway, hitting a car and eventually killing Vincent Canzani. Cordle also said that he would plead guilty to whatever crime he is charged with in relation to Mr. Canzani’s death, and that his reason for making the video was essentially to put a real face to the serious implications of drinking and driving.  He ended the video by imploring viewers to not make the same mistake he did.

On September 11, 2013, Cordle plead not guilty to aggravated vehicular homicide. This was considered legal maneuvering by his counsel, and Cordle eventually plead guilty.  On October 23, Cordle was sentenced to six-and-a-half years in prison and the permanent suspension of his driver’s license, pursuant to Ohio law.

There is a lot to discuss here.  The first is the criminal law aspect of Cordle’s Youtube confession.  Cordle makes a point to say that he will “take full responsibility for everything he’s done to Vincent and his family…by releasing this video, [he knows] exactly what it means, and hand the prosecution everything they need to put me away for a very long time.” This is especially true in light of the fact that in criminal trials, it is the both the judge’s and defense counsel’s legal and ethical duty to make sure that the defendant knows the consequences of a guilty plea.  To that extent, it is clear that Cordle received legal advice in making the Youtube confession, as well as his actions in court.

Second, how much did the court of public opinion factor into the outcome of this case?  As of September 12, 2011, the video has been viewed over two million times.  There is a public investment in the judicial response to Cordle’s case.  The outrage that will result would be massive, especially since judgeships are elected positions in Ohio. Though this internet confession was not the sole reason that Cordle received his conviction, this unprecedented move surely played a larger role.

During the sentencing, various parties spoke on behalf of and against Cordle.  Those who supported him throughout the trial argued that he has made such an impact with his video, and acknowledgement of the severity of his actions, that the maximum sentence of eight-and-a-half years was unnecessary.  They argued that by putting a face to drunk driving, he has effectively “scared straight” those that would consider putting themselves in a similar position. Among those who took this position were Mr. Canzani’s widow and Cordle’s attorney.

Conversely, there were arguments in court that the maximum sentence was deserved because of the heinous nature of the crime, and because a viral video does not negate the loss of life that occurred at Cordle’s hands. This position was most effectively elucidated by Mr. Canzani’s daughter, Angela, who said “my father got a death sentence and did nothing wrong.  After eight and half years, Matthew Cordle will still have his whole life ahead of him, my father is never coming back.”

This case is so interesting, and I am interested in hearing your thoughts.  Was Cordle’s sentence fair? Should the video have resulted in an even shorter sentence?  Should he have received the maximum?

[Daily News] [CNN] 

Peter Davidson II

Peter Davidson is a recent law school graduate who rants about news & politics and raves over the ups & downs of FUNemployment in the current legal economy. Contact Peter at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post “I Killed a Man” Driver Sentenced to Six and a Half Years appeared first on Law Street.

The DOJ has brought new charges against four former Blackwater Security contractors by the names of Dustin Heard, Evan Liberty, Nick Slatten, and Paul Slough. All four men were previously in various branches of the US military before joining Blackwater, a private military and security company founded in 1997.

These four former Blackwater employees are now being charged with multiple counts of voluntary manslaughter and attempt to commit manslaughter because of their involvement in the 2007 Nissor Square Massacre. On September 16, 2007, these four men shot at Iraqi civilians in Nissor square, leading to the 17 deaths and 20 injuries. The Blackwater contractors were in the Square to clear a way for American officials coming in a convoy. Exactly what happened that day is still somewhat unknown: Blackwater argues they were provoked, Iraqi police say they were not. A further FBI investigation determined that at least 14 of the deaths were unprovoked and classified the incident as an “unprovoked illegal attack on civilians.”

A year after the incident, the US charged the contractors who were present with various counts of manslaughter and weapons violations, but the charges were dismissed by a US Judge. The explanation given for the dismissal was that the testimony the case was based on was inadmissible. In 2011, three years later, an appeals court disagreed. Last week, four contractors were re-indicted —of the six involved in the incident, one has already pleaded guilty and another had charges against him dropped.

Last time the charges were brought, Heard, Liberty, Slatten, and Slough all pleaded not guilty and alleged that their actions in Nissor Square in 2007 were exclusively acts of self-defense. As of yet, there is no indication what they plan to plead for these new charges or when the case will actually begin. The indictment says that the four men, “unlawfully and intentionally, upon a sudden quarrel and heat of passion, did commit voluntary manslaughter.” The contractors on trial will need to prove that they did in fact act in self defense.

This opportunity to discuss Blackwater comes at a time when Americans are becoming increasingly frustrated with their government, partly because of a lack of transparency. The history of Blackwater, which has now changed its name to Academi, sheds an interesting light on US military policies. Blackwater was originally founded in 1997, and was intended to supplement already existing military force. One of the founders, Erik Prince, stated , “We are trying to do for the national security apparatus what FedEx did for the Postal Service.”

Blackwater mainly began by helping with training and providing protection services. It was one of a few different private firms hired in the Afghanistan and Iraq war. It is estimated that in 2006, there were 100,000 private contractors working for the Department of Defense. This is a huge departure from previous wars—estimates only place about 10,000 contractors in the Persian Gulf War. This farming-out of war to private militaries has the potential to grow even further in future conflicts. The DOJ is taking an admirable step in forcing accountability for these groups by the indictment of the four contractors involved in Nissor Square Massacre.

[Washington Post]

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Featured image courtesy of [jamesdale10 via Wikipedia]

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 New Charges For Former Blackwater Contractors appeared first on Law Street.