Judge Threatened in Pharmacist Case

The judge hearing the case of an Oklahoma City pharmacist charged with first degree murder after killing a would-be robber has received death threats in phone calls to her chambers.

Judge Tammy Bass-LeSure said the calls began shortly after she raised the bond on Jerome Ersland from $50,000 to $100,000.

"They were threats on my life," Bass-LeSure said. "There were a lot of racial epithets and just things of that nature."

Ersland was charged with murder after the investigation of the robbery showed he shot one of the would-be robbers, an unarmed 16 year old, chased the other two from his pharmacy, then returned inside and shot the bleeding suspect an additional five times.

In a nationally televised interview with Bill O'Reilly, Ersland said he was fearful for his life when he fired the additional shots.

He has turned all his weapons over to his attorney at the order of the judge.

Oregon Courts will be open on Fridays

A budget impasse in the Oregon legislature prompted the Supreme Court Chief Justice to order all courts to close on Fridays, but the order only lasted one day as an agreement was reached on the budget.

However, all court staff must take five unpaid days off from now until June 30. This creates another issue in that with staff on furlough not all courtrooms can be used, so fewer cases will be heard.

Don Smith, Linn County's trial court administrator, said he expects employees to take their furloughs on Fridays or Mondays.

“If you have to take a day without pay, you want to at least get a three-day weekend out of it,” he said.

Virginia Faces Lawsuit Over Election

The Washington Post is reporting that the Virginia NAACP is suing "Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) and Virginia's top election officials . . . accusing them of failing to provide enough resources to accommodate expected record turnout during next week's election."

The lawsuit claims that the state is violating the U.S. and Virginia constitutions by not allocating enough voting machines, poll workers and polling places -- particularly in precincts with high minority populations -- which could result in long lines and lost votes.

The Advancement Project, a national voter protection group, filed the lawsuit late Monday in U.S. District Court in Richmond on the NAACP's behalf. It asks the state to move voting machines to precincts most likely to have long waiting lines; keep polls open for an extra two hours; and use paper ballots in some cases.

The Commonwealth of Virginia is denying the allegations:

In a lengthy statement released late Monday night, the State Board of Elections maintained that all localities are complying with the minimum number of voting machines and voting booths in each precinct as required by state code. Since 2004, the number of voting machines, polling places and workers has increased, according to the statement. For example, the number of voting machines has increased from about 5,700 in 2004 to about 10,600 in 2008.

Court: Flagged Voters May Vote

This just in from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

The state of Georgia must allow persons whose citizenship has been questioned in a new voter verification system the opportunity to cast a ballot in the Nov. 4 elections, a three-judge court ruled Monday.

The court also ordered Secretary of State Karen Handel to “make diligent and immediate efforts to notify, in a uniform manner, every person whose voter registration presently remains flagged.” Those voters must be told that they can vote by a “challenged ballot,” if necessary, and that there is a discrepancy in the voters’ registration information, the court said.

The ruling was issued by Judge Stanley Birch of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and U.S. District Court judges Jack Camp and Bill Duffey.

Congress Expands Protections for Disabled

In an effort to undo recent Supreme Court decisions involving Americans with disabilities, Congress as approved legislation that expands protections for the disabled.

The New York Times reports:

The bill expands the definition of disability and makes it easier for workers to prove discrimination. It explicitly rejects the strict standards used by the Supreme Court to determine who is disabled.

The bill declares that the court went wrong by “eliminating protection for many individuals whom Congress intended to protect” under the 1990 law.

“The Supreme Court misconstrued our intent,” said Representative Steny H. Hoyer of Maryland, the House Democratic leader. “Our intent was to be inclusive.”

In an effort to clarify the intent of Congress, the bill says, “The definition of disability in this act shall be construed in favor of broad coverage.”

Representative F. James Sensenbrenner Jr. of Wisconsin, the principal Republican sponsor in the House, said, “Courts have focused too heavily on whether individuals are covered by the law, rather than on whether discrimination occurred.”

Palin Avoids Subpoena, For Now

Alaska governor and Republican candidate for vice president Sarah Palin will not be subpoenaed by a bi-partisan legislative committee investigating the so-called Trooper-Gate Scandal - just yet that is.

The bipartisan committee overseeing the investigation announced today in a press release that they're moving up the date that they release the results of their investigation by three weeks, meaning it should come out in early October. The commitee, led by Sen. Hollis French, an Anchorage Democrat also announced that it would meet on September 12 to issue subpoenas in the case.

But according to the release, Palin herself will not be subpoenaed. The committee still holds out hope that she will talk to indepedendent investigator Steven Branchflower voluntarily.

The committee's decision was based on Palin's avowal that she will cooperate fully with the investigation.

French had initially indicated that subpoenas likely wouldn't be necessary, since Palin had pledged her full cooperation. But earlier this week, Palin's lawyer warned that unless the case were handed over to the state personnel board -- whose three members are appointed by the governor -- Palin would not be made available to testify. And according to the release: This week, seven key witnesses informed Mr. Branchflower through their attorneys that they would not provide depositions. Their depositions, which had been agreed to and scheduled earlier with Mr. Branchflower, were cancelled within the last 72 hours."

Sharpton Escapes IRS Criminal Probe

By paying one million dollars toward back taxes, a criminal investigation against Rev. Al Sharpton has been dropped by the Internal Revenue Service. IRS officials have decided to proceed instead with civil proceedings.

The IRS and New York state and city tax agencies claim that Sharpton and his organization, the National Action Network, collectively owe millions of dollars in back taxes and penalties.

The exact amount Sharpton owes has not been revealed by either the government or Sharpton's lawyers, but there is evidence the debt is sizable.

The IRS obtained a $931,397 lien against Sharpton. City and state officials said he owned them another $933,577. Separately, the National Action Network said in its most recent tax filing that it owed at least $1.9 million in payroll taxes and related interest.

Sharpton, who was defiant when the probe became public in December, claiming it was part of a government smear campaign, sounded more contrite Tuesday.

He said both he and the civil rights group would clean up their books and complete a reorganization intended to ensure the group's long-term fiscal stability.