Daily News Briefs: March  29, 2000
Date: Wednesday, 29 Mar 2000 12:48:20 -0800

Table of Contents

Subject: NEWS
Date: Wed, 29 Mar 2000 12:48:20 -0800
 

Top News
Court Cuts Police Power To Search
Suspicious States Won't Let Microsoft Off Easy
Reno testifies she never approved Waco compound demolition
Nonprofit Groups Feasting on Fine Print in the I.R.S. Code

Cyberlaw News
Yahoo accused of illegal video game sales
U.S. Will Give Web Patents More Scrutiny
Linux users to protest Copyright Act

Criminal Law
Customs Expands Body Search X-ray Plan

Unusual Legal News - Eat My Justice!
Kent student wins case linked to 'obits' on Web

Top News

Court Cuts Police Power To Search
FindLaw News

Police generally cannot stop and search someone for a gun based on an
anonymous tip accurately describing only that person's location and
clothing, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously yesterday. The justices
said Miami police acted unlawfully in 1995 when they searched and
arrested a juvenile, identified in court records as J.L., who was
carrying a gun.
http://news.findlaw.com/news/s/20000328/search.html

Suspicious States Won't Let Microsoft Off Easy
Los Angeles Times

When the Justice Department filed its antitrust case against Microsoft
Corp. two years ago, many thought the federal government would have a
tough time keeping its partners in line-the 19 state attorneys general
whose egos and party differences threatened to ensnarl the government's
landmark antitrust case. Instead, the attorneys general are a thorn in
the side of Microsoft and its chairman, Bill Gates, who suddenly finds
himself facing high-stakes negotiations in which his billions in
corporate profit and ubiquitous Windows software offer him no advantage.

http://www.latimes.com/news/front/20000329/t000029470.html               

Reno testifies she never approved Waco compound demolition
Court TV

Attorney General Janet Reno testified Tuesday that she never gave
approval for tanks to demolish the Branch Davidians' compound near Waco,
Texas - and does not believe the FBI intentionally did so - say lawyers
for the sect who deposed her for their wrongful-death lawsuit against
the government. But the Davidians' lead counsel, emerging from the rare
deposition of an attorney general, said Reno was less than forthcoming
in discussing whether the FBI intended to dismantle the complex during
its tear-gassing operation - an interpretation rejected by Reno's aides.

http://www.courttv.com/national/2000/0328/waco_ap.html

Nonprofit Groups Feasting on Fine Print in the I.R.S. Code
New York Times

The tiny remnant of the American peace movement had a little money and
was looking for a voice in the political process. The pharmaceutical
industry had a lot of money and was looking for a bullhorn. Both found
it in an obscure corner of the Internal Revenue Code known as Section
527, a provision that opens the way for groups to raise and spend
unlimited sums on political activities without any disclosure, as long
as they do not expressly advocate voting for a candidate. Section 527
has become the loophole of choice this year for groups large and small,
left and right, to spread their messages without revealing the sources
of their income or the objects of their spending.

http://www.nytimes.com/library/politics/032900irs-527-donate.html

Cyberlaw News

Tech-Deals - Internet Contracts - The Details
http://techdeals.findlaw.com
Meg Whitman & eBay, Dr. Koop's deal with drkoop.com & more
Amazon, AOL, eBay, Excite, iVillage, Netscape, TheStreet.com, Yahoo!

Yahoo accused of illegal video game sales
CNET News

Three leading video game companies have sued Yahoo over the alleged sale
of illegal goods on its auction and stores site. Nintendo of America,
Electronic Arts and Sega of America filed a lawsuit in U.S. District
Court for the Northern District of California, charging that Yahoo has
permitted its users to sell illicit copies of video games and illegal
devices used to copy video games. The video game companies offered the
possibility that they would ask for an injunction on the sales and for
damages of as much as $100,000 per infringement.

http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1007-200-1596474.html?tag=st.ne.1002.thed1007-200-1596474

U.S. Will Give Web Patents More Scrutiny
Dow Jones

Amid a growing debate over patents that stake out broad claims for basic
methods of doing business on the Web, the U.S. Patent and Trademark
Office is expected today to unveil an overhaul of the way it examines
applications and awards patents for many online practices. The patent
office plans to add more checks and require a broader search of past
practices and inventions. The changes follow criticism that some patents
may choke off innovation in electronic commerce by granting exclusive
rights to practices that aren't unique or new.

http://dowjones.wsj.com/i/law/SB954330176692552580-d-industry-c1-law.html

Linux users to protest Copyright Act
CNN

A Linux users' group in Washington, D.C., is planning a protest against
parts of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which they say is being
used to unfairly restrict the development of DVD (Digital Versatile
Disk) software for the Linux operating system. The group says the Motion
Picture Association of America (MPAA) is using the law to threaten Linux
developers.

http://www.cnn.com/2000/TECH/computing/03/28/copyright.protest.idg/index.html-------

Criminal Law -

Customs Expands Body Search X-ray Plan
FindLaw News

A U.S. Customs Service plan to expand use of an X-ray device that can
see beneath a person's clothing and undergarments is raising questions
about whether the scan can -- or should -- replace pat-down searches to
detect illegal drugs, weapons and other contraband. Though the
BodySearch scan is seen by some as less intrusive than having a Customs
inspector running hands over a suspect's body, civil libertarians warn
that the images are detailed enough to constitute a serious privacy
violation.

http://news.findlaw.com/crime/s/20000328/bodysearch.html  

Unusual Legal News

Women Officers Get the Mother of All Uniforms
Reuters/Excite! News

The Swedish military said on Tuesday it was introducing a uniform for
pregnant officers as part of a general uniform revamp. The "mother
uniform" is meant for existing professional officers but also fits in
with plans to introduce conscription for women, said Lieutenant-Colonel
Hans Norlen, head of the armed forces protocol department.

http://news.excite.com/news/r/000328/12/odd-uniforms

Kent student wins case linked to 'obits' on Web
Seattle Post-Intelligencer

A Kent, Washington high school student, who was suspended for using his
home computer to set up a Web site with fake obituaries for two
classmates, has won an out-of-court settlement against school officials
who mistook the satirical death notices for a "hit list." In the
settlement, which was announced yesterday, the Kent School District
agreed not to impose any kind of punishment against Kentlake High School
student Nick Emmett, to pay the college-bound senior $1 in damages and
to pick up the $6,000 cost of his lawyers' fees.

http://www.seattle-pi.com/local/kent28.shtml
 

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