Arizona
Federal court to hear English-learning case
PHOENIX (AP) — A federal appeals court has scheduled a January hearing on an appeal of a judge’s ruling in favor of Arizona’s programs for students learning English.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals scheduled the hearing for Jan. 12 in San Francisco, where the appellate court is based.
U.S. District Judge Raner C. Collins ruled March 29, 2013 that the state had improved teaching of English-learning students and no longer violated a federal law requiring states to overcome language barriers in schools.
The case was originally filed in federal court in Tucson on behalf of Nogales children and parents.
Collins and a now-retired judge previously ordered increased spending for students learning English. But the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2009 that the state was entitled to a fresh review.
Wisconsin
Court upholds former Walker aide’s conviction
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A state appeals court says one of Gov. Scott Walker’s former aides was properly convicted of campaigning on taxpayers’ time.
Kelly Rindfleisch served as Walker’s deputy chief of staff while he was Milwaukee County executive. She pleaded guilty in October 2012 to one felony count of misconduct in office after prosecutors accused her of working on Walker’s gubernatorial campaign and Republican Brett Davis’ lieutenant governor campaign out of her county office.
She argued on appeal that a judge should have suppressed evidence gleaned from her email, saying searching her messages violated her constitutional rights.
The 1st District Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 Wednesday that prosecutors had probable cause to search her emails.
Rindfleisch’s attorney says he plans to ask the state Supreme Court to take the case.
New Mexico
Court to hear case over Valles Caldera claim
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A federal appeals court will hear legal arguments Thursday in Albuquerque on a case involving the Jemez Pueblo’s claim to recover land now included in the Valles Caldera National Preserve in northern New Mexico.
The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will consider the Jemez Pueblo’s appeal of a federal judge’s 2013 ruling that dismissed the tribe’s 2012 lawsuit over 89,000 acres that it considers sacred.
The judge ruled in September 2013 that the federal government did not consent to being sued.
The preserve is home to vast grasslands, the remnants of one of North America’s few super volcanoes, and one of New Mexico’s most famous elk herds.
The hearing will be held at the University of New Mexico School of Law. The 10th Circuit is based in Denver.
Oklahoma
No penalty for officer who pulled over Duncan teen
DUNCAN, Okla. (AP) — The officer who pulled over a 19-year-old hours before prosecutors say he killed his family in Duncan won’t be punished for not realizing the teen gave him someone else’s name, according to a city attorney.
Alan Hruby is charged in the shooting deaths of his 50-year-old father John Hruby — publisher of the weekly newspaper, The Marlow Review — his 48-year-old mother Tinker Hruby and his 17-year-old sister Katherine Hruby.
On Oct. 9, Alan Hruby was pulled over around 1 a.m. for speeding about a mile away from his family’s home, the Tulsa World reported. Officials say Hruby didn’t have his license on him and gave the officer the name and birthdate of someone he didn’t like.
Assistant City Attorney Lawrence Wheeler also said the Duncan Police Department won’t change its ticket-writing procedures following the police officer’s failure to notice the 6-inch, 145-pound difference between Hruby and the person he claimed to be.
A judge has issued a gag order that prohibits attorneys and others involved from discussing the case publicly. Hruby is being held without bond.
Online court records show Hruby has a preliminary hearing conference set for Dec. 17.
Investigators have said Hruby killed his parents because they had recently cut him off financially, and his sister in order to become the only heir to the family estate.
