Moritz Legal Information Blog

With the Fourth of July holiday coming up, celebratory fireworks are in the news. The National Council on Fireworks Safety has an interactive map , showing the kinds of fireworks allowed in each state. Ohio Revised Code, Chapter 3743: Fireworks State Fire Marshal's Fireworks Redbook Fireworks Safety: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission National Council on Fireworks Safety Ohio and fireworks in the news: Chillicothe Gazette NBC4

Yesterday, the Supreme Court issued its final opinions of the term. In a case that has received much press, Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Ass'n , the Court struck down a California ban on the sale of violent video games to minors. More on all of the opinions: SCOTUSblog NPR New York Times Wall Street Journal The cases: Goodyear Dunlop Tires Operations, S.A. v. Brown J. McIntyre Machinery v. Nicastro Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Ass’n Arizona Free Enterprise Club’s Freedom Club PAC v. Bennett United States v. Juvenile Male

Snap along with "The Hamilton Mixtape," a founding father tribute performed by Lin-Manuel Miranda at the White House a couple years ago. Apparently it appears during the closing credits of a film on Hamilton recently aired by PBS. Thanks to The Volokh Conpiracy for its write-up of the film and YouTube clip.

In April, 60 Minutes raised questions about Greg Mortenson's book, Three Cups of Tea , including the veracity of some of the stories in it, and whether Mortenson's charity, the Central Asia Institute, is properly run. Now, a federal lawsuit has been filed in Illinois, alleging violation of the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act. This is not the first lawsuit regarding the book--another was filed in Montana, and class-action status is sought for both of them, so they may be joined by purchasers of Mortenson's book. CBS News MSNBC Justia

A man desperate for health care for several physical ailments planned a bank robbery of one dollar. Previously law-abiding, he handed a note to a bank teller, then sat to wait for the police. He also sent a letter to a local newspaper, calling himself "of sound mind but not so much sound body," so that it would be clear that his true motivation was getting medical care, not money from the bank. Gaston Gazette The Volokh Conspiracy Huffington Post LA Times Blog Hat tip: Sentencing Law and Policy Blog

Today, the Supreme Court issued its opinion in the case of Wal-Mart v. Dukes . Although the Court was unanimous that the class should not be certified, there was a 5-4 split as to the scope of that decision. Commentary: The Volokh Conspiracy Slate Wall Street Journal MarketBeat Blog CBS MoneyWatch Forbes Blog

In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled yesterday that age is a relevant factor to consider as to whether a child is "in custody" for the purposes of Miranda warnings. The majority opinion was written by Justice Sotomayor and joined by Justices Breyer, Ginsburg, Kagan, and Kennedy. The dissent was written by Justice Alito and joined by the Chief Justice, and Justices Scalia and Thomas. J.D.B. v. North Carolina Additional information and commentary: SCOTUSblog PBS NewsHour WSJ Law Blog NPR