A rape suspect who was arrested in Ocean Beach after two lesbians chased him after hearing a victim screaming has pleaded guilty to two sexual assaults and faces a prison term of 30 years to life. Richard Christopher Butts, 26, and his attorney agreed to accept the long prison term and Butts will be sentenced…
In January, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled in a pharmaceutical contract dispute, Abbott Laboratories v. SmithKline Beecham, that it violates the U.S. Constitution’s guarantee of equal protection to exclude someone from jury service because of his or her sexual orientation. In doing so, the court also concluded that discrimination based on…
The string of victories for marriage equality since the Supreme Court (SCOTUS) decisions on the Defense of Marriage Act and Prop. 8 have the LGBT community understandably excited, and some pundits surprisingly unhinged. David Cohen and Dahlia Lithwick of Slate have declared “It’s over” of the court debate. Chris Cillizza of the Washington Post’s blog…
A prosecutor is seeking a 7-year 8-month prison term for a La Mesa man who was convicted of practicing medicine without a license and treating people with HIV/AIDS and cancer with expensive and useless treatments. Keith Allen Barton, 52, appeared Monday before San Diego Superior Court Judge Amalia Meza who re-scheduled his sentencing for March…
After deliberating only four hours, a jury Jan. 10 convicted a La Mesa man of six counts of practicing medicine without a license after he claimed he could cure HIV and cancer with unusual and expensive treatments. Keith Allen Barton, 52, was also convicted of two counts of grand theft, attempted grand theft and false…
Bettie Lois Cain pleaded guilty Jan. 8 to grand theft auto and four counts of writing bad checks for renting property on closed bank accounts for a defunct business she ran in North Park. Cain, 67, of Normal Heights, has a history in North Park with starting coffeehouses or other businesses and not paying some…
A jury on Tuesday heard dramatic testimony from a mother who had her AIDS stricken young daughter treated by a La Mesa man who claimed to be a doctor with a cure for HIV. Keith Allen Barton, 52, was actually no physician and was impersonating another doctor with his same name, according to prosecutor Gina…
Tuesday, Utah U.S. District Judge Robert Shelby denied a request by state officials to stay his historic ruling from last week that struck down Utah’s ban on marriage for lesbian and gay couples. Across the country, another federal judge in Ohio ruled that the state must recognize an out of state marriage for the purpose…
In a somewhat similar way to Pvt. Chelsea Manning’s choice to willfully violate the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) for what she hoped would be for a greater good, I know what it’s like to willfully violate the UCMJ for what I hoped would be for a greater good. Our choices too were similar…
Who is counseling Carl DeMaio? DeMaio reportedly took a lie detector test to prove he was not masturbating in the City Council men’s room; his accuser is state Sen. Ben Hueso. Why would DeMaio take a lie detector test? Has San Diego politics just become an extended Jerry Springer or Maury Povich show? First, lie…
