U.S. appellate court hears cases at McGeorge
U.S. appellate court hears cases at McGeorge
By Denny Walsh
dwalsh@sacbee.com
Published: Thursday, Oct. 30, 2008 | Page 1B
- A federal appellate panel, sitting in special session Wednesday in Sacramento, heard California's appeals in two constitutional cases decided in lower courts against the state and its officials.
The session of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the highest court in the Western states, was at the University of the Pacific's McGeorge School of Law before an audience of 300, mostly students, faculty and members of the legal community.
In one appeal heard by the three-judge panel, a trial court judge in San Jose last year struck down as unconstitutional a state law that sought to restrict the retail distribution of violent video games to minors. The law would have prohibited the sale or rental of violent games to persons under 18. A civil penalty of up to $1,000 could be imposed for each violation.
District Judge Ronald M. Whyte had ruled that the state failed to show the law meets two requirements: that it is the least restrictive means of curtailing speech, and it is based on a nexus between the well-being of minors and the speech restrictions.
In the other case, a jury in Sacramento federal court found a year ago that an inmate's constitutional right to be free of cruel and unusual punishment was violated when he was deprived of outdoor exercise during four extended lockdowns at a prison in Folsom.
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