Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling Upholding Video Game Legislation

Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling Upholding Video Game Legislation

March 18, 2009

While an overwhelming majority of federal court judges have found state and local laws restricting video games to be unconstitutional, U.S. District Judge David Hamilton is an exception. In 2000, Hamilton ruled in favor of an Indianapolis law which would have barred unaccompanied minors from playing violent games in coin-op arcades.

Hamilton's eight-year-old opinion in American Amusement Machine vs. Kendrick, while subsequently overturned by the U.S. 7th Circuit Court, could once again be a source of concern to the video game industry.

The Associated Press is reporting that President Barack Obama has nominated Hamilton for an opening on the 7th Circuit, which covers appeals arising from federal district courts in Illinois, Wisconsin and Indiana. From the AP:

Obama on Tuesday nominated [Hamilton] to serve on [the 7th Circuit], his first act in reshaping the federal judiciary and preparing for a possible Supreme Court opening...

 

Three of the appeals courts [including the 7th] can gain a majority of Democratic-appointed judges if Obama's nominees are confirmed for existing vacancies...

 

The White House acted before Hamilton's nomination to make sure that his home-state Republican senator, Dick Lugar, was on board... Lugar's support for Hamilton would make it difficult for Republicans to filibuster his nomination...

 

The American Bar Association gave Hamilton a "well qualified" rating...

GP: As a practical matter, the chances of video game legislation reaching the 7th Circuit any time soon seem slim. Illinois, burned financially by disgraced ex-Guv Rod Blagojevich's 2005 video game law, is unlikely to try again. That leaves only Indiana and Wisconsin. While both have dabbled with legislative proposals aimed at video games in recent years, neither has gotten very far with such proposals.

Moreover, the 7th Circuit already has a precedent-setting video game case in the Kendrick ruling.

Comments

Re: Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling Upholding

More bad appointments?  NO WAY!

Re: Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling Upholding

YA RLY!

Re: Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling ...

I wouldn't be too concerned. The fact that the higher court overruled him is probably enough for h im. Most judges won't go against precedent even if it overturned their own rulings.

Re: Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling Upholding

As much as I think Obama was a far better choice than the alternatives, it bugs me that Obama seems to be a man overly concerned with compromise. Although I doubt Obama gave any thought to the video game issue when he nominated this guy, the fact that he buys into the Abraham Lincoln "team of rivals" BS suggests he may be the sort of person whose principles are less important than they should be. After all, why would any president appoint a person whose ideals are opposed to his own unless he cares more about being a "good" and beloved president than about standing up for what is right?

Re: Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling Upholding

So you would want a non-liberal president to be uncompromising? Two-way street, my friend.

www.gameslaw.net

Re: Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling Upholding

I wouldn't want a president who makes decisions that go against my own principles, so obviously I wouldn't want a non-liberal president to make any illiberal decisions. That doesn't mean I value compromise for the sake of compromise, however, which is what I'm criticizing.

I don't want a president who rules according to the middle-ground fallacy; I want a president who makes the right decisions, and as far as I'm concerned that's a president who doesn't compromise on standing up for people's civil rights.

Re: Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling Upholding

How is he 'overly concerned' with compromise?  He doesn't give half a damn about compromise!  The only reason he asked Lugar not to make a big deal is because if Lugar had (and he damn well should, this guy was a crook of a lawyer) this judge would never be nominated.  At what point has Obama compromised?  The stimulus bill?  The budget?  The mounds of executive orders he's signed?A lot of reaching across the aisle in this administration, to be sure. 
By the way, I think that it should be noted that the current administration has known that AIG would be using stimulus money to pay bonuses since before they signed the bill.

 

Re: Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling Upholding

First he Claimed he was born in Hawaii, and he's doing this behind our backs, I still don't like him(and because of the mud Slinging, I was planning to vote for mccain, instead I voted for bob barr)

Watching JT on GP is just like watching an episode of Jerry springer only as funny as the fights

Re: Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling ...

Every day i find myself liking Obama less and less. Americans might as well just wave goodbye to their First and Second amendment rights. The Censorcrats love the nanny-state and hate Free Speech. Of course in most circumstances they're better then the alternative Republicans but both political parties suck and the chance of a third political party (like the libertarians) that believes in individual freedom and liberty and who don't want to shit all over the constitution will never be elected.

"No law means no law" - Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black on the First Amendment

Re: Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling ...

Thus is how the game is played you are not going to make the US public smarter or wiser consumers over night nor are you going to make politicians in this day and age work outside the red tape that is modern politics.

He is what he is the lesser of evils, at least until the dim party implodes into a full bowen form of grade A fascism until then the dims are still lost and seeking to fullfill the needs of to many niches while sucking on rich man di...er... tit  and the reapers are your A typical robber barons who use morals as a launching ground for their careers of corruption and greed.

You simply have to remove money from politics and "force" those with money to work for the power and glory of the job for free, if you have 5 million or more in assets then you should only get security paid for the rest is on you. Unless you want to apply for hardship opening up all your records(and spouse records) and anything of more than 5K you have access to, to the public.

 


Gore,Violence,Sexauilty,Fear,Emotion these are but modes of transportation of story and thought, to take them from society you create a society of children and nannys, since adults are not required.


http://zippydsmlee.wordpress.com

Re: Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling ...
I find it completely retarded of people on here to simply judge how well Obama is doing based of the press releases here. I also find it completely retarded that people on here think that Obama has every single piece of detailed information that he needs to pick his candidates. Obama is the President, he cannot be Micro-Managing the Government to the point where he knows when Sally took a 16 minute break instead of a 15 minute break. Thats why there are so many Government employees to help him out or undermine him.

So this Judge didnt rule in favor of video games but what else has he ruled on?
The only other big story I found on this judge was this Judge Bars Indiana Legislature from Christian Prayers
But I think this has to biggest factor Hamilton's brother, John Hamilton, is married to Dawn Johnsen, who has been nominated to serve as assistant attorney general for the Office of Legal Counsel in the United States Department of Justice. more can be found here Legaltimes

So he has a family connection and has drawn only 1 big story besides video games. I find the family connection a little worrisome but other than that he seems to be a rather neutral choice.

But then haters will always find a way to hate.
Re: Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling ...

So all his lying, his spendthrift, his bills that don't stimulate anything, etc. aren't valid reasons to judge him?  Just because people have already stopped buying Obama's bullshit on this site doesn't mean that it's because they're judging him solely based on what we read here.  What about his constant lies, the fact that he spent in ONE month over 1,000,000,000,000 dollars that were not designed to stimulate or save any jobs (be on the lookout for stimulus part 2, the remix), the fact that he keeps nominating crooks (this guy is too, he was a crook when he was a lawyer), the fact that he's still not done wasting our money, the list can just keep going.

HE appointed this man.  OBAMA appointed him.  He's absolutely responsible for looking into their history.  He's also absolutely capable of looking into their history.  Hell, he could even have a team of people from his whitehouse or his campaign do it, and God knows he needs to, since he seems to keep nominating tax cheats.  But HE picked the man, and HE should probably have known (and I maintain he does know) where the man stands. 

Of course, when its criticism of a two-faced and wasteful president who's a democrat its 'hating', but when it's criticism of Bush its 'patriotism' or some other bullshit. 

 

Re: Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling ...

Haters will always find a way to hate.

Thank you for proving my point.

Re: Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling ...

Thank you for proving my point that you blindly follow the man, have no idea what he's actually doing, and seem to be incapable of coming to the realization that he will AT LEAST double the deficit if he keeps spending money the way he is.  Way to show that you can actually debate my points.  Oh wait, you couldn't, because you either A)don't watch the news or B)live with your head shoved up your ass.  I can't turn on the TV or the Radio without hearing about more spending from Obama, more corruption, more lying, etc.  Where the hell do you live that you seem to magically avoid all his bullshit?

Re: Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling ...

I've noticed this violent video game theme lately. Is it just me? I think its incredible how front and center it is. I shutter at the next generation consoles and the realism. I love FPS game, but I realize also where this is headed. More the point. Is the future of the realistic army style shooter going to be a thing of the past? Shooting aliens instead of humans is more pallatible imo.

My sites Vancover Wireless Security Camera Halo 4

Re: Obama Circuit Court Nominee Issued 2000 Ruling ...

You call it compromise, I call it LYING. 

 

He's not your boy, people. 

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