Favorite Law Movies: Witness for the Prosecution–An Oldie But a Goodie!

This 1957 courtroom drama is based on a short story, and later a play, by Agatha Christie.  It involves the seasoned barrister and curmudgeon Sir Wilfred Robarts, masterfully played by Charles Laughton.  He takes on the murder defense of Leonard Vole (Tyrone Power).  Robarts’ private nurse (Elsa Lancaster) objects, constantly reminding the barrister of his doctor’s advice to stay away from criminal cases due to ill health. Vole is accused of the murder of a wealthy older woman Mrs. French (Norma Varden) who appeared to have fallen in love with him and changed her will to give Vole the bulk of her large estate.  Circumstantial evidence strongly points to Vole’s involvement.

Vole claims his defense is based on the fact that his wife, Christine (Marlene Dietrich), will testify that he arrived home the evening of the murder long before it occurred.  Robarts, of course, counsels Vole that the testimony of a wife in such a situation will be suspect.  Robarts’ first meeting with Christine leaves him concerned with her demeanor and sincerity.

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Sports and Politics

Tonight college football fans will be watching the on-field competition in the Bowl Champion Series game between Florida and Oklahoma, which will determine the BCS “national champion.”  But some politicians, in addition to President-elect Barack Obama, are as interested in off-field issues such as how the participating teams in this game are determined and how this game is described.

Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff claims the BCS system unfairly prevents universities from non-BCS conferences (e.g., the undefeated Utah Utes) from participating in the BCS championship game, which places these schools at a competitive and financial disadvantage in violation of the federal antitrust laws.  Two Texas Republican congressmen, Joe Barton and Michael McCaul, along with Illinois Democrat congressman Bobby Rush, have introduced federal legislation that would “prohibit the marketing, promotion, and advertising of a postseason game as a ‘national championship’ football game, unless it is the result of a playoff system.”  Their proposed bill would make any non-compliant football championship game “an unfair or deceptive act or practice” that violates the Federal Trade Commission Act.  The Utah attorney general’s antitrust investigation and proposed federal legislation both seek to have the major college football championship determined by a playoff system rather than a complex formula based on subjective human polls and computer rankings that determine the #1 and #2 ranked teams at the end of the regular season.

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Deficits and Debts

Before you start searching your mailbox for the next economic stimulus check, sobering reports today put the budget deficit at $1.2 trillion for the fiscal year.

This, of course, pales in comparison to the national debt, which is expected to increase by $2 trillion this year . That would put the national debt at about $12.7 trillion. The current debt stands at about $10.7 trillion, with 40% of that owned by government accounts. Interestingly, China owned $652.9 billion in treasury securities as of October 2008. That’s a $193.8 billion increase from that same month in 2007. You can see the remainder of the major foreign holders of debt here.

Make your checks payable to the Bureau of the Public Debt.

UPDATE: According to the New York Times today, China currently owns over $1 trillion in treasury securities, but they’re not really interested in more.

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