Sarah Palin's safety tips and advice on how to clear your name

I finally got the chance to tackle my garden and lawn this evening! So, putting on the shorts and tank top to catch that too-brief northern summer sun and placing a giddy Trig in his toddler backpack for a lawn-mowing adventure, I looked up in surprise to see a “new neighbor” overlooking my property just a stone’s throw away. Needless to say, our outdoor adventure ended quickly after Todd went to introduce himself to the stranger who was peering in...

Sarah Palin's note from last year was packed with little messages:

• She's sexy in her shorts and tank top.
• Trig IS her son, he has mowing adventures with mom.
• The new neighbour is a pervert.

Throwing stones is what they do best. Todd reiterated the lawn mowing performance in his statement, but omitted the bit about Trig in the backpack. I heard that Joe McGinniss confirmed to Gryphen that the mowing adventure did take place. It's quite obvious that the performance was put on for McGinniss's benefit.

Several websites give similar advice:

The power lawn mower is one of the most dangerous tools around the home. Each year, approximately 68,000 persons with injuries caused by power mowers were treated in emergency departments. More than 9,000 of the people hurt were younger than 18 years.

• Make sure that sturdy shoes (not sandals or sneakers) are worn while mowing.
• Prevent injuries from flying objects, such as stones or toys, by picking up objects from the lawn before mowing begins. Have anyone who uses a mower wear hearing and eye protection.
• Make sure that children are indoors or at a safe distance well away from the area that you plan to mow.
• Do not allow children to ride as passengers on ride-on mowers.

Screenshots from another site:

She may not care about her own safety, but...

And this bit made me laugh:

Sarah Palin doesn't like to be told what to do, be it regarding lawn mowing safety, wearing seat belts in a moving vehicle or using a cell phone while driving. Her children's safety is her own darned business and can't be mandated by anybody!

The sad part is that she doesn't have any common sense about the safety of her own children. Safety "mandations" by the government are directed at people like her. Somebody has to protect the children of irresponsible parents...

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Another interesting thing about the Palins is that they seem reluctant to clear their names in a court of law. Branding people as perverts seems to be their preferred route. Todd Palin didn't deny any of the revelations in The Rogue or the National Enquirer, he just attacked McGinniss.

A Palin fan came up with this idea for a Todd Palin legal fund: People should send $25 to Sarah Pac so Todd could be bailed out after beating McGinniss to a pulp at one of his book signings.

Violence and innuendo seem to be much easier solutions than a lawsuit for libel, eh?

Perhaps we should wait for a while and see if they sue the author when The Rogue comes out next week. Oh, and let's keep an eye on any lawsuits against the National Enquirer.

During the three years people have been writing about Sarah Palin, they only had their lawyer send threatening letters on two occasions. One was about a looming investigation and the other about a possible impending divorce. Neither needed such strong arm tactics, as time would prove the bloggers in question were wrong.

None of the gates (including Babygate) have been challenged by the Palins in a court of law.

Interesting, n'est-ce pas?

Does Sarah Palin need help?

This has been brought to my attention by Andree McLeod:

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is receiving legal help from the state in a civil lawsuit.

Assistant Attorney General Dale House says Palin asked the state to help defend her against the lawsuit by activist Chip Thoma.

The claims made against Palin date to when she was governor, and House says state involvement in such cases is typical.

The state will pay for House's participation, but not for Palin's personal lawyer, who will be co-counsel.


Sarah Palin, multi-millionaire, can't take responsibility for her own actions, despite having a legal defense fund. She doesn't need help from the state of Alaska and they don't need to be saddled with yet another costly participation in a lawsuit against the quitter governor.

Sarah Palin said she quit because she couldn't put the state through so much expense against frivolous complaints and lawsuits.

Why did she have to involve the state? Why is she making the state spend money when she can afford to defend herself using only her own attorneys?

I expect she wants to show that the state is on her side. And OPM is always so sweet...

Sarah Palin, "private" citizen

This week hasn't started very well for $arah Palin.

- Keith Olbermann was very vocal about her "death panel" claims and how she incites hatred. He didn't buy her backtracking.

- Levi talked about the Palins marital problems. Will there be a backlash?

- The Alaska Legislature voted to override her veto of the energy stimulus funds. They couldn't see the strings turning into ropes.

Next week will start with the deadline to comply with APOC's requests regarding full disclosure of Arctic Cat deals and gifts received in 2008.

I keep hoping something really big would hit her. The bribery angle in the Juneteenth lawsuit looks promising, but it would be poetic justice if someone actually launched a legal challenge to her slush fund.

Watching her making a spectacle of herself on Facebook as a "private" citizen is tedious and profoundly irritating. Her profile photo changes on a daily basis to reflect her mood, I suppose.

Somehow I don't think she will post the one photo I long to see: the quitter governor sporting an orange jumpsuit, no make-up, no hair extensions, with only matching silver bracelets as adornments.

The other garment perfect for Sarah Palin would be the customized Team Arctic jacket...

Please visit this site for proper Healthcare Reform information.
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Sarah Palin's rainbows

The ugliness going on this past week around some right wing blogs is quite disturbing. $arah Palin talked about the politics of personal destruction. She should know. There are many casualties of personal destruction lining the path of her own political career.

We've seen recent examples of how it works: she raises the bait, then lets her supporters run the show. Letterman, Linda Kellen Biegel, Gryphen... who's next? We saw a late night joke become a major issue involving statutory rape, a silly photoshop turned into the desecration of an iconic image and a mention of a possible split between the quitter governor and her husband is now a hanging offense.

As her fans are the ones asking for people's heads, she can be all innocent, claiming to have no connections to any of these lunatics. She's the victim. Always.

While people are distracted by these hyperbolic witch hunts, not much attention is being paid to the real issues. She who farts rainbows is facing serious charges: failure to disclose gifts, quoting the wrong statute to get away with the Arctic Cat financial disclosure, an unethical "legal fund" and now allegations of bribery in connection with a court case.

Those rainbow farts don't really smell of roses, do they?
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The pitbull and the bloggers

A pitbull was in his backyard, doing his pitbull stuff... until a porcupine invaded his territory. The brave, but stupid pitbull, immediately challenged the porcupine!

Bad decision...the porcupine won this short contest.

A vet sedated the dog, and then removed a total of 1,347 quills. The pitbull survived, and hopefully learned a valuable lesson.

Pitbull=A certain quitter governor
Porcupine=The internet
Quills=Bloggers

Ms Pitbull should learn to ignore the porcupine...
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Truths and lies in Sarah Palin's world

$arah Palin is threatening to sue our friend Gryphen for libel over a blog post about the state of her marriage.

The bloggers have written much more serious stuff about her since August 2008.

We spoke about her "pregnancy", and some blogs are entirely dedicated to the subject. Not a squeak out of her attorney.

We wrote about her complete lack of ethics, her cronies, her vindictiveness, her clothes, her hair, tattooed lips and eyebrows. Apart from protesting that questioning her ethics is a frivolous pursuit, nothing.

There were many posts all over the place about how she uses members of her family as props and about the babies being sedated for public appearances.

Again, no denials, no threats of lawsuits.

We questioned her mental health on several occasions. Silence.

Recently there have been threats of lawsuits regarding rumours about investigations, but they didn't come to anything.

The examples above were taken from the more civilized blogs. I wonder if $arah Palin had a look at the less savoury ones...

Let's play the devil's advocate for a moment. Let's say Gryphen was misled and reported something false. $arah Palin and her advisors couldn't let this falsehood stand and are taking decisive action.

If this "falsehood" is the only one that warrants a lawsuit, does that mean everything else is true, including stuff from the less ethical bloggers?

Just asking...
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Sarah Palin: form filling as an art form

Sarah Palin had to submit a financial disclosure form to the Alaska Public Offices Commission (APOC) on March 16, 2009, covering the period January 1 and December 31, 2008.

The detail shown above is a good example of how not to do it. Does it look professional as one would expect from a state governor? It appears to have been filled in by one of her younger daughters, in a snarky and childish tone, with a bad spelling mistake. Please note that there's no exact amount quoted. (Click on image to enlarge)

APOC asked for further clarification regarding some items, such as the Arctic Cat discounts and gifts received. The Palins are trying to dodge APOC's request and her expensive lawyer has sent them a letter with some lame excuse about the gifts and quoting a bunch of statutes that apply only to AGIA to avoid disclosing the Arctic Cat discounts.

In addition to all this "transparency and accountability", Sarah Palin's supporters are going to great lengths to boost contributions to her defense fund via a "Begathon". One of their aims is to provide the governor with enough funds to bring SLAPP suits against the citizens who dare challenge her ethics.

Wiki definition:

A Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation ("SLAPP") is a lawsuit that is intended to intimidate and silence critics by burdening them with the cost of a legal defense until they abandon their criticism or opposition. Winning the lawsuit is not necessarily the intent of the person filing the SLAPP. The plaintiff's goals are accomplished if the defendant succumbs to fear, intimidation, mounting legal costs or simple exhaustion and abandons the criticism. A SLAPP may also intimidate others from participating in the debate.

Considering Sarah Palin's form filling talents, the aggressiveness of her "getting richer by the minute" attorney and legislation being proposed by one of her loyal supporters to keep complaints confidential, it seems Alaska has a dictator with the mentality of a 14 year old.

Sarah Palin's fans often say that liberals are afraid of their muse because of her power and wisdom.

No, we're afraid of being complacent and allowing a spiteful, vindictive, immature, vain, divisive hockey mom/wannabe beauty queen/hot governor anywhere near the White House.

McCain didn't have the right people behind him to be able to steal the election the way Bush did, but let's not forget that, like Bush, Sarah Palin has strong ties to big oil...
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Sarah Palin - ethics complaints and lawsuits (lists)

I had previously posted a link to a blog listing all the ethics complaints filed against Sarah Palin. As the link sent people to a pro-Palin blog, some readers and I felt uncomfortable about it, so I decided to compile a list and post it here. I have also included other issues, such as lawsuits and matters raised by APOC and FEC.

Ethics complaints:

1- Kim Chatman ethics complaint about Sarah Palin's legal defense fund, April 27th, 2009

2- Sondra Tompkins ethics complaint about Sarah Palin's attendance at SarahPAC-sponsored dinner in Indiana, April 23rd, 2009

3- Linda Kellen Biegel ethics complaint about Sarah Palin wearing a Team Arctic jacket at an official state event, constituting implicit advertising, March 25th, 2009

4- Andree McLeod ethics complaint about Sarah Palin in DC GOP fundraiser, March 18th, 2009

5- Andree McLeod ethics complaint against Palin's communications director Bill McAllister, January 23rd, 2009

6- Andree McLeod ethics complaint against Palin's Anchorage office director Kris Perry, January 23rd, 2009

7- Zane Henning ethics complaint about Sarah Palin talking about her campaign and promoting her political career from her state office, November 19th, 2008

8- Frank Gwartney ethics complaint about Sarah Palin charging the state for her children to travel with her while conducing official state business, October 24th, 2008

Sarah Palin negotiated a reimbursement to the state of $9,000 in public money she had spent on her children's travel before any action could be taken against her.

9- Troopers Union ethics complaint about Sarah Palin's breach of confidentiality by publicly releasing Trooper Mike Wooten's files, September 5th, 2008

10- Sarah Palin ethics complaint against herself about Troopergate, September 1st, 2008

11- Andree McLeod ethics complaint about Sarah Palin breaching state hiring rules, August 7th, 2008

All dates above are links to articles focusing on each complaint.

Lawsuits:



1- Gregory Charles Royal vs Sarah Palin (failure to issue Juneteenth proclamation)

2- PsychRights vs Sarah Palin et al (forceful drugging of children in care and state institutions)

3- Andree McLeod vs Sarah Palin (secret e-mails)

Others:

APOC, regarding gifts to Sarah Palin

APOC, about Sarah Palin's stance regarding Ballot 4 (Clean Water Act and Pebble mine)

I said it before and I'll say it again, as long as Sarah Palin's ethics violations are investigated by her own appointees, I can't see many of the charges sticking. The only time she came close to an embarrassing exposure relates to number 8 on the list, but her lawyer did his best to spin it in her favour.

Let's hope the courts have more integrity than the Personnel Board and other bodies appointed by Sarah Palin.

Extras:

Other issues that could be raised and investigated: Religiongate, Dairygate, First Dude's webpage.



Bonus:

There's still that "small" matter of who built her nice warm home...
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Sarah Palin, another day, another lawsuit. LATEST

In the latest development of the brewing federal lawsuit against Governor Sarah Palin for failing to issue a 2007 Juneteenth proclamation in Alaska, a former supporter and mother of six joins the suit as a co-plaintiff, announces lead plaintiff Gregory Charles Royal.

Kim Chatman, an Alaskan resident, Air Force veteran and mother of six, might seem an unlikely litigant in the suit which claims that Governor Palin violated Alaska law by failing to issue the 2007 Juneteenth Proclamation, because she voted for Palin for governor in 2006 and she is white. Chatman's children, who range in age from 28-11, are bi-racial and her husband is African American.

According to the plaintiff, a bill enacted by the Alaska legislature requires that the Governor of Alaska issue a proclamation each year to commemorate Juneteenth. He alleges that Governor Palin not only failed to issue a proclamation in 2007, but also refused to issue a proclamation retroactively. As a result of Governor Palin's inaction, the activities of citizens and civil groups which had celebrated Juneteenth were disrupted, resulting in unrealized event revenues and event cancellations. Plaintiff demands a declaratory judgment, injunctive relief, and damages."

However, Governor Palin's office has pushed back in an email response to Royal's original filing stating that though the failure was a clerical oversight, she is "not aware of any "great distress" in the African-American community of Alaska", and that, "except for those few of you involved in the mudslinging campaign last fall," she is not aware this matter "was ever commented upon by anybody".

"I know there are many Alaskans who would differ and this is precisely why Kim has joined the suit and class action status may be warranted here", says Royal. "The utter disrespect in failing to issue the 2007 Proclamation, even retroactively, is a slap in the face to black people.

In a related development, National Juneteenth Chairman Rev. Ronald V. Myers, Sr., M.D has requested a meeting with Governor Palin to allow her an opportunity to reconcile the conflict surrounding Juneteenth, stating that in addition to the 2007 failure, Palin "not responding to invitations to participate in the annual Alaska Juneteenth Celebration has created doubts in the minds of Alaska Juneteenth leaders about ever receiving any support for Juneteenth from the governor". Myers, who is Founder & Chairman of the National Juneteenth Holiday Campaign, the National Juneteenth Observance Foundation (NJOF) and the National Juneteenth Christian Leadership Council (NJCLC), will travel to Alaska in May.

Juneteenth, a holiday observance which celebrates the freeing of the last remaining slaves in Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865, was signed into law in Alaska in 2001. The bill known as HB 100 specifies that the "governor shall issue a proclamation observing the day."

Links
More about Kim Chatman
Full news report
Original lawsuit post, palingates
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Sarah Palin's lawsuits

I've noticed that a lot of the searches that lead to palingates are about Sarah Palin, lawsuits and ethics complaints. So I put together a handy list of everything I could find.

Ethics complaints

August 2008 Cronyism in hiring
September 2008 Troopergate (Palin complains against herself)
September 2008 Releasing protected personnel file information
October 2008 Charging Alaska for children's travel
November 2008 Campaigning on Alaska State property
January 2009 Palin aides using official position to advance Palin's campaign
March 2009 Used her official position to benefit herself and her family financially - Arctic Cat advertising
Links to all the cases listed above can be found here.

Lawsuits, cases still open:

Gregory Charles Royal vs Sarah Palin ( failure to issue Juneteenth proclamation)
PsychRights vs Sarah Palin et al (forceful drugging of children in care and state institutions)
Andree McLeod vs Sarah Palin (secret e-mails)
Ben Latham vs. Sarah Palin et al (personal injury, no further details)
Richard C Traylor vs Sarah Palin et al (details not known)

As a bonus, I found a couple of old cases:

Location: Dillingham
Case Title:ST VS PALIN,SARAH
Date Filed: 06/26/1993
Criminal - Offense: CRIM NEG FAIL REG NT (fishing without a license)
Criminal - Felony/Misdemeanor: Violation
Criminal - Dispo: No Contest Plea

Location: Dillingham
Case Title:ST VS PALIN,SARAH
Date Filed: 06/28/1993
Criminal - Offense: C/F W/O PHOTO ID (carrying away fish without a photo identification on her person)
Criminal - Felony/Misdemeanor: Misdemeanor
Criminal - Dispo: Dismiss

In my search through the Alaskan court records, I found loads of traffic violations, it looks like every third person has gone through a red light at some point... Either the State Troopers are extremely overzealous or Alaskans are really laid back about driving rules and regulations!
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Busy Sarah

There are less than three weeks until the end of the legislative session. Sarah Palin will be rid of those pesky lawmakers for another year and will be able to go back to her nice, warm home in Wasilla and the lovely per diems!

Oh, she's already there? Blame it on the volcano. (Chevron tanks? Spill? Disaster? Whaaaat???)

Honestly, these lawmakers keep bothering the Governor with things like discussing the stimulus package, what are they thinking? She already said "Thanks, but no thanks"! ("I'm a fiscal conservative, I don't want to grow government.")

The Governor has better things to do, like giving interviews to People magazine, chatting (on camera) to her mates at Fox News, attending Christian events, important things!

Of course she hasn't forgotten her duties as governor, but hey, she can do that by press release. Modern technology is truly marvellous. A few clicks here and there and her latest announcement is instantly, in full glory, on her very own website!

Then there are chums to be appointed to various important positions. But that's the fun bit, she doesn't mind it at all and it gives her the chance to issue more press releases and grab some camera time.

(Mental note for all official communications: mention small government. They really like it in the Lower 48.)

Sarah has to check on the progress of her SarahPac, exchange the weekly e-mails with John Coale, it's hard work. (Not state business? Darn! Will have to do it when not on duty. On duty 24/7? Bill McAllister can't keep his mouth shut, why did he say that? Meg, help!)

Sometimes she worries, though. People keep filing "frivilous" ethics complaints and law suits and they cost a lot of money, you know? (Must start that legal fund, pronto!)

The Governor has a very busy schedule. She prays every day for those whining natives to behave themselves and seize some opportunity somewhere hundreds of miles away from their villages and leave her alone. (Why can't they be more like Todd?)

Sarah also prays for some fresh snow so the wolf slaughtering program can progress as planned.

Yes, this Legislative thingie in Juneau is a a pain in the neck, she's counting the days until it's all over!
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Sarah Palin: another day, another lawsuit

US District Court Judge Reggie B. Walton has issued an order transferring the Sarah Palin Juneteenth lawsuit, brought by America's Hot Musician judge Gregory Charles Royal, from Washington, DC to Alaska.

Royal considers this a positive development because the case, which was reviewed by the judge prior to transfer, was not dismissed on the court's own motion as frivolous.
Following the order, Royal filed a notice to the court of his intent to amend the complaint to add "one or more co-plaintiffs who are residents of Alaska", en route to seeking class action status.

The lawsuit was brought by Gregory Charles Royal, a musician who met Sarah Palin in 1991 when The Duke Ellington Orchestra toured Alaska. On that occasion, Sarah Palin told Royal that she does not "talk" or "mess with" Black men.

The lawsuit focuses on Sarah Palin's failure to comply with the Juneteenth Proclamation in 2007 and that several Alaskan citizens had been trying, unsuccessfully, to consult with the Governor regarding her race record in Alaska.

Royal maintains that "The focus of this action is to hold Governor Palin accountable and to uphold the integrity of our emancipation holiday".

Sarah Palin, accountable???

Links
Report from Mediawire
More about Gregory Charles Royal
Previous post
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The cost of Sarah Palin's ethics

Gov. Sarah Palin owes more than a half million dollars to an Anchorage law firm that has defended her against ethics complaints, and she may create a legal fund to pay the bill, she said Friday.

Legal bills have mounted fighting complaints that she called partisan, false and frivolous, starting with "the politically motivated Troopergate probe," Palin said in a written response to questions.

She said the legal bills all stem from her actions as governor.

"I must defend against these baseless ethics accusations out of my own pocket as the use of public monies to do so could itself violate state law," Palin wrote.

"On August 29, it seems the political landscape changed in Alaska. Now, it seems in order to do this job as Governor, with the political blood sport some are playing today, only the independently wealthy or those willing to spend their income on legal fees to defend their official actions in office ... can serve," Palin said in the written response to Daily News questions.

In all, Palin said, there have been 10 ethics complaints, counting Troopergate, though she did not provide a list. State ethics complaints are confidential unless a public accusation is filed or the accused person agrees in writing to make to make it public. State officials said they could not discuss any pending ethics cases.

Out of the 10 complaints, Palin said six have been dismissed, one had "concluded," and three are pending.

"Obviously we cannot afford to personally pay these bills -- and really no future governor should feel the sense of financial vulnerability at the hands of those with a political vendetta bent on personal destruction," Palin wrote. "Some have suggested a legal fund to pay these bills. We'll have to pursue that."

Sarah Palin herself said the legal bills all stem from her actions as governor. Ten ethics complaints against her as governor indicate that people believe she governs unethically, no?

"Hold me accountable."

"I'm all about transparency."

Well, dear Sarah, these soundbites turn out to be very expensive if people take you at your word...

Full report: ADN.
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Sarah Palin and the rights of children under state care

There is an ongoing lawsuit in an Alaska Superior Court seeking to stop the de facto forced medication of children under the state's care - foster kids, juvenile detainees - and children covered under state health programs with psychiatric medications. Named as defendants are the State of Alaska, Governor Sarah Palin and a host of officials with various state agencies. The suit was filed by Psych Rights, the Alaska-based mental health law project, which has vigorously fought the forced drugging of adults in the state's psychiatric hospital.

In 2006 Psych Rights succeeded in a lawsuit regarding the administering of drugs to adults in state psychiatric institutions against their will. In a historic and precedent-setting decision, the Alaska Supreme Court affirmed that the forced administration of psychotropic drugs to patients is unconstitutional. The Court made this recommendation:

"In order to make informed decisions possible, the law requires treatment facilities to give their patients certain information concerning their situation and need for treatment, including advice about: their diagnosis; proposed medications, including possible side effects and interactions with other drugs; their medical history; alternative treatments; and a statement describing their right to give or withhold consent."

In February 2008, before filing the present lawsuit, Jim Gottstein wrote to Sarah Palin on behalf of Psych Rights:

"It is a huge betrayal of trust for the State to take custody of children and youth and then subject them to such harmful, often life-ruining, drugs. They have almost always already been subjected to abuse or otherwise had very difficult lives before the State assumes custody, and then saddles them with a mental illness diagnosis and drugs them. The extent of this State inflicted child abuse is an emergency and should be corrected immediately. Children and youth are virtually always forced to take these drugs because, with rare exception, it is not their choice. Psych Rights believes the children and youth, themselves, have the legal right to not be subject to such harmful treatment at the hands of the State of Alaska. We are therefore evaluating what legal remedies might be available to them. However, instead of going down that route, it would be my great preference to be able to work together to solve this problem. It is for this reason that I am reaching out to you again on this issue."

Gottstein got a mealy-mouthed answer to this letter from an agency head, but there's no indication that Palin ever saw the letter. There was no response from her office.

In his filing, Gottstein notes that over 4,500 Alaska children and teens were being given various psych meds under the state's Medicaid program. The filing consists of 73 pages and I'm not going to go into the fine details here.

What bugs me is that Sarah Palin and all the other co-defendants didn't accept Gottstein's offer to work together to resolve the matter and chose to defend a lawsuit instead.

Taking into account Gottstein's victory in 2006, I would say this is an open and shut case. Or is it?

Choosing to defend the suit says a lot about the defendants. They must see children under state care as not having the same rights as adults, if any, and hope to be able to continue the abhorrent practice of dispensing powerful drugs to an extremely vulnerable group without any form of consent.

It remains to be seen what status these young people will be accorded under Alaskan law.

Links
Article about lawsuit here.
2006 Court ruling here.
Article about 2006 case here.
Present case filing here. (It takes a while to load, be patient if you're curious)
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