Section 1983

A New York federal judge has ruled that a dentist acquitted of fraudulently billing Medicaid for services he never performed will not be able to pursue a defamation claim against prosecutors who touted his indictment for a "million dollar Medicaid theft" in a press release.

Brooklyn dentist Leonard Morse was indicted in 2006 for larceny and ultimately acquitted the following year. He then sued the New York Attorney General's Office for defamation and other civil rights violations.

The First Amendment Center reports that a federal trial court in Virginia refused to grant summary judgment for a county school board who barred a reporter from school property. Earl F.

Reuters reports that a Columbia University graduate student filed a lawsuit against New York City and Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly on Thursday, arguing that his First and Fourth Amendment rights were violated when he was arrested for photographing a subway station.