It was a GOOD week for…
HOMECOMINGS, after Emory Law student Ilan Grapel was set free following a near five-month imprisonment in Egypt. The 27-year-old rising 3L at the Atlanta law school was arrested in early June during a legal aid internship on allegations of being an Israeli spy — an accusation that Grapel, his mother and law school friends fervently denied. He is a dual Israeli and American citizen, and did serve in the Israeli army before being wounded in combat in 2006.
In exchange for his freedom, Israel freed 25 Egyptian prisoners, most of whom are smugglers.
“We are thankful to the U.S. Department of State, as well as to the many attorneys and advisors, government officials and University staff who worked tirelessly to help secure his release,” said Emory University President James Wagner, in a press release.
Grapel enjoyed a tearful homecoming with his family in New York and plans to return to Emory’s campus next semester to wrap up law school.
It was a BAD week for…
Anonymity, after a Michigan court ruled that Thomas M. Cooley Law School could publicly identify the name of a scam blogger. The former student, who uses the screen name Rockstar05, is now at a different law school.
Public advocacy groups worry about the bigger picture as it relates to free speech and privacy in the state: the judge’s ruling could set a precedent that grants large entities and companies the power to expose naysayers, potentially scaring off future anonymous tipsters from voicing their views.
The Lansing, Mich.-based school filed a lawsuit this summer against Rockstar05 and three other anonymous bloggers who allegedly defamed the school on several websites this year. Cooley stands by its decision to defend itself, particularly ticked off about one of Rockstar05’s posts that tagged the school as “criminals” who committed “fraud.”
Rockstar05 never thought his blog would be the target of a lawsuit or that anything written in it would be alleged as defamatory, he noted on his website.
“The blog was to serve a strong ‘Buyer Beware’ message to students considering Cooley as an option for law school,” Rockstar05 wrote on his site Oct. 18. “My website was confined to numerous links for the factual material and I added some of my personal experiences, opinions, and a fair amount of biting commentary.”
Cooley is one of several law schools to grace headlines in recent months for allegedly fudging post-graduate employment data.
