11th Circuit Court

Discipline Over Student’s Facebook Comments Sparks Lawsuit

A student who was suspended for three days by her former high school for criticizing an advanced-placement English teacher on her Facebook page is now suing her principal with the help of the ACLU. Katherine Evans, 18, of Pembroke Pines, Fla., is now a college student. By filing a federal…

Dec 9, 2008 11:09 PM CST

Fla. Real Estate Lawyer Convicted Over Closing Documents

A Florida attorney who worked as a title agent has been convicted by a federal jury in Fort Lauderdale of preparing real estate closing documents that helped another man defraud lenders. Howard Gaines, 57, was convicted last week of two counts of mail fraud and one count of conspiracy to…

Dec 8, 2008 11:48 PM CST

Spy vs. Spy

In a South American caper, one agent turns in another and claims $5 million bounty

Dec 2, 2008 3:10 AM CST

Florida Lawyer for Accused Bigamist Marries Him, Then Urges Prosecution

When divorce attorney Martha-Irene Weed settled a matrimonial case for George Dumstorf Jr.in 2000, she had to contend with seemingly bizarre allegations of bigamy on the part of his soon-to-be ex-wife. Then, after the representation concluded, the Florida lawyer married Dumstorf herself, and now she is the one making them,…

Nov 18, 2008 11:48 PM CST

Possible Cravath Legal Bill in Alabama Discrimination Case: $10 Million

Over the past 25 years, Cravath, Swaine & Moore has been representing plaintiffs in an employment discrimination case against government agencies in Jefferson County, Ala. During that time, the Jefferson County Personnel Board has made one payment to the white-shoe New York-based law firm. It was for $141,042, as reimbursement…

Nov 17, 2008 9:43 PM CST

UBS Exec Charged in Federal Tax Fraud Conspiracy Case

A senior private banking executive with UBS AG has been indicted in a federal tax fraud conspiracy case after months of investigation of how some U.S. residents allegedly dodged their taxes by hiding some $20 billion in assets in secret accounts. However, a lawyer for Raoul Weil says the case…

Nov 12, 2008 9:28 PM CST

Federal Judge Overturns Jury Conviction of Georgia Magistrate Judge

A federal judge has overturned a jury verdict against a former part-time magistrate judge in Clinch County, Ga., finding that there wasn’t enough evidence to convict her of perjury and making false statements. “U.S. District Judge Hugh Lawson ordered an acquittal of Linda C. Peterson on charges that she lied…

Nov 5, 2008 5:06 PM CST

Court Stays Troy Davis’ Execution in ‘Extraordinarily Rare’ Reprieve

A death row inmate who failed to win cert for his constitutional claim of actual innocence has received a stay of execution from the Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Troy Anthony Davis claims he is actually innocent and, as a result, the Eighth Amendment bars his execution. On…

Oct 27, 2008 2:23 PM CDT

Judge Rules Trustee Lacks Authority to Sue Countrywide for Abuses

A federal bankruptcy judge in Miami has tossed a suit by the U.S. Trustee against Countrywide, ruling the agency has no authority to sanction companies for alleged bad faith conduct. Judge A. Jay Cristol said the trustee had “noble intentions” but the authority to seek punishment rests with federal prosecutors,…

Oct 6, 2008 1:55 PM CDT

Celebrity Attorney & Client Charged in Federal Tax Evasion Case

Race car driver Helio Castroneves, who has won both the Indianapolis 500 and the Dancing With The Stars television competition, has been federally indicted in Miami along with his attorney in a tax evasion and fraud case. Castroneves, 33, his Michigan lawyer Alan Miller, 71, and his sister and business…

Oct 2, 2008 9:20 PM CDT

Judge Rules for Pro Se Plaintiff in Twin-Taser Civil Rights Suit

Reaching a different conclusion than police internal investigators, a federal magistrate judge has ruled that two Tukwila, Wash., officers used excessive force when they simultaneously Tasered a suspect. Siding with pro se plaintiff Terrance Releford, Judge Mary Alice Theiler found that his civil rights were violated in the June 2006…

Sep 19, 2008 5:16 PM CDT

11th Circuit Tosses Taser Case; YouTube Video of Incident Lets Viewers Judge

A video showing a motorist who was jolted three times with a Taser as he sat on the ground crying has ended up on YouTube (Video) after a lawsuit over the incident was tossed by a federal appeals court. The 2-1 Sept. 9 unpublished decision (PDF) by the Atlanta-based 11th…

Sep 18, 2008 1:55 PM CDT

Iraq Bombs Made From US Exports, Feds Say; 12 Indicted in Miami

As U.S. soldiers are fighting in Iraq, one of the biggest risks they face is the so-called IEDs—improvised explosive devices—that serve as bombs there. And many of the materials used to make them may have come from their own country, reports the Miami Herald. Federal authorities announced today that more…

Sep 17, 2008 7:58 PM CDT

South Florida Developers Winning Cases Brought by Unhappy Condo Buyers

Several buyers of new condos in South Florida who are dissatisfied with their properties are failing to get courts to allow them to cancel the deals. Many condo investors in the state had intended to buy condominium units and flip them for a quick profit, an unlikely prospect now that…

Sep 9, 2008 2:41 PM CDT

Fed’l Judge Gives Deadbeat Dad a 1-Year Jail Sentence

Although a prosecutor sought probation, so that Danny Collins could try to work off his hefty child support debt, a federal judge in Florida had different ideas. In an unusual case, U.S. District Judge Steven Merryday gave the deadbeat dad a one-year jail sentence on Tuesday, reports the St. Petersburg…

Sep 4, 2008 6:58 PM CDT