7th Circuit Court

Case Closed Against WSJ Reporter Arrested in Courthouse Interview With Blago Lawyer

A federal court in Chicago has dismissed a misdemeanor case against a Wall Street Journal reporter who was arrested in July while trying to conduct a courthouse lobby interview of a defense lawyer during the high-profile corruption trial of former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich. Douglas Belkin declined to comment, but…

Sep 15, 2010 9:34 PM CDT

7th Circuit Blasts Sentencing Judge for Comments on Hitler’s Dog, Illegal Aliens

A federal appeals court has ordered a new sentencing hearing in a drug case because of the trial judge’s “extraneous and inflammatory comments,” including a remark about Hitler’s dog. The opinion by the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals blasted U.S. District Judge Rudolph Randa of Wisconsin for his…

Sep 14, 2010 11:48 AM CDT

Adult Content Producers File Mass Tort Against Alleged Downloaders

Another lawyer has waded into the mass tort fray over alleged illegal downloading of copyrighted material. Attorney John Steele of Chicago is representing three adult content producers in separate federal court claims against hundreds of unidentified “John Doe” individuals accused of using BitTorrent to pirate material created by the plaintiffs,…

Sep 7, 2010 5:22 PM CDT

Holdout Juror in Blagojevich Case Says Evidence Showed ‘Shades of Gray’

JoAnn Chiakulas was not favorably impressed with impeached ex-Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich, finding him “narcissistic” and “rambling.” But the 67-year-old grandmother nonetheless stood her ground during 14 days of jury deliberation in his political corruption trial, refusing, reportedly as the sole holdout, to find him guilty on 23 of the…

Aug 27, 2010 5:49 PM CDT

Jury Verdict in Blagojevich Political Corruption Case: Guilty Only of Lying to FBI

After two weeks of deliberation, a federal jury in Chicago has reached a verdict in the political corruption trial against impeached former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich. In a result that surely must be a disappointment to prosecutors, he has been found guilty only of one count—lying to the FBI, according…

Aug 17, 2010 9:21 PM CDT

Pro Se Inmate Scores 7th Circuit Win, Says His Own Lawyer Was Targeted by the Feds, Too

A pro se prison inmate has notched a federal appeals court victory in a drug and weapons case, winning a ruling from the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that a trial judge erred by not looking more carefully at a claimed conflict of interest on the part of…

Aug 17, 2010 5:47 PM CDT

Blogger Convicted in Judicial Death Wish; Mom Sees 1st Amendment Implications

This time, jurors deliberated only two hours before convicting a right-wing blogger for an Internet tirade in which he said Judge Richard Posner and two other federal appeals judges “deserved to be killed” and “must die.” It was the third trial for blogger and Internet radio host Harold Turner. Two…

Aug 16, 2010 10:30 AM CDT

Posner Admirers Crowd Trial Over Blogger’s Online Rant Against 7th Circuit Panel

Three well-known federal appeals judges testified against a white supremacist blogger on Wednesday in his third trial for a tirade in which he said the jurists “deserveto be killed” and “must die.” Judges Richard Posner, William Bauer and Frank Easterbrook of the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals testified…

Aug 12, 2010 12:02 PM CDT

In 11th Day of Deliberation, Is Jury Nearing a Verdict in the Blago Case?

In the 11th day of deliberation over the guilt or innocence of the impeached former governor of Illinois in a political corruption case, a federal jury in Chicago, it appears, might be near a verdict on some of the 24 counts. Defendant Rod Blagojevich returned to court late in the…

Aug 11, 2010 9:09 PM CDT

7th Circuit Allows Fix of In-House Lawyer’s $1.67B Mistake

A former in-house lawyer who tried to make pension plan language more readable made a costly mistake that could have cost Verizon $1.67 billion. But thanks to a federal appeals court ruling Tuesday, Verizon is off the hook, Reuters reports. The Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that…

Aug 11, 2010 12:35 PM CDT

Ex-Kaye Scholer Partner Indicted in Bankruptcy Fraud Case

A former partner of Kaye Scholer has been indicted for bankruptcy fraud for not disclosing his involvement with a major creditor before he left the law firm in 2005. Stephen Garcia, now 48, allegedly failed to disclose, as required, his considerable involvement with New York City-based Albert Fried & Co.,…

Aug 5, 2010 6:36 PM CDT

Lawyer Accused of Robbing Bank to Pay Utility Bills, Other Living Expenses

For a decade or so, beginning in the late 1990s, attorney Peter Elliott allegedly siphoned some $2.5 million out of his client trust account to pay personal expenses. The Wisconsin lawyer pleaded guilty to one count of federal bank fraud, and is scheduled to be sentenced later this month. But…

Aug 4, 2010 6:25 PM CDT

7th Circuit Cites ‘Unreasonable Fury’ of Chief District Judge as Reason for His Mid-Trial Removal

Putting an end to speculation about why a chief federal district judge was suddenly removed from an ongoing criminal trial in Chicago, the federal appeals court that axed him earlier this week explained today in a written opinion that it acted because of the jurist’s “unreasonable fury” against prosecutors. Responding…

Jul 30, 2010 7:30 PM CDT

7th Circuit Removes Chief District Judge Mid-Trial After Evidence Dispute with US Attorney

Updated: Ruling on an interlocutory appeal by U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, a federal appeals court in Chicago not only agreed with the prosecutor that the chief district court judge had erred by excluding fingerprint evidence in a drug case but removed the jurist from the ongoing trial. “The case shall…

Jul 29, 2010 2:43 AM CDT

Blago Judge & Defense Lawyer Clash Over Closing; I’ll Go to Jail, Attorney Adam Says

A federal judge overseeing the political corruption trial of the former governor of Illinois sent the jury home early today, after he and a defense lawyer clashed over what can be said at the upcoming closing argument. After attorney Sam Adam Jr. complained that he should be allowed to mention…

Jul 26, 2010 11:46 PM CDT