7th Circuit Court

Dad Can Walk Bride Down Aisle, Federal Judge Rules, But Can’t Talk to Groom’s Father

A defendant on home confinement while awaiting trial in a video gambling case can walk his daughter down the aisle during her August wedding, a federal judge in Chicago has decided. But Casey Szaflarski can’t talk to the father of the groom, ruled U.S. District Judge Ronald Guzman. The limitation…

May 4, 2010 7:30 PM CDT

Judge Nixes Former Ill. Gov’s Motion to Subpoena President Obama

Saying that a defense motion fell “very short” of establishing a need to subpoena the president of the United States to testify in the upcoming political corruption trial of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, a federal judge in Chicago has nixed a defense motion to require Obama’s testimony. Although the…

Apr 30, 2010 7:35 PM CDT

Meet Judge Diane Wood, a ‘Philosophical Outlier’ on the 7th Circuit

The left-leaning Judge Diane Wood plays the role of “philosophical outlier” on the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, but she has maintained a friendly relationship off the bench with two of the court’s star conservatives, according to a newspaper profile of the potential U.S. Supreme Court nominee. Wood…

Apr 22, 2010 12:57 PM CDT

Another 7th Circuit Judge Is on Obama’s Short List

Another judge from the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is on the so-called short list of potential nominees to replace retiring Justice John Paul Stevens. She’s Ann Claire Williams, an African-American who was nominated to the federal trial bench by President Reagan and elevated to the 7th Circuit…

Apr 22, 2010 11:38 AM CDT

Must Criminal Contempt Occur in Court? 7th Cir. Mulls Judge’s Reaction to E-Mail Flood

As lawyers today debated before the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals whether a federal district judge should have sentenced an informercial pitchman to 30 days for flooding his in-box with e-mail, the three-judge panel honed in on whether criminal contempt can occur outside the physical boundaries of a courtroom.…

Apr 8, 2010 9:35 PM CDT

Despite Court-Ordered $110/Hour Limit, Ex-Ill. Gov’s Legal Defense Bill is Likely to Top $3M

As former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich awaits trial this summer in a federal corruption case, a $2.8 million campaign fund is covering his legal bill. But it’s a virtual certainty that it will be depleted before trial, observers tell the Chicago Sun-Times, even though U.S. District Judge James Zagel, who…

Apr 5, 2010 8:12 PM CDT

7th Circuit Rules Sidley’s Interview Notes in School Probe Are Privileged

Sidley Austin won’t have to turn over its notes and memos from its investigation of alleged sexual abuse at a suburban Chicago school district. The Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found the documents were protected by the attorney-client privilege and the work product doctrine, the National Law Journal…

Apr 2, 2010 3:34 PM CDT

Federal Judge Strikes State-Law Ban on Hormone Treatment for Transgendered Inmates

Setting the stage for an appellate court showdown, a federal judge in Wisconsin has struck down as unconstitutional a state law that reportedly is the only one in the nation banning prison inmates who were born biologically male but identify as female from receiving hormone therapy. The law violates the…

Apr 1, 2010 11:59 PM CDT

Prosecutor: Third Trial for Hal Turner, the Blogger Accused of Judge Threats, Is Highly Likely

For a second time, jurors were unable to reach a verdict in the trial of a blogger accused of threatening three federal appeals judges for their ruling in a gun rights case. Blogger Harold Turner, aka Hal, was charged after he wrote that Judges Richard Posner, William Bauer and Frank…

Mar 11, 2010 1:58 PM CST

Judge OK’s Torture Suit Against Rumsfeld

A federal judge from the Northern District of Illinois has allowed a suit filed by two former U.S. workers for an Iraq-owned security firm against former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to proceed. Two of the men’s three counts were dismissed, the Wall Street Journal Law Blog reported. But Donald Vance…

Mar 8, 2010 6:49 PM CST

Dad Argues Taking Daughter to Church Shouldn’t Be Considered Contempt

An expected court argument today may ratchet up the stakes in an unusual case in which a father has been forbidden to take his daughter to church. In a move apparently intended to test the resolve of a judge who ordered him not to expose his 3-year-old daughter to Christianity,…

Mar 4, 2010 12:08 AM CST

7th Circuit Judges Uneasy Testifying in ‘Hate Blogger’ Death Threats Case

In an unusual turn of events, three U.S. Circuit judges from Chicago took to the witness stand in Brooklyn, N.Y., uneasy as they testified in the trial of an Internet broadcaster who is accused of making death threats against them. First up on the stand for the prosecution of so-called…

Mar 3, 2010 11:47 AM CST

7th Cir Stays Infomercial Pitchman’s Jail Term for Crashing Judge’s Computer

A federal appeals court has stayed an infomercial pitchman’s 30-day jail term for urging fans to send e-mails that crashed a judge’s computer. The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals gave no reason for the stay, and will hear arguments on Kevin Trudeau’s case on Tuesday, reports the Chicago Tribune.…

Feb 18, 2010 11:54 PM CST

Infomercial Pitchman Gets 30 Days for Crashing Federal Judge’s Computer

Updated: During a criminal contempt hearing in Chicago last week, U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman said he was inclined to sentence infomercial pitchman Kevin Trudeau to a jail term for unleashing a flood of fan e-mail that crashed the jurist’s computer. And today, calling the deluge of some 300 e-mails…

Feb 17, 2010 9:34 PM CST

Radio Host in Contempt Case Urges Fans to E-Mail Court; Federal Judge Is Not Pleased

Updated: Facing a new ruling from U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman, after a federal appeals court instructed him to reconsider an earlier $37.6 million contempt sanction, infomercial pitchman Kevin Trudeau apparently thought the judge might take note of praise from his fans for his books. And Gettleman clearly did. Finding…

Feb 12, 2010 1:15 AM CST