Criminal Procedure

SG Urges High Court to Overrule Case Restricting Police Questioning

The solicitor general is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to overrule a 1986 decision that restricts police questioning of suspects who have asked for a lawyer. The Supreme Court decision, Michigan v. Jackson, generally bars police from questioning suspects who have asserted a right to legal counsel, unless a lawyer…

Apr 24, 2009 12:20 PM CDT

Judge Orders Man’s Mouth Taped Shut

There were apparently just one too many outbursts from Nicklas Frasure for a southeast Idaho judge to tolerate. So he ordered that Frasure, who has a history of mental illness, have his mouth sealed with duct tape during an evidentiary hearing Monday. The unusual order came from 6th District Judge…

Apr 22, 2009 6:32 PM CDT

Rare Jury Verdict Delay ‘Sheer Agony’ for Bob Bennett & Client Attorney

After days of deliberation, a federal jury in the Southern District of Florida returned a verdict on Thursday in a tax evasion case against Michigan attorney Alan Miller. But it wasn’t announced until the jury also reached a verdict on charges against Miller’s tax client, Indy 500 and Dancing with…

Apr 21, 2009 7:36 PM CDT

Judge Turns Down Blagojevich’s ‘Get Me Out of Here’ Show Request

A federal judge in Chicago has refused a request by the former governor of Illinois to travel to Costa Rica to appear on a reality TV show, suggesting he may not understand the reality of the federal charges against him. U.S. District Judge James Zagel turned down the request by…

Apr 21, 2009 4:58 PM CDT

Kuby May Represent Teen Somali Pirate, Due in US Court Today

The only Somali pirate who survived the hostage-taking incident involving ship captain Richard Phillips smiled as he was led into a federal building today. The teen pirate, Abdiwali Abdiqadir Muse, was expected to make a court appearance today to face likely charges of piracy and hostage-taking under two obscure federal…

Apr 21, 2009 4:26 PM CDT

Supreme Court Narrows Belton and Limits Car Searches

The U.S. Supreme Court has sided with a criminal defendant who challenged a police search of his car that turned up cocaine and a gun. Police searched Rodney Gant’s car after he was arrested on a warrant for driving on a suspended license, handcuffed and placed in a squad car.…

Apr 21, 2009 2:49 PM CDT

Supreme Court Turns Down Case of Bible-Consulting Jurors

The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to hear a death-row inmate’s claim that his constitutional rights were violated when jurors consulted a Bible during deliberations. The case, Oliver v. Quarterman, is the second turndown by the court this term that involved jurors consulting the Bible, SCOTUSblog reports. In both cases,…

Apr 20, 2009 3:56 PM CDT

Law Profs Sue West, Say ‘Sham’ Pocket Part Identified Them as Authors

Two law professors who wrote a treatise on Pennsylvania criminal law claim in a lawsuit that West Publishing falsely identified them as the authors of a poorly researched “sham” pocket part. The professors, David Rudovsky of the University of Pennsylvania and Leonard Sosnov of Widener Law School, are seeking an…

Apr 16, 2009 3:22 PM CDT

N.C. Law Firm’s Claimed Role in Serving Warrants on Witnesses Sparks Mistrial

A judge in Alamance County, N.C., has declared a mistrial, after attorneys at a local defense firm were accused of playing a role in persuading the sheriff’s office to serve warrants from several years previously on two government witnesses who were testifying in a kidnapping and attempted rape case. In…

Apr 15, 2009 10:42 PM CDT

Blagojevich’s Reality Show Dream Needs Federal Judge’s OK

Anyone who thinks Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich plans to hole up with his lawyers to plan his defense on federal corruption charges should think again. Instead the impeached governor has plans to star on an NBC reality show, I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here, the Chicago Tribune…

Apr 15, 2009 12:31 PM CDT

High Court Says Gov’t Must Pay for Clemency Counsel

In a 7-2 opinion Wednesday, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the government should pay federally appointed lawyers for working on state clemency requests for death row inmates. The underlying case involved a clemency petition by Edward Jerome Harbison, who wanted the government to pay for his petition to the…

Apr 1, 2009 3:30 PM CDT

Judge’s Ultimatum to Prosecutors: Name Crime Victims, or Cases Will Be Dismissed

A Minnesota judge fed up with cases coming to her without names of crime victims has ordered prosecutors to produce fully identified. Initials won’t do. Excluded from her ruling are cases involving juveniles or victims of sex crimes. However, according to the St. Paul Pioneer Press, Judge Margaret Marrinan, of…

Mar 25, 2009 5:30 PM CDT

Supreme Court Weighs Collateral Estoppel and an Enron Executive’s Retrial

The U.S. Supreme Court considered yesterday whether former Enron executive F. Scott Yeager can avoid a retrial on some counts that produced a jury deadlock after his acquittal on other related charges. Lawyer Samuel Buffone argued that Yeager’s acquittal on charges of wire and securities fraud resolved the common elements…

Mar 24, 2009 4:18 PM CDT

Supreme Court Rejects ‘Nothing to Lose’ Standard for Ineffective Assistance Claim

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled against an inmate convicted of murder who claims his lawyer provided ineffective assistance of counsel by advising him to withdraw an insanity plea. The opinion (PDF) by Justice Clarence Thomas said that the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had improperly determined that the…

Mar 24, 2009 3:09 PM CDT

Appeals Court Denies Bail for Madoff, Cites Chance of Hidden Assets

Acting just one day after oral arguments, a federal appeals court has denied bail for Bernard Madoff, who is awaiting sentencing for operating a $65 billion Ponzi scheme. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the trial judge’s decision to keep Madoff, 70, in jail on the ground that…

Mar 20, 2009 4:04 PM CDT