Criminal Procedure

Verdict Sealed in Fatal N.Y. Fire Case Despite Lawyers’ Objections

A jury reached a verdict yesterday in the trial of two tenants accused of illegally creating extra rooms that doomed two New York firefighters in the so-called Black Sunday blaze in 2005. They died jumping from the fourth floor when they were trapped by flames in a room without a…

Feb 12, 2009 6:57 PM CST

Kozinski ‘Blows a Gasket’ in Prosecution Thwarted by Indian Definition

A federal appeals court has overturned the assault conviction of a Montana man, saying he doesn’t qualify as an Indian under a statute giving jurisdiction to the federal courts. The 2-1 ruling (PDF) by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in United States v. Cruz could raise jurisdictional problems…

Feb 11, 2009 7:17 PM CST

Disbarred NJ Lawyer Beats the Rap in Misappropriation Case

A New Jersey lawyer who was disbarred for misappropriating mortgage settlement funds can’t be criminally convicted for the same conduct, a state appeals court ruled today. Because prosecutors didn’t charge Lawrence Coven in time, a three-judge appellate panel held, the criminal case against him concerning four mortgage refinancings was properly…

Feb 11, 2009 6:47 PM CST

Judge Reprimanded for Suing Colleagues Over Jail Overcrowding

A judge who filed a lawsuit in an effort to change the pretrial release system will receive a reprimand from the Florida Supreme Court. The action stems from a mandamus petition filed by Judge Clifford Barnes of St. Lucie County that sought to force judges to provide meaningful first appearance…

Feb 4, 2009 7:02 PM CST

Chief Judge Blasts US Attorney Over ‘Egregious Failure’ to Disclose

The chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts has issued a 42-page ruling blasting the U.S. attorney there over an alleged pattern of violations by his office of a requirement that exculpatory evidence must be disclosed to the defense in criminal cases. “The egregious failure…

Jan 27, 2009 5:46 PM CST

Supreme Court Allows Frisk of Passenger Believed to be Carrying Gun

A police officer who has a reasonable suspicion that a car passenger is armed and dangerous may conduct a pat-down search without violating the Fourth Amendment, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled. Writing for a unanimous court, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said police officers involved in lawful traffic stops need…

Jan 26, 2009 4:48 PM CST

Supreme Court Protects Ex-DA Sued by Inmate for Supervision Errors

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled prosecutors are entitled to absolute immunity from suits for mistakes in cases they supervise. The suit had targeted former Los Angeles District Attorney John Van de Kamp, the Associated Press reports. The suit by inmate Thomas Goldstein had contended Van de Kamp failed to…

Jan 26, 2009 4:28 PM CST

Ex-FBI Agent Sentenced to 40 Years in ‘82 Murder, But May Win On Appeal

A former FBI agent was sentenced today to 40 years in prison after being convicted last year of second-degree murder for telling gangsters about an agency tipster who was subsequently slain in South Florida by a hit man. However, there is a good chance that 68-year-old John Connolly Jr. will…

Jan 15, 2009 9:03 PM CST

Second Judge Refuses Request to Jail Madoff, Saying Flight Risk ‘Close to Nil’

A second judge has refused to revoke bail for accused financier Bernard Madoff. Ruling in an appeal by prosecutors, U.S. District Judge Lawrence McKenna said the possibility that Madoff will flee is as “close to nil as you can get at this point,” the New York Law Journal reports. McKenna…

Jan 15, 2009 12:33 PM CST

Supreme Court Limits Exclusionary Rule, Allows Evidence Despite Police Error

The U.S. Supreme Court has found an exception to the exclusionary rule for negligent police errors. Tom Goldstein, a Supreme Court litigator who was involved in the case, calls today’s ruling in Herring v. United States “a significant shift in the court’s jurisprudence.” Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. wrote…

Jan 14, 2009 6:23 PM CST

Justices Told Case Could Produce ‘Chaos of Constitutional Proportions’

A lawyer for the state of Vermont told the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday that a ruling for the defendant in a case on speedy trial rights could lead to “chaos of constitutional proportions.” Christina Rainville, chief deputy state’s attorney for Vermont, told the justices the case had implications that…

Jan 14, 2009 4:28 PM CST

Appeals Court Strikes Down US Civil Commitment Law for Sexually Dangerous

A federal appeals court has struck down a 2006 federal law providing for indefinite civil commitment of sexually dangerous inmates after their prison terms end. The Richmond, Va.-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Congress intruded on powers reserved for the states, report the Associated Press and the Richmond…

Jan 9, 2009 2:28 PM CST

1st Surrender, Then Contest 1977 Child-Rape Plea, Gov’t Tells Polanski

Fugitive film director Roman Polanski can’t move to have a 1977 statutory rape conviction dismissed based on claimed government misconduct until he turns himself in, a Los Angeles prosecutor contends. The issue is being argued in Los Angeles County Superior Court because lawyers for the 75-year-old resident of France have…

Jan 7, 2009 10:38 PM CST

Ruling Gives Skilling Chance to Raise Prosecutor Misconduct Claim

A federal appeals court opinion ordering a new sentence for former Enron chief executive Jeffrey Skilling gives his lawyers another chance to argue for a new trial. Yesterday’s opinion overturning Skilling’s 24-year-sentence for fraud and conspiracy said U.S. District Judge Simeon Lake III had incorrectly applied sentencing guidelines and ordered…

Jan 7, 2009 12:39 PM CST

Fla. Prosecutor’s Office Disqualified for Listening to Lawyer Phone Calls

A Florida judge has disqualified the entire Broward State Attorney’s Office from trying a murder case after learning that two prosecutors had listened to recordings of the jailed defendant’s phone calls to his attorney. Defendant Luis Martinez’s right to a fair trial was violated by the eavesdropping, Circuit Judge Susan…

Jan 6, 2009 7:59 PM CST