How the coronavirus is upending the criminal justice system

Mar 19, 2020 3:59 PM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: Mueller indictment of Russian firms tossed; ex-juvenile delinquent now a lawyer

Judge tosses indictment of Russian firms at prosecutors’ request U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich granted prosecutors’ request Monday to toss an indictment against two Russian companies accused of participating in an “information warfare” campaign to influence the 2016 presidential election. Prosecutors said the companies—Concord Catering and Concord Management and Consulting—were…

Mar 17, 2020 3:12 PM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: Lawyer threatened jail time for people with unpaid 911 bills; R. Kelly indicted on new charges

Lawyer threatened jail to people with unpaid 911 responder bills After a debt collection attorney allegedly threatened more than 800 people with imprisonment for not paying money owed to Trinity EMS in the Massachusetts, the medical emergency services provider has canceled their debt, which amounts of $1.6 million. The agreement…

Mar 13, 2020 3:36 PM CDT

Number of crimes committed by released arrestees jumped after Chicago-area bail reform, study says

An analysis of bail reform in Cook County, Illinois, underplayed the increase in crime that followed, according to a University of Utah study and a review by the Chicago Tribune.

Mar 12, 2020 3:58 PM CDT

ABC’s ‘For Life’ reminds us of a life sentence’s severity

When I see a new “legal drama” on one of the “Big Three” television networks, the cynic in me comes out in full force. There are so many aspects of practicing law that can’t translate to the screen. The practice of law is often gritty. It’s full of flawed individuals…

Mar 12, 2020 12:35 PM CDT

Tenured law professor who lied to IRS will return to teaching

A tenured bankruptcy and corporate finance law professor who lied to the Internal Revenue Service will keep his job at the University of Minnesota.

Mar 5, 2020 2:05 PM CST

Authorities say lawyer ran from police over $200 lap dance tab

Authorities say an Oregon lawyer who refused to pay for a $200 lap dance led police on a foot chase through a blackberry briar and train tunnel near the strip club.

Mar 4, 2020 11:34 AM CST

Lawyer, author and founder of program for wrongfully convicted dies at 52

Laura Caldwell, a lawyer, author and founder of a project that supported the wrongfully convicted, died Sunday after a long battle with breast cancer.

Mar 4, 2020 11:03 AM CST

District attorney faces indictment over drug possession and misconduct

A district attorney in northeastern Colorado has been indicted by a grand jury on three counts of controlled substance possession and conspiracy and one count of official misconduct.

Mar 3, 2020 9:22 AM CST

Afternoon Briefs: LGBTQ students sue for sex ed equality; judge’s law license is suspended 5 times

South Carolina LGBTQ students fight for equality in sexual education Eli Bundy, a 15-year-old sophomore at Charleston County School of the Arts in South Carolina, is the leader of the school’s Gender and Sexuality Alliance, one of three groups suing the state’s superintendent of education in an effort to repeal…

Mar 2, 2020 4:16 PM CST

2 families connected by LA riots collide in ‘Your House Will Pay’

The 1992 riots in South Los Angeles may be nearly three decades old. But in the present day, two families will find the events from that time are far from over. Lee Rawles talks to author Steph Cha in this new episode of the Modern Law Library.

Feb 26, 2020 9:31 AM CST

New podcast from ‘Making a Murderer’ lawyers sheds light on false confessions

Wrongful Conviction: False Confessions is a new podcast hosted by two of the nation’s foremost experts in the field, Steve Drizin and Laura Nirider, law professors and co-directors of Northwestern University’s Center on Wrongful Convictions. The new series was born from their experience on the Netflix documentary Making a Murderer.

Feb 19, 2020 2:22 PM CST

Op-ed by Harvey Weinstein lawyer spurs prosecutor complaint and gag order

The judge overseeing the sexual assault trial of film producer Harvey Weinstein barred the defense from talking to the press Tuesday after a member of the team wrote an op-ed asking jurors to “do what they know is right.”

Feb 19, 2020 10:38 AM CST

Netflix docuseries on former NFL player Aaron Hernandez misses opportunity to separate from the pack

Oklahoma lawyer Adam Banner dissects Killer Inside: The Mind of Aaron Hernandez. “The documentary series is definitely worth watching for those fans of the genre who are more interested in the sensational nature of high-profile cases,” he writes.

Feb 18, 2020 9:23 AM CST

Virginia is poised to broaden parole in move watched by other states

Virginia lawmakers have passed a bill that would allow parole for hundreds of inmates, the first in a series of parole-expansion bills expected to win approval since the state largely banned parole.

Feb 14, 2020 3:08 PM CST