Government

As Inmate Seeks to Suppress Wired Lawyer’s Evidence, a New Issue: Did Feds Bug Lawyer Room at Jail?

Motions to suppress are commonplace, but the evidence being debated in a federal district court hearing in Omaha, Neb., this week is anything but. At issue is whether attorney Terry Haddock was acting as a lawyer for inmate Shannon Williams when Haddock carried a government-wired cellphone into the Douglas County…

Dec 16, 2010 6:24 PM CST

More Bad News for Ex-Mayor & Ex-Lawyer Kwame Kilpatrick of Detroit: He’s Now a RICO Defendant

In the latest blow to a once-powerful political figure, former Detroit mayor and former lawyer Kwame Kilpatrick, who is already serving time for probation violation in an unrelated obstruction case, is now facing new prosecution. He has now been charged, along with four other defendants including his father and two…

Dec 16, 2010 1:04 AM CST

DOJ Sues School District for Allegedly Refusing to Accommodate Teacher’s Pilgrimage to Mecca

By refusing to consider a request by a Muslim school teacher for nearly three weeks of unpaid leave that would allow her to take a pilgrimage to Mecca, a suburban Chicago school district violated her civil rights, the U.S. Department of Justice contends. In a lawsuit filed in federal court…

Dec 15, 2010 2:00 AM CST

Judge Strikes Down Part of Health Care Law

A federal judge in Virginia has struck down the insurance mandate in the new health care law. The ruling (PDF) by U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson is the first to strike down any part of the law, CNN reports. The government has won two other rulings on the merits in…

Dec 13, 2010 5:25 PM CST

Law License of Ex-Gov and Ex-AG of NC Is Suspended After Criminal Conviction

A former governor and attorney general of North Carolina who also, until earlier this year, was practicing at McGuireWoods, has had his law license suspended while attorney disciplinary proceedings are ongoing. The action against Mike Easley’s law license was taken earlier this week after he made an Alford plea last…

Dec 11, 2010 3:11 AM CST

1st Black Woman Headed to Ohio Supreme Court, Which Will Have 4-3 Female Majority

Born to a teenage single mother in Ohio who worked two jobs to provide for the family, Yvette McGee Brown has soared far above what might have been predicted for her based on where she started in life. McGee Brown earned her law degree at Ohio State University in 1985…

Dec 10, 2010 9:44 PM CST

As Jim Morrison Wins Pardon, ACLU Says Dead Rock Stars Shouldn’t Dominate Clemency Board Agenda

Backed by Florida’s outgoing governor, former Doors front man Jim Morrison won a posthumous pardon today of his indecent exposure and profanity conviction resulting from a raucous 1969 rock concert in Miami. However, the action today by the state’s clemency board wasn’t music to the ears of everyone attending the…

Dec 9, 2010 9:57 PM CST

Lawyer Accused of Kicking in Door, Battery of Boyfriend and Officer, Plus Carrying Knife in Bra

An Indianapolis attorney is facing three felony charges after allegedly taking the law into her own hands when she suspected her boyfriend might be with another woman. Police said Olubunmi Okanlami kicked in the front door of her unidentified boyfriend’s home as he was sleeping inside and went on the…

Dec 9, 2010 9:21 PM CST

Michael Vick Judge, Mellowed Since His Prosecutor Days, Is Happy for QB’s Success

The judge who sentenced NFL superstar Michael Vick to 23 months in prison is apparently a believer in rehabilitation—and a football fan. U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson tells the Washington Post that Vick is “having a terrific season” as a quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles. “He’s an example of how…

Dec 9, 2010 3:42 PM CST

Legal Aid Lawyers Hit N.Y. Study that Denies Aid to Control Group of Nearly Homeless

Legal aid lawyers are criticizing a New York study that denies aid to a control group of people seeking help from a program to prevent homelessness. The study monitors 400 households in danger of eviction, the New York Times reports. Half obtained aid from the city’s Homebase program of job…

Dec 9, 2010 1:16 PM CST

Cleveland Prosecutor, Cops Sued Over Release of Suspect Later Accused of 11 Murders

A wrongful death suit targets the city of Cleveland, several police officers and an assistant prosecutor for the release of a suspect later accused of killing 11 people. The suit was filed on behalf of five of the victims found in the home of sex offender Anthony Sowell, according to…

Dec 9, 2010 12:33 PM CST

1 Way or Another, Homeless Headed to Jail, Says Fla. Mayor; Public Defender Vows $50/Hour Fight

A new homeless shelter expected to open in a month on Florida’s west coast will arguably offer those down on their luck something of a Hobson’s Choice. If they are found sleeping on the sidewalk, they can be arrested and locked up in a cell. Or they can opt to…

Dec 8, 2010 7:54 PM CST

Woman, 80, Vows to Fight $100 Ticket for Tossing Newspaper Into ‘Litter’ Trash Can

An 80-year-old woman living on Social Security vows to fight the $100 ticket she says she got for tossing a newspaper into the public trash can outside her New York City apartment on Sunday. It appears that Delia Gluckin was cited by what the New York Post calls an overzealous…

Dec 8, 2010 5:47 PM CST

US Faces Obstacles to Prosecution of WikiLeaks Founder, Now in UK Custody

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange turned himself in to British police on Tuesday as U.S. officials confirmed a criminal investigation into his website’s release of documents. Assange, who is an Australian citizen, plans to fight extradition to Sweden, where he stands accused of sexual assault, according to the Washington Post and…

Dec 7, 2010 12:37 PM CST

Report Says Ex-Maricopa Co. Attorney and Aide Should Be Disbarred, Alleges Conspiracy Against Judge

An out-of-state lawyer brought in by the Arizona Supreme Court to investigate a controversial former Maricopa County attorney has recommended that Andrew Thomas be disbarred. The investigator, attorney John Gleason of Colorado, contends, among other accusations, that Thomas and former deputy county attorney Lisa Aubuchon “conspired with each other and…

Dec 6, 2010 9:42 PM CST