Massachusetts

Flamboyant criminal defense lawyer calls ethics case ‘a badge of honor’

A flamboyant Massachusetts criminal defense lawyer known for his volcanic personality and the one-month contempt term he served last year due to his in-court eruptions is now facing a legal ethics case. Barry P. Wilson says he is not concerned about the Board of Bar Overseers matter, which could result…

Jun 25, 2013 1:35 PM CDT

Two men wrongly identified as possible suspects in Boston Marathon bombing sue newspaper

Two man who say they were wrongly identified as possible suspects in an article on the Boston Marathon bombing have sued the newspaper that published it for libel. The suit, filed Wednesday in Suffolk County, Mass., Superior Court, names the New York Post, five individual reporters and an unidentified headline…

Jun 7, 2013 5:45 PM CDT

Man being questioned about Boston Marathon bombings is shot to death by FBI agent

A man being questioned by authorities in connection with the Boston Marathon bombings was shot and killed in Orlando, Fla., on Wednesday. Ibragim Todashev, 27, a Chechen who had previously lived in Boston before moving to Orlando, was shot to death by an FBI agent after, the FBI said, “[a]…

May 22, 2013 4:20 PM CDT

College pals of Boston Marathon suspect face criminal charges over claimed post-bombing activities

Three college students who are friends of the surviving Boston Marathon bombing suspect have been arrested and face federal criminal charges concerning their activities after explosive devices near the finish line killed three and injured approximately 250 people on April 15, authorities say. The Boston police department confirmed the arrest…

May 1, 2013 4:55 PM CDT

Unabomber lawyer Judy Clarke is appointed to represent Boston Marathon bombing suspect

At the request of Boston’s federal public defender, a judge has appointed Judy Clarke, a top death-penalty defense lawyer, to represent accused Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, Bloomberg reports. Prosecutors haven’t said whether they will seek the death penalty in Tsarnaev’s case, but “in light of the circumstances in…

Apr 30, 2013 8:29 PM CDT

Top federal defender is representing accused Boston Marathon bomber

Being unable to afford an attorney, ironically, has helped the surviving suspect in last week’s Boston Marathon bombings get one of the country’s top federal defenders assigned to his case. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19, will be represented by Miriam Conrad, who is in charge of the Federal Public Defender Office in…

Apr 24, 2013 10:53 PM CDT

Law grad G-man helped FBI identify suspects in Boston Marathon bombing

A law graduate who heads the Boston office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation is among law enforcement officials being hailed as heroes after a suspect in last week’s Boston Marathon bombings was captured alive Friday. FBI special agent Richard DesLauriers, 53, is good with people, methodical and likes to…

Apr 22, 2013 2:37 PM CDT

FBI releases photos of two suspects sought for questioning in Boston Marathon bombing

The FBI on Thursday released photos and video footage of two suspects sought for questioning in the fatal explosions that occurred Monday near the finish line of the Boston Marathon. The FBI is seeking the public’s help in identifying the two unknown men, who appear to be “associated.” However, officials…

Apr 18, 2013 9:47 PM CDT

Will the Boston Marathon bombings qualify as terrorism for insurance purposes?

President Barack Obama called the Boston Marathon bombings on Monday that killed three people and injured over 170 others “an act of terror.” But unless and until the secretary of the treasury, in conjunction with the secretary of state and the U.S. attorney general, certify that they agree, coverage won’t…

Apr 18, 2013 4:40 PM CDT

At least 3 dead, more than 100 injured after explosions at Boston Marathon finish line

Updated: At least three people died Monday and dozens more were injured as two explosions went off, beginning around 3 p.m. eastern time, near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, before the remainder of the race was called off. The Boston Globe reported that at least 144 people were…

Apr 15, 2013 9:32 PM CDT

Connecting the digital dots to catch the ‘Craigslist Killer’

When police responded to the April 14, 2009 murder of a young woman in an upscale Boston hotel, they had little to go on. Besides the victim, who was found face down in the doorway of her room, her hands bound with plastic ties, with three 9-mm bullet wounds to…

Apr 8, 2013 1:40 PM CDT

West Coast litigation boutique Markun Zusman opens office in Boston

An 18-attorney West Coast litigation boutique has opened an office in a Boston suburb. New name partner David Freniere, who focuses his practice on securities matters, will head the new Wellesley office of Markun Zusman Freniere & Compton, the Boston Business Journal reports. One other lawyer currently works there, and…

Apr 2, 2013 5:20 PM CDT

Firm’s job contract doesn’t require arbitration of ex-associate’s suit, appeals court says

A former associate has won a round in a disability discrimination case she filed two years ago against Bingham McCutchen. The law firm had sought to arbitrate a California complaint by Hartwell Harris that the firm didn’t do enough to accommodate her unusual sleep disorder, But a trial-level judge ruled…

Apr 1, 2013 9:24 PM CDT

Court project testing social-media reporting shuts down as funds evaporate

The first phase of a project to test reporting via social media in a Massachusetts courtroom has ended because of a lack of funding. The project, called OpenCourt, provided live streaming of court proceedings and WiFi access for reporters to blog and tweet from a designated part of the courtroom…

Mar 21, 2013 4:40 PM CDT

Lawyer bills over 3,500 hours a year, loses license for 4 years it will take to make restitution

A sole practitioner who claimed to have worked well over 3,500 hours annually while representing parents and children in juvenile court and guardianship matters during two fiscal years between 2007 and 2009 has lost his law license for four years. That is the amount of time it will take Derek…

Mar 4, 2013 10:24 PM CST