Public Defenders

Judge orders release of Illinois inmate in ‘shaken baby’ death

A federal judge has ordered the release of a Chicago-area woman who has spent nearly a decade in prison for the shaken-baby death of a 3½-month-old infant in her care. Jennifer Del Prete, 43, will be released after posting bond while the courts address her claim of innocence, Chicago U.S.…

Apr 23, 2014 10:05 PM CDT

Murder defendant seeks to have ‘murder’ neck tattoo removed before trial

A Kansas man awaiting trial next week on a first-degree murder charge would rather the jury not see the giant mirror-image “MURDER” tattoo he is sporting around his neck. Jeffrey Wade Chapman, who is charged with the 2011 murder of a man whose body was found by hunters, contends in…

Apr 23, 2014 8:45 PM CDT

Kidnap crew meant to abduct prosecutor, but went to wrong address and got her dad, indictment says

The father of a North Carolina prosecutor abducted from his home earlier this month was kidnapped by mistake, says a federal indictment filed Tuesday. The defendants intended to kidnap the prosecutor who earlier put the alleged ringleader of the abduction plot in prison for life, but got her father instead…

Apr 23, 2014 2:45 PM CDT

Lawyer gets 10 years in double-billing case

A Texas lawyer accused of double-billing Bexar County for indigent defense work and forging judges’ signatures on payment vouchers has been sentenced to 10 years after pleading guilty in March to forgery and securing execution of a document by deception. Hilda Valadez, 52, who was once the most prolific court-appointed…

Apr 22, 2014 12:40 PM CDT

Thousands of lawyers protest ‘unnecessary and crippling’ UK legal aid cuts, boycott court hearings

Up to 1,000 lawyers or more protested outside Parliament in London on Friday over what one bar association called “unnecessary and crippling” legal aid cuts, as thousands more boycotted crown court hearings in major cities throughout the United Kingdom. At issue is a 215 million-pound cut to the country’s annual…

Mar 7, 2014 6:40 PM CST

Judge OKs injury suit by lawyer decked in court by death-row client

A Pennsylvania criminal defense lawyer who says he is still trying to recuperate from being struck in the face by a handcuffed death-row client and knocked to the courtroom floor last May has gotten a green light to proceed with his personal injury suit against Blair County, its prison board…

Feb 27, 2014 5:30 PM CST

PD says he fears arrest before triple murder case concludes

The chief public defender in Danbury, Conn., told a judge Tuesday that he fears being arrested before he can conclude his defense of convicted triple murderer Richard Roszkowski. Public defender Michael Courtney asked a judge to excuse him from continuing to represent Roszkowski, who was convicted in 2009 of shooting…

Feb 20, 2014 3:49 PM CST

Missouri public defenders seek $25M in increased funding, citing ABA study

The state public defender’s office in Missouri is seeking about $25 million in new funds over the next four years, citing the findings in a new report by the ABA’s Standing Committee on Legal Aid and Indigent Defendants. The study (PDF) found big gaps between the actual time the PDs…

Feb 20, 2014 11:45 AM CST

Wanted: Skilled lawyer to defend high-profile client in capital case on rush basis

The removal of a Pennsylvania criminal defense lawyer from a capital murder case, after she and her client were charged with attempting to intimidate witnesses, has created a big problem for Luzerne County’s court administrator. Finding a new lawyer to replace Shelley Centini, who was being paid $85 an hour…

Feb 19, 2014 6:50 PM CST

Charged with perjury along with client, lawyer is taken off murder case over defendant’s objection

A Pennsylvania lawyer can no longer represent the defendant in a capital murder case because both she and her client have been charged with trying to obstruct the prosecution. Although defendant Hugo Selenski still wanted court-appointed criminal defense attorney Shelley Centini to represent him in the Luzerne County case and…

Feb 11, 2014 5:54 PM CST

Defendant wins murder trial delay after notes from his ex-lawyer wound up in prosecution file

A murder defendant successfully sought a trial delay after pointing out in a handwritten petition to a North Carolina court that notes from a lawyer who had formerly represented him wound up in a prosecution file. Eric Cornell Wilson said in the filing that a different lawyer who subsequently represented…

Jan 31, 2014 6:10 PM CST

Probe finds no evidence lawyer coached condemned inmate to fake suffocation during execution

An investigation has not found any wrongdoing by a criminal defense lawyer claimed to have coached his now-executed client to fake symptoms of suffering as he was put to death. Ohio Public Defender Tim Young told colleagues of Rob Lowe in an internal memo that a probe found “no wrongdoing”…

Jan 27, 2014 9:35 PM CST

Accused of fondling clients, retired PD is disbarred by consent

A former public defender who was accused of fondling three clients has been disbarred by consent. Illinois lawyer Lonnie Lutz was disbarred by the Illinois Supreme Court effective Jan. 17, according to the Illinois Attorney Registration & Disciplinary Commission. The Champaign News-Gazette has a story. Lutz retired as the Coles…

Jan 24, 2014 5:44 PM CST

Pimp convicted of stomping customer sues Nike over lack of warning label on shoes

Disruptive in court when he was convicted and sentenced last year for robbery and violent crimes against a prostitute and a customer who tried to avoid paying her, a 26-year-old former pimp has now found a way to maintain a high profile as he serves a 100-year prison sentence in…

Jan 14, 2014 6:30 PM CST

Top state court mulls proposal to let law students handle pro bono cases, seeks comments

In an effort to provide more pro bono services to those who can’t afford a lawyer, Iowa Legal Aid and the Office of Professional Regulation have asked the state’s top court to consider allowing recent law graduates and law students who have completed three semesters to handle some cases. They…

Jan 8, 2014 9:30 PM CST