Sentencing/Post Conviction

High Court Says NY Can’t Shut Courthouse Door to Prisoner Claims

The U.S. Supreme Court has overturned a New York law requiring all federal civil rights claims against prison employees to be heard in a state claims court. In a 5-4 ruling, the Supreme Court said the law violates the supremacy clause, reports the Associated Press. Justice John Paul Stevens wrote…

May 26, 2009 4:02 PM CDT

Ill. Judge OKs New Murder Trial for Cortez Brown After 3 Cops Take Fifth

After three current and former Chicago police detectives took the Fifth rather than testify in a post-conviction case concerning their alleged abuse of a capital murder suspect nearly 20 years ago, an Illinois judge has ordered a new trial for Cortez Brown. Brown, 38, who admittedly was a member of…

May 22, 2009 11:21 PM CDT

Pa. Law Firm is Sadder But Wiser After Alleged Thefts By Paralegal

A problem paralegal at a Pennsylvania law firm reportedly arrived late, left early and had a bad attitude. But only after she was let go one Friday did routine audits a few days later of the law firm estate accounts she had been handling allegedly reveal a more serious issue.…

May 20, 2009 12:57 AM CDT

MySpace Hoax Sentence Delayed; Will Judge Void Verdict in Cyberbully Case?

A scheduled sentencing today has been postponed for a 50-year-old Missouri mom convicted of violating a federal statute in an unusual cyberbullying case. Lori Drew will now be sentenced July 2 on three misdemeanor counts of violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act by obtaining unauthorized access to a social…

May 18, 2009 11:13 PM CDT

Texas Law Firm Operator Gets 10 Years of Probation in Criminal UPL Case

A high-profile Texas defendant will get 10 years of probation for operating a law firm without a law license. Democratic fundraiser Mauricio Celis had been on house arrest and looking at a year in jail. However, his planned sentence in the Corpus Christi case, which was never finalized, was lightened…

May 18, 2009 8:13 PM CDT

Supreme Court to Hear Conrad Black Appeal on Honest Services Fraud

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear an appeal by convicted media baron Conrad Black that challenges the reach of the law barring honest services fraud. At issue is whether a scheme to deprive a private entity of honest services requires proof it suffered identifiable economic harm, according to…

May 18, 2009 5:05 PM CDT

Gang Defendant Pummels a Witness in Baltimore Courtroom

A murder defendant who wriggled out of his handcuffs in a Baltimore courtroom and attacked a witness has been sentenced to six months in jail for starting the melee. William Key was sitting on the same bench as witness Kenneth Robbins, an alleged fellow gang member, when he punched Robbins…

May 14, 2009 4:38 PM CDT

Web Case Losers Launch DDO$ Attack: Pay $3.75M Fine to Law Firm in Pennies

Updated: After their recent conviction in a criminal copyright prosecution in Sweden, owners of a well-known file-sharing website have reportedly come up with a plan to pay back a law firm that represented the music industry at trial in the Pirate Bay-related case. “Either devilishly clever or absolutely boneheaded,” writes…

May 13, 2009 10:00 PM CDT

Lawmakers Take 1st Step Toward Impeaching Federal Judge Samuel Kent

Sentenced yesterday to 33 months in federal prison for obstruction of justice in a case related to alleged sexual abuse of courthouse employees, a federal judge was in new trouble today. Following through on an earlier threat to seek his impeachment if U.S. District Judge Samuel Kent didn’t resign his…

May 12, 2009 10:40 PM CDT

Fla. Lawyer Now Admits ‘I Did It,’ Gets 5 Years for Role in $83M Real Estate Fraud

Testifying in a co-defendant’s criminal trial earlier this year after he himself accepted a plea bargain, a Florida attorney said he didn’t realize that he was doing anything wrong as he participated in real estate closings that were allegedly part of a $83 million loan fraud scheme. As he was…

May 11, 2009 11:25 PM CDT

Attorney Marc Dreier Pleads Guilty; Will He Go to Jail Prior to Sentencing?

Once a high-flying partner at the helm of a 250-attorney New York law firm, Marc Dreier pleaded guilty today in federal court in Manhattan to a fraud scheme for which authorities are seeking $700 million in restitution. Dreier, who was arrested in December for allegedly bilking sophisticated investors out of…

May 11, 2009 10:35 PM CDT

33-Month Sentence for Federal Judge Samuel Kent in Obstruction Case

Samuel Kent could have gotten up to 20 years in prison today, after pleading guilty earlier this year to a federal obstruction of justice charge. But prosecutors recommended only a three-year prison term for the 59-year-old Kent. And he got slightly less than that from Senior U.S. District Judge Roger…

May 11, 2009 3:41 PM CDT

Dreier to Plead Guilty Today; Will He Return to Penthouse Apartment?

Lawyer Marc Dreier will plead guilty this afternoon to charges he sold $700 million in phony securities to investors, according to his lawyer, Gerald Shargel. Less certain is whether Dreier will return to his penthouse apartment where he has been living under armed guard. Shargel told the New York Law…

May 11, 2009 11:54 AM CDT

Ohio Lawyer Gets 1-Year Suspension; Bought Jag & Boat, Let Taxes Go Unpaid

When John Large received a $72,000 fee in 2002 for settling a personal injury case, he bought a used Jaguar and his boat. But the Ohio attorney didn’t use the money to catch up on his unpaid income tax, reports the Vindicator. In practice since 1997, Large soon got behind…

May 7, 2009 6:49 PM CDT

Ex-Lawyer Who Claimed Gambling Addiction Sentenced for Stealing

A disbarred New York lawyer who lost her gambling addiction lawsuit has been sentenced to three to nine years in prison for stealing from her client escrow account to support her casino sprees. Arelia Taveras was sentenced last week after admitting she stole $130,000 to support her gambling, the New…

May 6, 2009 6:19 PM CDT