Texas

Federal Judge Pleads ‘Absolutely, Unequivocally Not Guilty’

The courtroom scene was “highly unusual and very civilized” as a Texas federal judge proclaimed his innocence today in no uncertain terms on charges of abusive sexual contact and aggravated sexual abuse, the Houston Chronicle reports. “I plead absolutely, unequivocally not guilty and look very much forward to a trial…

Sep 3, 2008 5:33 PM CDT

Suspended Texas PI Lawyer Gets 35 Years in Client Theft Case

After stealing more than $1.6 million from at least 46 clients over a six-year period, then-personal injury attorney Steven Bearman reportedly kept working as a Houston lawyer while awaiting trial after his 2006 arrest. During that period, Bearman, now 44, stole from the law firm that had hired him, too,…

Aug 29, 2008 9:18 PM CDT

Judge’s Indictment Raises Questions About Discipline Process

A Texas federal judge’s indictment on charges of abusive sexual contact and aggravated sexual abuse raises questions about the discipline process, according to a columnist for the Houston Chronicle. U.S. District Judge Samuel Kent was charged yesterday based on accusations by his assistant, Cathy McBroom, that the judge had made…

Aug 29, 2008 12:43 PM CDT

Federal Judge in Texas is Indicted in Employee Sex Abuse Case

A federal district judge in Texas was indicted today on charges of abusive sexual contact and aggravated sexual abuse, based on complaints made by his former case manager. The federal case against U.S. District Judge Samuel Kent is unique, and also represents the first time in recent years that a…

Aug 28, 2008 11:40 PM CDT

Hilary Duff’s 21st Birthday Bash Contested in Court

Whether or not the father of actress Hilary Duff should pay $25,000 for her 21st birthday party was the subject of a court hearing in Texas yesterday from which her father was removed in handcuffs. After a tense hearing in the bitter divorce case that also featured acrimony between opposing…

Aug 28, 2008 8:39 PM CDT

Columnist Arrested for Briefly Leaving Son at McDonald’s After Argument

A columnist for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram apologized in a column for briefly leaving his 11-year-old son at a McDonald’s after an argument. But the mea culpa did not persuade police in Watauga, Texas. Writer Dave Lieber was charged with child abandonment with intent to return and child abandonment/endangering a…

Aug 28, 2008 12:50 PM CDT

As One VIP Trial Lawyer Still Soars, John Edwards is MIA at Convention

Two renowned trial lawyers are being accorded very different treatment at the Democrat National Convention this week. Former senator and presidential candidate John Edwards is a pariah after the recent revelation of an admitted extramarital affair in 2006 that he concealed from the public and lied about for months, reports…

Aug 27, 2008 7:24 PM CDT

Judge Adds ‘Splash of Color’ to Federal Courtroom

U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison of Houston is setting a mood not often seen in courtrooms, where formal portraits and framed documents are usually among the only pieces of art. Indeed, Ellison’s courtroom “looks like a nice hotel lobby or someone’s fancy living room, complete with a sparkling chandelier in…

Aug 26, 2008 7:11 PM CDT

Texas School District is 1st to Let Teachers Pack Heat in Classrooms

When the school year started yesterday, a small district in Texas reportedly made history as the first in the country to allow teachers to carry concealed firearms. “Teachers who wanted to participate had to be approved by the school board, obtain their concealed carry license, and complete extensive training in…

Aug 26, 2008 4:43 PM CDT

Texas DA: Must I Let My Prosecutors Carry Guns Into Court?

Under a new Texas law, state prosecutors can carry handguns anywhere except jails and prisons. That means they are allowed to take them into courthouses and courtrooms. But at least one district attorney is dubious about the 2007 law, and he has asked the state attorney general whether he can…

Aug 26, 2008 4:25 PM CDT

Lawyer Says Agent’s Sex and Marriage Talk Spurred Client’s Confession

A lawyer for accused arsonist Wesley Irons says his confession should be thrown out because of psychological coercion by a U.S. Forest Service Agent who talked of sex and marriage while lying next to him in the grass. The agent, Jane Wright, befriended Irons and was handcuffed along with him…

Aug 25, 2008 4:14 PM CDT

Hefty Challenge: How to Prosecute an Ailing 1,000-Pound Woman?

Authorities in Hidalgo County, in the southern tip of Texas, reportedly have yet to arrest a woman indicted by a grand jury yesterday for first-degree murder in the death of her 2-year-old nephew, as well as injury to a child. She had earlier been charged with capital murder in the…

Aug 22, 2008 6:10 PM CDT

Judge Delays Execution, Blasts ‘Insane System’ to Determine Sanity

A federal judge has delayed the execution of a Texas inmate and blasted the “insane” system to determine whether he is sane enough to be put to death. Jeffery Lee Wood, who sometimes spells his name as Jeffrey, was less than six hours away from execution when U.S. District Judge…

Aug 22, 2008 12:08 PM CDT

Size Doesn’t Matter: Conviction, Lawyer’s Conduct OK’d in Exposure Case

A Texas doctor who sought to overturn his indecent exposure conviction, with the help of a well-known attorney and an unusual appellate argument supported by expert testimony, has lost the legal battle. “The court rejected the argument by high-profile attorney Dick DeGuerin and his associate Neal Davis that the doctor…

Aug 20, 2008 10:08 PM CDT

Texas Pardons Board Turns Down Getaway Driver’s Death Penalty Petition

A Texas death-row inmate who was sitting in a truck when his accomplice shot and killed a gas station cashier has failed to persuade a Texas pardons board to commute his sentence. Yesterday, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles unanimously rejected the petition filed on behalf of Jeffrey Lee…

Aug 20, 2008 12:29 PM CDT