Verdicts & Settlements

Polluted town championed by Erin Brockovich is largely gone despite $333M settlement

Fifteen years after a movie helped make legal assistant Erin Brockovich famous for her role in helping win a $333 million settlement over environmental pollution in Hinkley, California, the small farming community town is largely gone. Pacific Gas & Electric Co., which agreed to the settlement concerning elevated levels of…

Apr 14, 2015 11:10 AM CDT

Ex-judge accused of accepting bribes from lawyer takes plea; expected to get 2 years in prison

A former Texas judge accused of taking bribes from a San Antonio lawyer pleaded guilty Monday in federal court in Albuquerque, New Mexico, to an honest services wire fraud charge. Angus Kelly McGinty, 51, had initially faced multiple counts when he was first indicted concerning his conduct on the Bexar…

Apr 13, 2015 4:00 PM CDT

Jodi Arias gets life without parole in brutal slaying of ex-boyfriend

After two juries deadlocked on whether or not she should get the death penalty, the ultimate punishment was no longer an option for Jodi Arias. An Arizona judge had to decide whether to give her a life sentence with or without the option of parole after 25 years. Judge Sherry…

Apr 13, 2015 1:20 PM CDT

Warned not to drive home after DWI conviction, man does and is charged with drunken driving

A New York man who reportedly smelled of alcohol when he was convicted Monday of driving while intoxicated was told by the judge, his lawyer and an Erie County sheriff’s deputy not to drive home from the Grand Island Town Court hearing. However, J.B. Silverthorn, 44, nonetheless got behind the…

Apr 10, 2015 4:10 PM CDT

Will provision in funding law stop feds from prosecuting marijuana crimes?

The tension between new state laws that allow the sale of marijuana and federal laws that prohibit it has put some arguably law-abiding individuals at risk of spending time behind bars. Among them is Charles Lynch, 52, who was convicted on federal felony charges after opening a medical marijuana dispensary…

Apr 9, 2015 3:20 PM CDT

Prosecutors hid proof of innocence in NYC shooting case, says man exonerated after 24 years

Jonathan Fleming had a strong alibi as to his whereabouts at the time of a fatal 1989 shooting. When the New York City crime was being committed, he was vacationing in Florida. And he had a time-stamped paid hotel telephone bill to support his story. But when he turned over…

Apr 8, 2015 4:00 PM CDT

AT&T to pay record $25M to settle with FCC over privacy breach at call centers

Telecommunications giant AT&T has agreed to pay $25 million to settle a FCC probe over privacy breaches at call centers in Colombia, Mexico and the Philippines. The FCC said the settlement is the largest it has ever obtained in a privacy case, reports the Los Angeles Times (sub. req.). The…

Apr 8, 2015 3:15 PM CDT

Tsarnaev found guilty in Boston Marathon bombing trial; could get death penalty

After more than 11 hours of deliberation, a federal jury has convicted Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 21, on all 30 charges in the Boston Marathon bombings capital case. The Wednesday guilty verdict was widely anticipated, and the defendant’s lead lawyer, Judy Clarke, told the jury in closing statements “We don’t deny that…

Apr 8, 2015 1:45 PM CDT

Federal judge strikes ‘impertinent’ allegations against Prince Andrew and attorney Alan Dershowitz

A federal judge in West Palm Beach, Florida, has struck third-party allegations concerning claimed sexual activities by Prince Andrew and attorney Alan Dershowitz from an ongoing lawsuit against the U.S. government. Without making any factual finding as to the validity of the allegations, U.S. District Judge Kenneth Marra found that…

Apr 7, 2015 4:20 PM CDT

Now-retired judge takes misdemeanor plea after dismissing DUI case for courtroom prosecutor’s nephew

A retired Pennsylvania district judge has taken a misdemeanor plea in a case over his dismissal of a drunken-driving charge against a nephew of his courtroom prosecutor. Dwight Shaner, 71, said nothing and appeared to be on the verge of tears Monday as he pleaded guilty and was sentenced in…

Apr 6, 2015 12:15 PM CDT

Fired over blond highlights, former Hooters waitress wins $250K arbitration award

A former Hooters waitress who says she was fired over her blonde highlights after a manager told her “black people don’t have blonde hair,” has won more than $250,000 in an arbitration award. The hair-color policy “was implemented in a discriminatory manner adversely affecting African-American women,” wrote arbitrator Edmund D.…

Apr 3, 2015 11:10 AM CDT

Federal judge says California has to pay for inmate’s sex-change surgery

California must pay for gender reassignment surgery for an inmate convicted of murder, a federal judge in San Francisco ruled Thursday. Surgery is “the only adequate medical treatment for her gender dysphoria,” said U.S. District Court Judge Jon Tigar in his written opinion. Hence, not providing it for Michelle-Lael Norsworthy,…

Apr 3, 2015 8:55 AM CDT

Jury awards $150M against Fiat Chrysler in fiery death of boy, 4, after Jeep is rear-ended

A jury in rural Georgia on Thursday awarded $150 million against Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV in the death of a four-year-old boy in a fiery rear-end crash. It found the automaker 99 percent responsible, due to the position of the gas tank in the 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee., for the…

Apr 3, 2015 8:00 AM CDT

Major US contractor settles first SEC case over confidentiality pacts that silence whistleblowers

In what is being hailed as a landmark federal enforcement action protecting the rights of whistleblowers, the Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday announced a settlement with a major federal contractor over provisions in its confidentiality agreements for workers. Overly broad language in the Kellogg Brown & Root confidentiality pacts…

Apr 1, 2015 2:40 PM CDT

Woman faces new charges of animal neglect; cop wore gas mask to rescue kitten

Found not guilty of animal neglect during a 2011 trial, an Oregon woman is now facing new charges. After a Portland police officer donned a gas mask to enter the abandoned apartment of Edna Sue Blair, a warrant was issued for her arrest. A total of four charges of animal…

Apr 1, 2015 9:30 AM CDT