Sentencing/Post Conviction

4396 ABA Journal Sentencing/Post Conviction articles.

South Texas Attorney Takes Plea in Corrupt-Judge Case

A Texas attorney has taken a plea in a judicial corruption case. Jose Martin “Joe” Valle, 54, pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Brownsville to aiding and abetting extortion by former State District Judge Abel Limas, according to the Brownsville Herald and the San Antonio Express-News. The case concerned…

Aug 11, 2011 8:03 PM CDT

Former Pa. Judge Sentenced to 28 Years in Prison in Kids-for-Cash Scandal

A former Pennsylvania judge accused of taking $1 million in bribes for sending juveniles to private detention centers has been sentenced to 28 years in prison. Former Luzerne County Judge Mark Ciavarella Jr. was sentenced today, according to the Associated Press and the Times-Tribune. Before the sentence was imposed, he…

Aug 11, 2011 3:02 PM CDT

9 1/2 Years Lopped Off 10-Year Sentence Because State Turned Away Convicted Child Molester

A convicted child molester who tried without success to turn himself in 16 years ago won’t have to serve his 10-year sentence. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals ruled Wednesday on behalf of Stanley Blackwell, the one-time owner of an Austin funeral home, the Austin American-Statesman reports. The court said…

Aug 11, 2011 11:59 AM CDT

Facebook to Help Calif. Prisons Control Inmates’ Use of Contraband Cellphones by Closing Accounts

Due to a state budget crisis, officials in California have been reluctant to pay the price of prosecuting incarcerated offenders who violate prison rules against having a cellphone. Hence, the contraband devices have proliferated. At last report, some 10,000 were confiscated in 2010, compared to less than 300 in 2006.…

Aug 11, 2011 12:24 AM CDT

Dad of Imprisoned Teen Is Ticketed for Ringing Doorbell of Sentencing Judge’s Home

Arguably looking for trouble, the father of a New York teen who got an 11-year prison term last month for shooting a classmate in the arm recently rang the doorbell of the Oneonta home of the sentencing judge. The wife of Otsego County Court Judge Brian Burns answered and asked…

Aug 10, 2011 9:21 PM CDT

Cleveland Prosecutors Hope to Show Serial Killer Is Sane

Cleveland prosecutors offered expert testimony Tuesday intended to show that convicted serial killer Anthony Sowell is sane enough to be executed. A neuropsychologist and a forensic pathologist testified about Sowell’s mental fitness in an attempt to counter defense testimony that the defendant is psychotic, the Associated Press reported. Sowell, 51,…

Aug 9, 2011 7:18 PM CDT

Polygamist Leader Warren Jeffs Gets Life in Child-Sex-Assault Case

A Texas jury today deliberated only half an hour today before sentencing the leader of a splinter religious group today to a life prison term for the sexual assault of a 12-year-old child bride. The life sentence for Warren Jeffs, 55, will be followed by a consecutive 20-year term for…

Aug 9, 2011 5:45 PM CDT

Detroit Judge to Decide If Former Mayor’s Book-Proceeds Account is Legal

A Detroit judge is set to decide next week whether an escrow account he created to capture proceeds from the sale of ex-Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick’s new autobiography is legal. Kilpatrick’s lawyer, Daniel Hajji, argued Monday that the account is unconstitutional because it violates Kilpatrick’s free speech rights, the Detroit News…

Aug 9, 2011 4:36 PM CDT

Caught in Cocaine Sting Set Up By Client, Ex-Prosecutor Takes Plea, Gets Probation

Corrected: A former prosecutor in Bexar County, Texas, pleaded no contest to a felony drug charge yesterday as his trial for purchasing crack cocaine was about to begin. However, Gammon Guinn, 56, can avoid having the conviction on his record if he successfully completes his sentence of deferred adjudication probation,…

Aug 9, 2011 12:41 PM CDT

Boy, 11, Takes Plea in Mom’s Shooting Death, Asks Judge If He Can Have a Gun Again Later On in Life

Initially charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of his mother, an 11-year-old Illinois boy pleaded guilty yesterday to second-degree murder. The unidentified youth expressed no remorse in yesterday’s juvenile court hearing over the death of Brenda Schaad, 39, reports the Journal Courier. It occurred earlier this month as…

Aug 9, 2011 12:14 PM CDT

Lawyer Admits $47M Ponzi Scheme Based on Fake Rural Improvement Bonds; May Be Ark.‘s Biggest Fraud

An Arkansas lawyer and businessman admitted in federal court yesterday that he orchestrated a $47 million Ponzi scheme involving seven banks by creating fake rural improvement bonds. Such bonds are often used by developers, and Kevin Lewis, 43, obtained bank loans based on the seeming assets referenced by the fake…

Aug 4, 2011 8:42 PM CDT

Teen Ordered to Create Memorial to Toddler Left to Die in Hot Van

A juvenile court judge in Clayton County, Ga., has ordered a teenager to create a memorial to a 2-year-old girl who died at a daycare center after being left in a hot van following a field trip. The teenage girl, whose name was withheld because of her age, also received…

Aug 2, 2011 1:17 PM CDT

Did Casey Anthony Serve 1-Year Probation in Fraud Case While Jailed Awaiting Child-Murder Trial?

Facing a new legal issue following her release after being acquitted of murdering her 2-year-old daughter, Casey Anthony is returning to Orlando, Fla., for another court hearing. The question: Did she already complete her earlier, one-year probation in a check-fraud case while she was being held in jail prior to…

Aug 1, 2011 6:40 PM CDT

Former GC Sentenced to 15 Years for Aiding Life Settlement Fraud; Defense Argued He Was Naïve

The former general counsel of a Houston life settlement company has been sentenced to more than 15 years in prison for aiding a corporate scheme that defrauded investors of $100 million. Even the prosecutor described the defendant, Russell Mackert, as kind and mild-mannered, Corporate Counsel reports. Mackert’s lawyer, Carolyn Grady,…

Jul 29, 2011 3:49 PM CDT

Given Life Term at 22 for Armed Robbery, Man, Now 40, Hoped for 27-to-40 at Resentencing Today

Life means life in Florida, and John Curtis Ivey, sentenced to a life term at age 22 for an armed robbery in which he pistol-whipped the victim, has served 19 years so far. He knows he deserves punishment for his crime. But since no one was killed or permanently injured,…

Jul 29, 2011 12:50 AM CDT

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