http://www.abajournal.com/news/ en Copyright 2013 2013-05-22T04:08:04-06:00 http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/juror_in_contempt_for_posting_comments_in_newspaper_article_about_trial_of_/ A juror has been held in contempt for posting online comments, during trial last year, in a newspaper article about the felony-murder case against one of nine defendants accused of playing a role in the slaying of a Kansas attorney. James M. Reeder must either pay a $1,000 fine or… Criminal Justice, Sentencing/Post Conviction, Trials & Litigation, Juries, Verdicts & Settlements, States, Kansas Tue, 21 May 2013 08:20:48 -0500 44285.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/judge_denies_defense_motion_to_withdraw_during_penalty_phase_in_arias_murde/ Lawyers for convicted murderer Jody Arias asked the court to declare a mistrial Monday, on the basis that a key witness was receiving death threats. The judge declined to do so and also denied their motion to withdraw as counsel, which the Associated Press reports was done… Criminal Justice, Sentencing/Post Conviction, Trials & Litigation, Juries, Verdicts & Settlements Mon, 20 May 2013 17:33:47 -0500 44279.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/tardy_juror_doubles_down_fails_to_appear_for_contempt_hearing/ Jailed for four hours last week after he was late to court two days running, a prospective juror failed to appear on Tuesday for a contempt hearing. Rickey Christopher had been dismissed from the jury pool after being late for the second time. And Oklahoma County District Judge Ray C.… Criminal Justice, Judiciary, Trials & Litigation, Juries, States, Oklahoma Tue, 14 May 2013 16:10:09 -0500 44177.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/jurors_glow_reflected_cellphone_no-no_judge_put_him_in_jail_for_2_days/ Judge Dennis Graves might never have known that juror Benjamin Kohler was violating his instructions about using his cellphone during a Salem, Ore., armed robbery trial this week. However, the judge's attention was drawn to an unusual glow on the chest area of the 26-year-old's shirt after the lights were… Criminal Justice, Judiciary, Trials & Litigation, Juries, States, Oregon Fri, 19 Apr 2013 16:33:51 -0500 43839.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/distraught_over_fatal_child-abuse_trial_juror_creates_post-verdictcollege/ Josh Henle was initially aggravated to be called for jury duty in a Clackamas County, Ore., case that interfered with his work schedule and Hawaiian vacation plans. Then, as he began to learn about the fatal child-abuse case for which he'd been selected, Henle realized the importance of his role… Criminal Justice, Sentencing/Post Conviction, Trials & Litigation, Juries, Verdicts & Settlements, States, Oregon Fri, 12 Apr 2013 11:00:24 -0500 43696.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/ex-prosecutor_convicted_in_law_firm_rico_enterprise_case_should_have_had_a_/ A former state and federal prosecutor convicted this week of operating his law firm as a racketeering enterprise and participating in drug-dealing, prostitution and even a conspiracy to murder witnesses, might have done better to let a… Criminal Justice, Sentencing/Post Conviction, Law Firms, Partners, Solos/Small Firms, Trials & Litigation, Evidence, Juries, Verdicts & Settlements, 3rd Circuit Court, States, New Jersey Wed, 20 Mar 2013 14:40:58 -0500 43376.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/attorney_general_eric_holder_reports_for_jury_duty_but_is_nixed_in_cellphon/ U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder fulfilled his civic obligation Tuesday and reported for jury duty in a Washington, D.C., courthouse at which he formerly served as a judge. His three FBI bodyguards waited in a hallway as the nation's top law enforcement officer waited to see whether he would be… Attorney General, Constitutional Law, Criminal Justice, Trials & Litigation, Juries, D.C. Circuit Court, States, District of Columbia Wed, 20 Mar 2013 10:00:53 -0500 43359.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/federal_judge_issues_gag_order_after_lawyer_complains_rigged_jury_pool_has_/ A federal judge overseeing the tax evasion trial of a Chicago politician issued a gag order Wednesday prohibiting lawyers from talking to the media after his defense counsel complained that the 50-member jury pool contained no black men. U.S. District Judge James Zagel did not expressly mention Tuesday's out-of-court comments… Constitutional Law, Criminal Justice, Criminal Procedure, Judiciary, Media & Communications Law, Trials & Litigation, Juries, States, Illinois Wed, 13 Mar 2013 15:50:53 -0500 43250.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/federal_judge_will_order_juror_to_turn_over_hard_drive_to_see_if_she_violat/ Terri Wright says a Florida newspaper reporter misunderstood her when he said in an article that she conducted Internet research while serving as the forewoman of a jury hearing a 2011 drug case against a Grammy-winning reggae star. But a federal judge in Tampa plans to have a forensics expert… Internet Law, Privacy Law, Trials & Litigation, Evidence, Juries, Verdicts & Settlements, 11th Circuit Court, States, Florida Tue, 19 Feb 2013 15:16:27 -0600 42911.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/Let_grand_jurors_decline_indictment_when_law_is_too_harsh_ABA_House_resolve/ The wording in the Model Grand Jury Charge for federal courts should be changed to recognize the principle that a grand jury is not bound to indict in every case where a conviction can be obtained, according to a resolution approved on Monday by the ABA House of Delegates. Currently… Bar Associations, ABA, Midyear Meeting, Criminal Justice, Trials & Litigation, Juries Mon, 11 Feb 2013 15:13:40 -0600 42656.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/judge_who_had_jury_deliberate_at_3_a.m._to_save_her_vacation_agrees_to_repr/ A Nevada judge who admittedly had a jury deliberate for nearly 18 hours in December 2010 in order to ensure that she could go on vacation as planned has agreed to a public reprimand. District Judge Valorie Vega also admitted that on six occasions she recessed the trial in the… Criminal Justice, Judiciary, Legal Ethics, Trials & Litigation, Juries, States, Nevada Thu, 07 Feb 2013 07:13:29 -0600 42732.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/can_grand_juries_serve_as_check_on_prosecutorial_overreach/ The suicide of Internet “hactivist” Aaron Swartz is shining a light on proposals to rein in prosecutors through more powerful grand juries. Swartz took his life as he was awaiting a felony trial for downloading scholarly papers, leading to criticism that the U.S. Attorney's stance in… Criminal Justice, Prosecutors, Law Professors, Trials & Litigation, Juries Wed, 06 Feb 2013 07:00:27 -0600 42707.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/grand_jury_chair_is_a_felon_800_indictments_now_in_question/ Indictments from nearly 900 cases in the Nashville area are under review after officials discovered a man who served as grand jury chair in 2011 is a convicted felon. Eugene Grayer was appointed to lead the grand jury, even though the Davidson County district attorney's office had been notified of… Criminal Justice, Prosecutors, Criminal Procedure, Trials & Litigation, Juries, States, Tennessee Mon, 04 Feb 2013 08:30:16 -0600 42666.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/top_maine_court_says_voir_dire_must_be_public_even_when_answers_could_be_em/ Ruling on a protest by the owner of a local newspaper, Maine's top court on Thursday afternoon said a judge must hold jury selection sessions in open court, even if answering voir dire questions could be embarrassing to jurors. Prospective members of the jury in the case at issue are… Criminal Justice, Trials & Litigation, Juries, States, Maine Fri, 25 Jan 2013 11:30:13 -0600 42546.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/judge_sentences_misbehaving_prospective_juror_to_three_months_of_jury_duty/ A Florida judge, obviously aggravated after he discovered last year that a prospective juror had disobeyed instructions and done Internet research on the defendant in a high-profile murder case, had initially warned the man to expect jail time. But, after further reflection, Hillsborough Circuit Judge William Fuente has tailored the… Criminal Justice, Sentencing/Post Conviction, Judiciary, Trials & Litigation, Juries, States, Florida Mon, 14 Jan 2013 11:53:19 -0600 42327.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/oops._failure_to_swear_in_jurors_leads_to_tossed_conviction/ A defendant who was convicted of conspiracy to commit extortion is entitled to a new trial because the jurors weren’t sworn in before the trial began, a Michigan appeals court has ruled. The Court of Appeals of Michigan has overturned the conviction of David Lee Allan, who was convicted in… Constitutional Law, Criminal Justice, Trials & Litigation, Juries, States, Michigan Mon, 14 Jan 2013 08:46:12 -0600 42323.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/representing_an_overweight_female_defendant_male_jurors_may_be_biased_study/ Overweight female defendants may be judged more harshly by male jurors, a new study suggests. The study by the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity involved a mock case involving check fraud, report Reuters and a news release. Researchers asked 471 study participants… Civil Rights, Criminal Justice, Trials & Litigation, Juries Thu, 10 Jan 2013 07:14:21 -0600 42288.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/judge_rescinds_order_to_seize_home_computers_of_juror_accused_of/ Updated: A federal judge in Florida has reconsidered an ex parte order issued on Friday, telling marshals to seize the home computers of a juror who was quoted in a newspaper article as saying that she had conducted Internet research on the defendant in a high-profile trial. However, U.S. District… Constitutional Law, Criminal Justice, Sentencing/Post Conviction, Internet Law, Media & Communications Law, Privacy Law, Trials & Litigation, Evidence, Juries, Verdicts & Settlements, 11th Circuit Court, States, Florida Tue, 08 Jan 2013 17:59:22 -0600 42270.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/motion_seeks_new_trial_because_sentencing_jurors_sang_hymns_read_bible_vers/ A death-row inmate convicted in the torture slayings of a Tennessee couple deserves a new trial because jurors spent more time singing hymns and reading Bible verses than deliberating the sentence, a motion argues. A Knox County judge will consider the motion filed on behalf of inmate Lemaricus Davidson on… Constitutional Law, Criminal Justice, Sentencing/Post Conviction, Criminal Procedure, Internet Law, Trials & Litigation, Juries Wed, 02 Jan 2013 09:11:18 -0600 42158.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/legalrebels/article/catching_up_with_the_09_legal_rebel_james_holderman/ Judge James F. Holderman Photo by Wayne Slezak James F. Holderman Rebel Year: 2009 Home: Chicago What he’s been up to: While courts across the country struggle to reign in social media-enthused jurors, Chief Judge James… Careers, Judiciary, Legal Rebels, Legal Rebels Profiles, Trials & Litigation, Evidence, Juries Fri, 21 Dec 2012 12:32:36 -0600 41978.abajournal.com