3rd Circuit Court

Mixed verdict in Philly ticket-fix conspiracy case: 2 judges acquitted, 4 guilty on only one count

After a two-month trial and a day-and-a-half of deliberation, a former Philadelphia traffic court judge and a suburban magistrate were acquitted Wednesday by a federal jury in a case concerning what prosecutors had portrayed as a pervasive ticket-fixing conspiracy. Another four former traffic court judges were convicted on only a…

Jul 23, 2014 6:15 PM CDT

2 men who say they discarded $1M winning Powerball ticket sue lottery commission

Two New York men say they purchased a Powerball ticket in New Jersey that matched five of six numbers in the March 23, 2013 lottery drawing. But they didn’t realize their good fortune—the ticket was worth $1 million—until the next day, after discarding it, the New York Daily News reports.…

Jun 26, 2014 10:00 PM CDT

DOJ charges Russian in ‘Cryptolocker’ and ‘Project Zeus’ attacks, says US victims lost over $100M

The Department of Justice has announced charges against a Russian man who is alleged to be the leader of a computer hacking group responsible for “Cryptolocker” and “Project Zeus” virus attacks that cost U.S. individuals and businesses more than $100 million, ABC News reports. “Evgeniy Bogachev and the members of…

Jun 2, 2014 10:15 PM CDT

Federal judge blasts lawyer who sued Usher and called opponents ‘cry babies’ in written filing

A federal judge in Pennsylvania on Wednesday blasted a Philadelphia-area lawyer for the “poisonous atmosphere” he had created by his “continual belligerence to opposing counsel.” At the same time, U.S. District Judge Paul S. Diamond granted a summary judgment motion dismissing the copyright infringement case that attorney Francis Malofiy had…

May 22, 2014 5:35 PM CDT

Federal judge strikes Pennsylvania ban on same-sex marriage; 19 states now OK such weddings

A federal judge in the Pennsylvania state capital struck down as unconstitutional Tuesday the state’s ban on same-sex marriages. “We are a better people than what these laws represent, and it is time to discard them into the ash heap of history,” said U.S. District Judge John E. Jones III…

May 20, 2014 8:55 PM CDT

Job offers lured men to NJ town where threats and violence procured religious divorces, feds say

Those involved in bitter disputes over the granting of a divorce recognized by Jewish religious law might want to consider steering clear of one town in New Jersey. Federal charges in two separate criminal cases in Trenton allege that job offers in Lakewood were used to lure two out-of-state victims.…

May 16, 2014 6:50 PM CDT

Law firm’s revised debt-collection letter results in $49.5K settlement of federal class action

A New Jersey law firm and a co-defendant have agreed to pay, and a federal judge on Tuesday approved, a $49,500 class action settlement over the language Mattleman, Weinroth & Miller used in a collection letter. The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act specifies what must be said in the so-called…

Apr 17, 2014 3:10 PM CDT

3rd Circuit frees email hacker ‘weev’; says feds tried and convicted him in wrong venue

The controversial conviction of an email hacker has been vacated by a federal appeals court, not because of issues with the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act but because Andrew Auernheimer was tried and convicted in the wrong venue. Known as “weev,” Auernheimer was released on Friday from a federal prison…

Apr 14, 2014 8:00 PM CDT

Claiming prosecutorial misconduct in Sandusky probe, ex-Penn State president sues state AG’s office

Graham Spanier, former Penn State president. Richard Paul Kane / Shutterstock.com A former president of Pennsylvania State University has filed a federal civil lawsuit against the state attorney general’s office, contending that it mishandled a criminal investigation concerning Penn State’s role in overseeing Jerry Sandusky, a former assistant football coach…

Mar 31, 2014 6:00 PM CDT

Ruling banning secret arbitrations in Del. Chancery Court won’t be overturned by SCOTUS

The nation’s top court has refused to hear an unusual appeal by the Delaware Court of Chancery of a federal appellate court’s ruling that secret corporate arbitration hearings involving the state judiciary are unconstitutional. The Monday denial of the highly regarded state court’s petition for U.S. Supreme Court review leaves…

Mar 25, 2014 11:05 PM CDT

BigLaw managing clerk charged in $5.6M insider-trading scheme, accused of revealing deal info

Updated: A longtime managing clerk in the New York City office of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett has been accused of using confidential information from the 800-attorney international law firm in an insider-trading scheme. It allegedly dates back to 1999 and reaped $5.6 million in illegal profits on $33 million in…

Mar 19, 2014 6:19 PM CDT

Charged under federal cyberstalking law, relatives of courthouse shooter call case unconstitutional

Relatives of a Delaware courthouse shooter could get as much as life in prison if they are convicted in an unusual federal cyberstalking case that has been brought against them. But the case shouldn’t proceed because the cyberstalking law is unconstitutional, the three defendants are arguing, the News Journal reports.…

Mar 17, 2014 10:45 PM CDT

Former Spector Gadon associate admits to $500K client theft, pleads guilty to wire fraud

A former associate of Spector Gadon & Rosen pleaded guilty Monday to one count of wire fraud in federal court in Philadelphia, admitting that he had stolen a total of more than $500,000 from four of the firm’s clients. Gomer Thomas Williams III, 54, resigned from the state bar in…

Mar 17, 2014 9:30 PM CDT

Lawyer gets one year in federal prison for his role in $14M mortgage fraud

A Pennsylvania lawyer has been sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison for his role in a $14 million mortgage fraud that stripped homeowners in a suburban Philadelphia county of their equity. Stephen G. Doherty was also ordered to forfeit $202,000 by U.S. District Judge Mary A.…

Mar 5, 2014 8:25 PM CST

Lawyer who inserted client names into 100 asbestos suits to get defense fees takes wire-fraud plea

A New Jersey attorney who admittedly inserted names of his law firm’s clients into more than 100 actual asbestos cases filed in New York to generate defense fees has pleaded guilty in a federal wire fraud case. Arobert C. Tonogbanua, 44, faces a maximum penalty of 20 years imprisonment and…

Mar 4, 2014 10:35 PM CST