Court Security

Judge Says Man Who Slashed His Counsel’s Face in Front of Jury Will Be Pro Se for Rest of Trial

As an attempted murder trial continues this week in San Diego Superior Court, one of the three defendants will now be required to present his case with the help of a standby lawyer only. That’s because the judge presiding over the case determined Friday that Eduardo Macias had forfeited his…

Dec 17, 2012 7:31 PM CST

High School Civics Lesson in Criminal Court Includes Seeing Lawyer Slashed with Razor Blade

A group of about 20 San Diego high school students getting a civics lesson by watching testimony in a California criminal trial on Thursday morning experienced more than anyone expected. As the prosecution was presenting a final rebuttal witness to the jury in an attempted murder and conspiracy case against…

Dec 13, 2012 11:12 PM CST

Ex-Neighbor Convicted of Plot to Murder Minn. Prosecutor

A former neighbor of a Minnesota prosecutor was convicted by a jury Friday of plotting his murder. Stephen Woodward was found guilty of conspiracy to commit the premeditated first-degree murder of Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom, the Lakeville Patch reports. Woodward apparently blamed Backstrom for a drug case that initially…

Dec 10, 2012 4:45 PM CST

New Security Measures Taken After 1,417 Oxycodone Pills Disappear from Courthouse Vault

One employee of the Palm Beach County court clerk and comptroller’s office was fired, another resigned and a third was reassigned after 1,003 Oxycodone pills being held as evidence in a criminal case disappeared from the courthouse vault. An additional 414 Oxycodone pills from two other criminal cases were found…

Nov 20, 2012 10:35 PM CST

Defendant Douses His Attorney As Jury Is About to Exit for Deliberations in Murder One Case

Updated: As the jury was about to file out of an Iowa courtroom around lunchtime on Monday to begin deliberations in a first-degree murder case, the defendant gave them something new to think about. Jerome Power, 50, grabbed a cup of water and poured it over the head of his…

Nov 20, 2012 4:23 PM CST

After a Year of Paid Leave, Texas Judge in Viral YouTube Video Posted By Daughter Returns to Bench

Recently reinstated by the Texas Supreme Court after a year of paid leave, a controversial Aransas County judge is about to go back on the bench. County Court-at-Law Judge William Adams is expected to be hearing cases again by Wednesday, the Corpus Christi Caller-Times reports. He was suspended after a…

Nov 12, 2012 7:25 PM CST

Officials Say Murder Defendant Slashed His Lawyer’s Face; Court Attack Was 2nd in County in 1 Week

A defendant in a California murder trial won a mistrial but faces a new attempted murder case after allegedly slashing his lawyer’s face with a makeshift weapon as the jury entered a Tulare County courtroom around 10 a.m. on Monday. Sheriff’s officials said assistant public defender John Shepard was not…

Nov 6, 2012 7:53 PM CST

Divorce Client’s Ex-Spouse Charged with Harassing Lawyer, Allegedly Sent Email re Unrelated Shooting

A Connecticut man was criminally charged last week after allegedly sending a threatening email to a Waterbury matrimonial lawyer who survived being shot four times by a client’s estranged husband in 2005 outside a state courthouse in Middletown. The shooter, who was a retired state trooper, shot and killed his…

Oct 15, 2012 4:30 PM CDT

Claimed $40K Contract Hit Attempt on Fed’l Judge, Prosecutor Creates New Trouble for Jailed Con Man

Updated: A New York man who was serving time in federal prison in New York after selling overpriced coins in a $40 million telemarketing scheme on Long Island and in South Florida is now facing new trouble. Joseph Romano is accused of plotting from his prison cell to hire a…

Oct 9, 2012 9:01 PM CDT

Handcuffed Defendant Takes Plea, Decks Defense Counsel with a Single Punch, Gets 6 Months More Time

A handcuffed defendant suddenly took a swing at defense counsel in court after pleading guilty on Tuesday in a South Carolina criminal case, knocking the surprised attorney backward to the floor as a security camera caught the entire incident. Already sentenced to the 15-year maximum Tuesday as a result of…

Oct 4, 2012 6:26 PM CDT

Disbarred Ex-Judge Who Survived 1994 Deposition Shooting Now Faces Money-Laundering Case

After surviving a 1994 shooting during a civil case deposition in which his client and another lawyer were shot to death by the pro se opposing party, a South Florida attorney subsequently told a local newspaper that every day is a blessing. Maurice J. Hall, 63, is now facing a…

Sep 26, 2012 3:25 PM CDT

Man Charged re Judge Grudge Phone Threats, But Pistol-Packing Jurist Is Ready for Action, If Needed

A Florida man who police say left multiple profanity-laden voicemails in July threatening to pistol-whip and kill a state court judge against whom he’d admittedly held a 12-year grudge has been tracked down, arrested and charged in a stalking and harassment case. A uniformed, armed sheriff’s officer protected 15th Judicial…

Sep 5, 2012 5:33 PM CDT

NY Judicial Conduct Commission Seeks Input re Judicial License Plates and Potential Ticket Issues

Having special license plates for New York judges makes it easier to enforce courthouse parking restrictions. But it also makes it easier for judges to avoid parking tickets and moving violations, without having to say a word themselves seeking special favors, points out the New York Daily News. The New…

Sep 4, 2012 5:08 PM CDT

NY Judge Rapped for Approving His Own Concealed Carry Permit, Accidental Gun Discharge in Chambers

A New York judge who has been threatened several times during his nearly 20 years on the bench decided he wanted to get a concealed-carry permit and take a loaded firearm into the Tioga County courthouse at which he worked. However, although there was no rule against having a gun…

Aug 27, 2012 5:50 PM CDT

Denied Protective Order re Claimed Spouse Abuse, Man Charged with Threatening to Shoot Wife, Judge

A man who was denied a protective order on Wednesday by a Maine judge is accused of threatening to shoot both his wife and the judge as he left the courthouse. Shawn Breton, 37, is charged with two terrorizing counts concerning the Augusta District Court incident, reports the Bangor Daily…

Aug 24, 2012 10:27 AM CDT