Criminal Procedure

U.K. Bugged Inmate’s Calls to Lawyer; Is This a Common Practice?

In a discovery that has fanned fears that British inmates’ phone calls to their attorneys are routinely bugged, a lawyer in the U.K. reportedly has received transcripts of secretly recorded phone conversations between himself and an imprisoned client. Simon Creighton, of Bhatt Murphy solicitors in London, says the transcripts show…

Feb 5, 2008 5:38 PM CST

Heartless Jailhouse Call Rings Up Maximum Prison Term

A twice-convicted drunken driver got the maximum prison term for her latest offense—a little over 10 years—after a jailhouse phone call in which she laughed about driving into and killing a bicyclist while intoxicated was played at her sentencing hearing in Arizona. Characterizing the conversation as “breathtaking in its inhumanity,”…

Jan 25, 2008 6:03 PM CST

Citizen-Launched Kan. Grand Juries Pursue Abortion & Porn Cases

An almost-forgotten law in Kansas that allows citizens to convene grand juries reportedly has become a tool for local conservatives to use to force prosecutors to pursue abortion and pornography cases. A citizen petition drive, for instance, impaneled a grand jury earlier this month to investigate Dr. George Tiller, who…

Jan 18, 2008 6:29 PM CST

O.J. Simpson Gets Bail, But Judge Doubles It to $250,000

Updated: Former football hero O.J. Simpson appeared in a Nevada court today, and was granted release on $250,000 bail prior to his upcoming trial in an armed robbery case. The amount was twice the $125,000 bail he was initially granted in the case. Although the Clark County, Nev., district attorney…

Jan 16, 2008 5:08 PM CST

Tough Call: How to Charge Boy, 12, in Tot’s Killing

Florida prosecutors are now deciding whether to charge as an adult a 12-year-old babysitter who has been accused of murdering a 17-month-old second cousin left in his care. Because Shaloh Joseph wouldn’t stop crying as the unidentified preteen was trying to watch a cartoon on television, he allegedly hit her…

Jan 8, 2008 12:00 AM CST

Biased Comments Bench Fla. Judge

A Florida appeals court has removed a state judge from presiding over a blackmail case in which her comments implied that she might not be fair to the prosecution. After Grammy-winning singer, Alejandro Sanz, who is the victim of the alleged blackmail attempt, objected to his deposition in the criminal…

Dec 20, 2007 6:26 PM CST

Manslaughter Case Against Company Over ‘Big Dig’ Accident Continues

In an unusual and much-watched manslaughter case against one of the companies working on the controversial “Big Dig” tunnel project in Boston, a Massachusetts judge refused yesterday to dismiss the criminal charge. Defendant Powers Fasteners Inc., which is the only contractor charged in the manslaughter case, had contended that the…

Dec 19, 2007 6:31 PM CST

New Suit in Duke Lacrosse Rape Case

The fallout continues over a botched investigation and prosecution of an escort service dancer’s allegations—eventually determined to be false—that she was gang-raped in March 2006 by former members of the Duke University men’s lacrosse team. Three former team members who were never charged in the case have filed a 400-page…

Dec 19, 2007 5:15 PM CST

Saudi Rape Victim Pardoned for Being Alone in Car

Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah has pardoned a woman who was sentenced to prison for being alone in a car with a man before she was raped by seven men. The woman’s sentence was increased to six months in prison and 200 lashes when she appealed a shorter original sentence, the…

Dec 17, 2007 7:10 PM CST

Congress, DOJ Clash re CIA Videotapes Probe

Congress and the Department of Justice apparently may be headed for a showdown over the issue of whose investigation takes precedence concerning videotapes of al-Qaida interrogations destroyed by the CIA. Members of the House Intelligence Committee reacted angrily yesterday to a Justice Department request that the committee postpone their investigation…

Dec 15, 2007 9:47 AM CST

Conviction Overturned Because of Lawyer-Bashing Tape

The Oregon Supreme Court has overturned the conviction of a man who bashed his defense lawyer on a tape recording played at trial. The defendant, Roy Norman Knight, was convicted of sexually abusing his girlfriend’s teen daughter. Prosecutors played the tape to impeach Knight’s testimony about how much he wanted…

Dec 11, 2007 4:26 PM CST

Kerik Lawyer Loses Bid for Disqualification Documents

A judge has refused to give the defense lawyer for former New York City police commissioner Bernard Kerik access to evidence that prosecutors are using to try to toss him off the case. Prosecutors claim lawyer Kenneth Breen is a potential witness to obstruction of justice by Kerik in a…

Dec 7, 2007 3:51 PM CST

Discovery Spat in Mich. Murder Case

Often it’s the defense that complains about the prosecution withholding evidence in pretrial discovery in a criminal case. But prosecutors are seeking an emergency order from the Michigan Court of Appeals to stop a murder trial scheduled to start Monday because the defense allegedly didn’t produce critical evidence. Allison Bates,…

Dec 6, 2007 9:26 PM CST

Fla. Judge on Hot Seat in Ethics Hearing

Lawyers will be soon be testifying against a judge before a Florida hearing panel that has been convened to determine whether a Miami-area jurist violated ethics rules and bullied attorneys and other trial participants. According to an attorney for the Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission, Judge Cheryl Alemán violated ethics canons…

Dec 4, 2007 7:28 PM CST

Lawyer Claims Jury Pool Tainted by ‘Urban Legend’ Blog Posts

The lawyer for a man accused of hiding a suspect in the murder of a carjacked couple claims in a motion for a change of venue that blogs helped “outrage and taint any jury pool.” Lawyer Philip Lomonaco of Knoxville, Tenn., claims blogs printed false allegations that the murder victims…

Dec 4, 2007 12:08 PM CST