Juries

9 years of solitary confinement violates Eighth Amendment, jurors find; case later settles

New York has agreed to pay $100,000 to settle a punitive damages claim in a case in which jurors found that nine years of solitary confinement violated the Eighth Amendment rights of an inmate.

Oct 8, 2024 9:00 AM CDT

Lawyer accused of exploiting elderly client is found liable for $26M in malpractice case

Trials & Litigation

Oct 7, 2024 2:51 PM CDT

Lawyer must face ethics charge alleging he tried to hire Israeli hackers to access judge’s emails

A California bar court judge has rejected a lawyer’s bid to dismiss an ethics charge alleging that he plotted to hire Israeli hackers to hack in to the email and phone accounts of a judge and a lawyer.

Sep 19, 2024 11:52 AM CDT

Kids create video, write law journal article about Texas Supreme Court

Two siblings whose mother is an appellate lawyer decided to make a video in which they interviewed Texas Supreme Court justices about their daily lives, their work and how they reach decisions in the cases that come before them.

Sep 5, 2024 2:17 PM CDT

2nd Circuit cites push notifications to jurors as one reason why Sarah Palin deserves new defamation trial

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, a Republican, is entitled to a new trial in her defamation case against the New York Times, partly because a jury finding of no liability was marred by push notifications received by jurors, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday.

Aug 28, 2024 2:54 PM CDT

Hunter Biden to be sentenced Nov. 13, a week after Election Day

President Joe Biden’s son Hunter will be sentenced in mid-November—a week after Election Day—after being convicted of gun charges, a federal judge said Friday.

Aug 2, 2024 3:14 PM CDT

The Jury Is Out: Why do legal dramas often ignore this vital part of the justice system?

It’s no surprise that when it comes to how juries and jurors are portrayed in pop culture, the narrative of the juror with an agenda is one of the dominant tropes out there.

Aug 1, 2024 3:30 AM CDT

Shaken-baby murder conviction overturned after defendant offers evidence questioning diagnosis

The Michigan Supreme Court has granted a new trial to a woman convicted of killing her infant daughter by shaking her, holding that proposed expert testimony on shaken baby syndrome would likely result in an acquittal.

Jul 29, 2024 3:11 PM CDT

SEC defendants are entitled to jury trials, SCOTUS rules in case with ‘broad ramifications’

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Thursday that defendants facing civil penalties for securities fraud before the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission are entitled to a jury trial under the Seventh Amendment.

Jun 27, 2024 10:07 AM CDT

Conspirators allegedly tracked juror before leaving $120K cash at her home

Three defendants accused of cheating the government are among five people charged Wednesday with trying to bribe a 23-year-old juror with $120,000 in cash left in a Hallmark gift bag.

Jun 27, 2024 9:23 AM CDT

Appeals court upholds negligent homicide conviction for encouraging suicide by electronic means

A defendant living in Indiana who encouraged a Tennessee woman in online conversations to kill herself for his sexual pleasure can be found guilty of criminally negligent homicide, a Tennessee appeals court has ruled.

Jun 12, 2024 11:32 AM CDT

Juror excused after mystery woman left bag of cash at her home and explained why

A 23-year-old juror in a charity fraud trial was excused Monday after a woman dressed in black visited her home Sunday evening with a Hallmark gift bag containing about $120,000 cash.

Jun 4, 2024 11:05 AM CDT

Lawyer convicted in client’s murder in ‘elaborate and shocking sequence of events’

A Southfield, Michigan, lawyer was convicted last week in the June 2022 murder of his client in an alleged plot to gain his money.

May 28, 2024 10:39 AM CDT

Prosecutors excluded Jewish people from juries in one California county for decades, review suggests

Several prosecutors in Alameda County, California, excluded Jewish people from juries in past decades, according to the Alameda County district attorney.

May 14, 2024 3:16 PM CDT

‘Oh, shoot, I’m still streaming,’ judge says, after telling staffer ‘we all know’ murder defendant is guilty

A Texas judge recused herself in two cases involving a murder defendant Wednesday, after she was caught on a hot mic outside the presence of jurors saying he had killed the victim to show a woman that “he’s a man.”

Apr 25, 2024 11:07 AM CDT