Michigan

Reluctant Juror Jailed for Message to Court Officials

A reluctant juror in Michigan has been jailed after he sent court officials a note telling them what he thought of their third jury summons. “I didn’t sign up for this bullshit,” Michael Starrett wrote, according to an article in the Detroit News. “I suggest you find somebody who gives…

Oct 19, 2007 10:39 AM CDT

Ave Maria Profs File Whistle-Blower Suit

Three suspended professors at Ave Maria School of Law have filed a whistle-blower lawsuit against the Catholic institution, its president and dean, and the chairman of its board of governors, among other defendants. It alleges wrongful discharge, breach of contract and tortious interference with advantageous business relationships. Stephen Safranek, Edward…

Oct 19, 2007 3:35 AM CDT

Prosecution of Ex-US Atty Hits Snag

Government lawyers contend in a trial that got under way this week that a former federal prosecutor from Detroit withheld evidence because of his ambition to win a terrorism case. But the case against former U.S. Attorney Richard Convertino hit a snag when a key witness against him admitted he…

Oct 11, 2007 12:37 PM CDT

Prosecutor Charged in Sex Sting Commits Suicide

A federal prosecutor accused of traveling to Detroit to have sex with a 5-year-old girl has committed suicide in prison. J. D. Roy Atchison, a U.S. attorney in Pensacola, killed himself on Friday. He was in a special housing unit for inmates who are segregated for a variety of reasons,…

Oct 8, 2007 10:27 AM CDT

Lawyer Chases BB Gun Assailants

Burton, Mich., lawyer Michael Breczinski chased down two teens who shot him with BB guns in a mall parking lot Tuesday, even as they fired additional shots at him. The first pellet hit Breczinski in the neck below his ear. By the time he tackled one of the teens, he…

Oct 4, 2007 1:07 PM CDT

New Turmoil at Ave Maria

In the latest turmoil at Ave Maria School of Law, the alumni board of directors of the Michigan institution has issued a vote of no confidence in the school’s top leaders. It called—for the second time—for the ouster of the dean and board chairman of the Catholic law school, reports…

Oct 1, 2007 3:35 PM CDT

Lawyer Shells Out Big Bucks for Dating Coach

The dating game is getting so complicated that some people are hiring coaches to help them navigate the process. One person who is willing to pay for such expert advice is Kristen Skaff, a 35-year-old Detroit-area lawyer, the New York Times reports. She attended a dating boot camp in Los…

Sep 27, 2007 6:04 PM CDT

Court Accepts Diabetes Drug Appeal

The U.S. Supreme Court will consider whether Michigan plaintiffs may sue the maker of the diabetes drug Rezulin despite a state law that restricts pharmaceutical suits. The Food and Drug Administration asked that the drug be removed from the market after concerns arose that it caused liver damage in some…

Sep 25, 2007 3:21 PM CDT

Prosecutor Charged in Sex Sting Tries Suicide

A federal prosecutor arrested in a child sex sting tried to hang himself in jail early today. John David Roy Atchison was accused of flying to the Detroit area to have sex with a 5-year-old girl. His suicide attempt comes one day after he assured a judge he would not…

Sep 20, 2007 5:18 PM CDT

U.S. Prosecutor Arrested in Child Sex Sting

A federal prosecutor has been arrested on suspicion of flying to metropolitan Detroit with the intention of having sex with a 5-year-old girl. John David Roy Atchison was arrested in an undercover Internet sex sting, the Detroit Free Press reports. Police told the newspaper he flew with a Dora the…

Sep 18, 2007 1:26 PM CDT

Lawyer Cruises From Main Drag to UN

President Bush has chosen a lawyer from Southfield, Mich., to be an alternate delegate to the United Nations General Assembly. Rodger Young resigned from his firm, Young & Susser, to take the position, but will return as managing partner in early 2008, Crain’s Detroit Business reports. Young, a native of…

Sep 14, 2007 3:23 PM CDT

Law Profs Back Embattled Ave Maria Faculty

Updated: A continuing faculty controversy at Ave Maria School of Law that has become focused, in part, on a planned campus move from Michigan to Florida is heating up. Faculty say they have been treated outrageously by the current administration, and Christian legal academics are rallying in their support. In…

Sep 13, 2007 7:05 PM CDT

ABA Accreditation Issue for Ave Maria

Updated: An effort to establish a new law school with a religious mission has been threatened by real estate issues and a faculty revolt. However, the dean of Ave Maria School of Law says faculty concerns are overblown, and he is confident that the Catholic institution will soon be doing…

Sep 12, 2007 11:57 PM CDT

MI Lawyer Courtesy Rule Overturned

Controversial Michigan lawyer Geoffrey Fieger has won a round in his battle with Michigan state judges. A federal judge has struck down a state court rule used to sanction Fieger for calling state appeals judges jackasses in a radio interview and comparing them to Nazis, the Detroit News reports. The…

Sep 7, 2007 12:51 PM CDT

MI Lawyer Fieger Indicted

Controversial Michigan lawyer Geoffrey Fieger has been indicted on charges he conspired to make about $127,000 in illegal campaign contributions to the 2004 campaign of John Edwards. The indictment claims Fieger’s law firm reimbursed employees and contractors who made individual $2,000 contributions to Edwards, the legal limit, according to the…

Aug 27, 2007 11:02 AM CDT