Missouri

Lawyer Protests 120-Day Contempt Term for Language Used in Court Filing

Sentenced to a 120-day jail term for harshly criticizing a judge, other court officials and a prosecutor in a legal filing, attorney Carl Smith, 62, is asking the Missouri Supreme Court to overturn the sentence. Although his lawyer, Bruce Galloway, says Smith’s claim in his filing of “personal interest, bias…

Oct 16, 2009 4:49 PM CDT

Missouri Cracks Down on Cyberbullying, Detains Teen for Creating Website

The detention of a Missouri high school student accused of creating a website to bully another student, is the latest in an aggressive crackdown on cyberbullying. The student, reportedly a ninth grade girl, had already been disciplined, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Police became involved, however, after school authorities…

Oct 16, 2009 1:44 PM CDT

Lawyer Loses Unemployment Cash Because of $1.30 in Daily Blog Income

The state of New York has cut off unemployment benefits for a 2008 law grad after she reported collecting $1.30 a day in advertising income from her blog. The lawyer, who allowed only her first name of Karin to be used, was laid off from her job at a New…

Oct 8, 2009 12:11 PM CDT

Daughter of Slain Attorney Accuses Her Mother in Civil Suit Over His Death

More than two years after attorney Rolland Comstock was shot to death in his Greene County, Mo., home, no one has been charged with his murder. But in a civil case that is expected to go to trial next June, the daughter of the slain probate attorney and rare book…

Sep 22, 2009 6:27 PM CDT

Client Sues Bryan Cave for $10M, Says Prenup Silent on Capital Gains Tax

A prominent Missouri businessman has sued Bryan Cave for malpractice in St. Louis County Circuit Court, contending that the firm and partner Lawrence Brody botched his prenuptial agreement by failing to address the issue of capital gains tax. Since a substantial portion of Donald Bryant’s assets were in a high-profile…

Sep 9, 2009 9:14 PM CDT

Kansas City Court Workers Asked to Provide DNA after iPhone Theft

Employees at the Kansas City, Mo., municipal court say they were asked to submit to DNA tests and polygraph exams after the presiding judge had her iPhone stolen and another judge had $79 stolen from her purse. Three police detectives were assigned to investigate, the Kansas City Star reports. “Some…

Sep 8, 2009 2:08 PM CDT

Lawyers Turn a 2002 RV into a Mobile Law Office

Two lawyers with offices in Kansas and Missouri didn’t want to meet with clients in courthouse stairwells, so they decided to take their office with them. Lawyers Chris Meek and Nathan Coleman bought a 2002 Volkswagen Rialta and turned the recreational vehicle into a traveling law office, the Joplin Globe…

Aug 25, 2009 6:30 PM CDT

Federal Judge Orders Lawyer Jailed Over Scheduling Conflict

A criminal defense lawyer who didn’t show up on the trial date he specifically requested has raised the ire of a federal judge in Kansas City, Mo. U.S. District Judge Gary Fenner held lawyer Daniel Ross in contempt of court and ordered him to serve three days in jail, the…

Aug 5, 2009 4:19 PM CDT

Meet Kris Kobach, Law Prof Fighting for Local Role in Immigration Enforcement

University of Missouri-Kansas City law professor Kris Kobach is supporting tougher measures to fight illegal immigration in several court cases throughout the country. Kobach “is on a dogged campaign to fight illegal immigration at the local level, riding an insurgency by cities and states fed up with what they see…

Jul 21, 2009 3:16 PM CDT

Prominent Mo. Lawyer is Criticized in Another Wrongful Conviction Case

A prominent attorney criticized earlier, along with others responsible for a wrongful conviction case in Missouri, is in the spotlight again. A Missouri Supreme Court petition filed on behalf of a man convicted of murdering his mother accuses attorney Kenny Hulshof, a former six-term Congressman and state Republican gubernatorial candidate,…

Jun 3, 2009 11:25 PM CDT

Craigslist Will Drop Erotic Services Ads in Deal with Three State AGs

Facing pressure from attorneys general in three states, Craiglist has agreed to drop its erotic services advertising. The online classified ad website will replace the category with “adult” listings that will be reviewed by its employees, the Associated Press reports. Craigslist acted after meetings with attorneys general from Illinois, Connecticut…

May 13, 2009 3:40 PM CDT

Former AG Ashcroft Forms Nationwide Law Firm with Ex-Prosecutors

Former Attorney General John Ashcroft is teaming up with former federal prosecutors to open a nationwide law firm that will affiliate with his consulting business. Ashcroft’s law firm is expected to open offices in several cities in the next several weeks, the St. Louis Business Journal reports. The former Missouri…

Apr 22, 2009 12:41 PM CDT

Mo. Judge: System Failed at All Levels in Teen’s Murder Conviction

The Missouri justice system failed at all levels as an apparently innocent teen was charged, convicted and found guilty as well on appeal in a college student’s 1992 murder, a state-court judge ruled today. Saying that particular doubt was cast on the conviction of Joshua Kezer by the fact that…

Feb 17, 2009 11:38 PM CST

Judicial Diversity is Lacking, But Here’s What to Do to Improve, Report Says

Women and minorities are still underrepresented on the state trial and appellate court bench, regardless whether the judges are elected or appointed to their positions. But there are things that can be done to include their chances of winning seats proportionate to their representation in the general population, according to…

Feb 2, 2009 9:13 PM CST

Kansas City, Mo., Mayor Sues After His Wife is Banned from City Hall

A couple of months ago, the Kansas City, Mo., city council effectively banned the mayor’s wife from city hall. This month, Mayor Mark Funkhouser sued, contending that shutting the doors of city hall to his spouse violates state law and the city charter. It is only the latest litigation over…

Nov 21, 2008 10:24 PM CST