Prosecutors

Career Attorney Targets DOJ in Editorial

A 25-year career attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice has caused a stir by critiquing in scathing terms his employer and the administration of President George W. Bush in a recent newspaper editorial. “In the course of its tenure since the Sept. 11 attacks, the Bush administration has turned…

Jul 11, 2007 1:00 AM CDT

Lawyers’ ‘Blue Flu’ Slows Chicago Courts

Criminal courts in the Chicago area are expected to operate in slow motion today, as up to two-thirds of the 520 prosecutors in Cook County’s felony courtrooms take the day off. The prosecutorial “blue flu” is intended to send a message to county administrators about a claimed 12 percent discrepancy…

Jul 10, 2007 6:00 PM CDT

Prosecutor Riding in DUI Car Disciplined

After a suburban Chicago prosecutor drank, drove and died May 11 in an auto accident that seriously injured another motorist, the top prosecutor in a neighboring county announced a strict new policy on drinking and driving. Even if they are not charged, Kane County Prosecutor John Barsanti told his staff,…

Jul 5, 2007 5:21 PM CDT

Khadr, 20, Starts 6th Year at Gitmo Jail

Although he scored a big legal victory June 4, when the U.S. government–at least for now–was told by a military court that its terrorism charges against him are invalid, Omar Khadr’s day-to-day situation is still the same. Held since he was 15 years old at the U.S. military prison at…

Jul 3, 2007 5:37 PM CDT

Judge Seeks Prosecutor Probe

The chief federal judge in Boston has asked disciplinary authorities to investigate a prosecutor who failed to turn over exculpatory material in a Mafia case. Judge Mark Wolf placed his letter to state disciplinary authorities in the court file yesterday, Adam Liptak reports in the New York Times. In another…

Jul 3, 2007 3:48 PM CDT

IL Prosecutors + Low Pay = ‘Brain Drain’

Although it hasn’t yet caused a rush to the courthouse door, state prosecutors in Cook County, Illinois, due to a budgeting quirk, earn less than public defenders. On average, they have been making $63,000 annually to prosecute alleged criminals, compared to $73,000 for those who defend alleged criminals. And that…

Jul 2, 2007 8:51 PM CDT

Israel Prez’s Plea Deal Not a Done Deal

A controversial agreement by the president of Israel to plead guilty to sexual harassment and other charges and resign from office to avoid a potential rape prosecution apparently isn’t a done deal. Amidst widespread criticism of the plea agreement and three petitions against it, the Israel Supreme Court is requiring…

Jul 2, 2007 8:33 PM CDT

At this Prosecutor’s Office, a Furry Soft Spot for Kids

Unconditional love, sad to say, isn’t what brings children to the offices of the King County Special Assault Unit.

Jul 1, 2007 7:25 PM CDT

Ex-Prosecutor, 74, Attacked in Law Office

A retired prosecutor who currently practices law and works as a judge in a small town in Georgia is hospitalized with severe head injuries after being beaten in his legal office. Glenn Thomas Jr., 74, allegedly was beaten by an ex-con who had contact with him when he was a…

Jun 29, 2007 3:00 AM CDT

Disgraced Duke Rape DA to Quit Monday

Mike Nifong, the Durham, N.C., attorney disbarred for his handling of the rape prosecution of three former Duke lacrosse players later determined to be innocent, will quit his job Monday. However, that still isn’t the end of the road for Nifong, as far as his legal career is concerned–he faces…

Jun 28, 2007 5:44 PM CDT

Bush Asserts Executive Privilege

The White House has asserted executive privilege and refused to turn over documents regarding the firing of at least eight U.S. attorneys. The administration will withhold documents from former White House counsel Harriet Miers and former political director Sara Taylor, and the officials will not testify, the Associated Press reports.…

Jun 28, 2007 3:57 PM CDT

White House Subpoenaed

The Senate Judiciary Committee has subpoenaed the White House, the vice president’s office and the Justice Department, setting up a potential constitutional conflict. The committee seeks documents to learn more about the legal justification for the National Security Agency’s warrantless wiretapping program as well as the telecommunications companies that aided…

Jun 28, 2007 2:36 PM CDT

AG Meets With Slain Prosecutor’s Family

During a visit to Seattle, U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales met today with the family of a federal prosecutor shot and killed by an unknown sniper five years ago as he sat working in his home near a window. The visit gave Tom Wales’ family hope for an increased federal…

Jun 28, 2007 2:27 AM CDT

Law-and-Order Libby Judge Under Fire

The product of a strict childhood under an authoritarian father, U.S. Dist. Judge Reggie Walton expects those who do the crime to do the time. And that includes Lewis “Scooter” Libby, the former chief of staff for Vice President Dick Cheney. But his two-and-a-half-year sentence for Libby in an obstruction…

Jun 27, 2007 11:20 PM CDT

Convicted Governor Blames Karl Rove for Recommended 30-Year Prison Term

The controversy over alleged White House politicization of the federal prosecution process has moved beyond concern about the perhaps politically motivated dismissals of nine U.S. attorneys to a new issue–the cases they did, or did not, pursue. Now Don Siegelman, a former Democratic governor of Alabama, is contending that he…

Jun 27, 2007 1:46 AM CDT