Rhode Island

Trial Begins for Estate Planning Lawyer Who Bought Annuities for the Dying; Was His Idea Legal?

Updated: Trial has begun–and, much sooner than expected, ended–for a Rhode Island estate planning attorney who was federally indicted (PDF) last year after being accused of making $15 million or more, with the help of others, by defrauding dying individuals into allowing insurance investments to be made in their names…

Nov 14, 2012 9:34 PM CST

Fined $15 Over Cockatoo’s Saucy Squawks, Bird’s Owner Is Appealing on Constitutional Grounds

It isn’t so much the $15 fine as the constitutional principle at issue, according to a Rhode Island woman who owns a cockatoo who reportedly squawks a blue streak. Lynne L. Taylor has already appealed to state superior court a Sept. 17 finding by Municipal Court Judge Joel Gerstenblatt that…

Sep 28, 2012 9:08 PM CDT

School Concludes Bias Law Bars Father-Daughter Dances

A school district in Cranston, R.I., has decided to ban father-daughter and mother-son activities because of fears they are illegal under gender discrimination law. The superintendent of the school district in Cranston, R.I., acted after a single mom complained that her daughter was not able to attend a father-daughter dance,…

Sep 19, 2012 11:00 AM CDT

As More States Enact Social Host Laws, Parents Face Jail Time for Kids’ Drinking Parties

Parents are increasingly targeted for their children’s at-home drinking parties under social host laws now on the books in 28 states. Parents can face criminal or civil penalties under the laws if they permit underage teens to drink on their property, no matter who supplies the alcohol and even if…

Sep 12, 2012 12:44 PM CDT

Rhode Island Governor Loses Battle to Keep Inmate from Potential US Death Penalty Prosecution

Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee says he is evaluating his options after a federal appeals court ruled he must hand over a murder defendant for federal prosecution. Chafee had refused to surrender defendant Jason Pleau because of the possibility the feds would seek the death penalty, an option he opposes,…

May 8, 2012 3:10 PM CDT

Ex-Lawyer Pleads Guilty to Bank Fraud in $1.1M Mortgage Scheme

A disbarred lawyer has pleaded guilty in federal court in Rhode Island to multiple counts of bank fraud and filing false tax returns. Prosecutors says James Levitt, 66, submitted fraudulent applications to obtain $1.1 million in mortgage financing in 2006 and 2007, according to the Associated Press and WPRI. He…

Feb 2, 2012 8:48 PM CST

Lawyer Sues RI Chief Justice, Says He Launched Law Practice Probe in Retaliation for Court Critique

A longtime Rhode Island practitioner who is known as a politically active critic of the state’s top court has filed a federal lawsuit against its chief justice and other defendants. In it, Keven A. McKenna alleges that Chief Justice Paul Suttell and other defendants violated his constitutional rights and sought…

Dec 20, 2011 6:41 PM CST

Oops. Attorney’s ‘Staff Error’ Excuse Gets Him in More Trouble, Since He Didn’t Have Any Staff

A Rhode Island attorney has been ordered to perform 20 hours of pro bono legal work in family court guardianship matters to resolve a legal ethics case. It began with a billing dispute concerning several family court guardianship cases for children in the same family, the Rhode Island Supreme Court…

Nov 14, 2011 9:20 PM CST

Appeals Court Blocks Surrender of RI Defendant to Federal Authorities

A federal appeals court ruled Thursday that Rhode Island officials don’t have to surrender custody of an accused murderer to federal authorities in a dispute over the death penalty. The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston held (PDF) that the federal government is bound by the terms of…

Oct 14, 2011 7:31 PM CDT

Ex-Inmate Earns Yale Law Degree, Gets Ready to Take Florida Bar Exam

A former drug dealer who used his prison time productively, getting a high-school equivalency diploma and reading prodigiously so he was ready to enroll in college after his release, has now passed another milestone. Andres Idarraga earned his law degree from Yale University last month, and is now getting ready…

Jun 16, 2011 9:44 PM CDT

Lead-Paint Plaintiffs Lawyer Confirmed for Federal Judgeship After Filibuster Fails

Updated: Senate Republicans have failed in an attempt to filibuster the judicial nomination of John “Jack” McConnell Jr., a trial lawyer opposed by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. McConnell was confirmed Wednesday after 11 Republicans joined Democrats in a vote to end debate. The Associated Press and The BLT: The…

May 4, 2011 6:51 PM CDT

Citing 4-Year Vacancy, Chief Federal Judge in RI Sends Cases to Other States, Upsetting Some Parties

In a highly unusual move, the chief federal district judge in Rhode Island has sent some two dozen cases to colleagues in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. She and another judge have struggled for four years to keep up with the load as a third seat on the bench sat vacant…

Mar 7, 2011 6:40 PM CST

E-mail of Retired RI Justice Is Hacked by Scammers Seeking Cash

Hackers used the e-mail account of retired Chief Justice Frank Williams of the Rhode Island Supreme Court to make a plea for money. The e-mail claiming to be from Williams tells recipients that he was robbed while on a secret trip to England for a seminar and he now needs…

Feb 4, 2011 3:55 PM CST

Appeals Court Reinstates Uniloc Win in Microsoft Case, But Calls for New Trial re $390M Jury Award

A federal appeals court has reinstated a jury verdict against Microsoft Corp. in favor of anti-piracy software maker Uniloc USA Inc. However, a $388 million jury award to Uniloc in the patent case was “fundamentally tainted,” requiring a new trial on damages, said the U.S. Court of Appeals for the…

Jan 4, 2011 7:00 PM CST

Real Estate Lawyer Pleads Guilty in Fraud Case Over Paid-Up Home Loans

Real estate lawyer and former state lawmaker Christopher Maselli is current on mortgage payments for some $1.7 million in financing for four homes he started purchasing during the real estate boom, his lawyer says. But because he allegedly falsified documentation to obtain the loans, including two tax returns and bank…

Nov 12, 2010 12:59 AM CST