Sentencing/Post Conviction

Illinois Inmate Wins New Trial After Arguing His Sentence Was Too Lenient

An Illinois inmate who regretted his guilty plea to murder has won a new trial based on arguments that his 30-year sentence was too lenient. Benny Deanda Jr. wants to assert in a new trial that he acted in self-defense, the Chicago Tribune reports. He pleaded guilty during his first…

Nov 9, 2011 4:08 PM CST

Prosecutor Served Search Warrant on Defense Lawyer During Trial to Get His Documents

In a San Antonio courtroom packed with lawyers attending as spectators, a Texas prosecutor testified today that she had a search warrant served on opposing counsel and his client during a trial in an embezzlement case early this year. The reason why was because she feared he was withholding stolen…

Nov 9, 2011 2:46 AM CST

Hedge Fund Co-Founder Rajaratnam Told to Pay Record $92.8M SEC Fine Within 14 Days

Already sentenced to a record 11 years, fined $10 million and ordered to forfeit another $53.8 million after being convicted in an insider-trading case, Galleon Group co-founder Raj Rajaratnam made legal history again today. He was fined $92.8 million by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the highest civil penalty…

Nov 8, 2011 11:58 PM CST

Supreme Court Upholds Conviction of Defendant Who Missed Benefit of Redaction Ruling

In 1998, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled too late for Eric Greene, convicted of second-degree murder, robbery and conspiracy for his role in a robbery. The Supreme Court upheld Greene’s conviction today in a decision that dealt with the timing of the 1998 decision and whether it amounted to clearly…

Nov 8, 2011 3:48 PM CST

Evidence Rulings and Incriminating Statements Made Conrad Murray’s Case a Losing Battle

Conrad Murray didn’t help his case when he made incriminating statements to detectives about the death of pop star Michael Jackson. During the police interview, the physician admitted he treated Jackson’s insomnia with the powerful sedative propofol, admitted giving Jackson the drug on the night of his death, and admitted…

Nov 8, 2011 1:02 PM CST

Prison Overcrowding Is a Plus for Lindsay Lohan, Who Served a 30-Day Sentence in Five Hours

Lindsay Lohan reported to jail Sunday evening to begin serving a 30-day sentence for violating probation and was released less than five hours later. Lohan was released early because of jail overcrowding, the Associated Press reports. Earlier press estimates said the actress would likely have to serve six days of…

Nov 8, 2011 12:34 PM CST

Texas Broker Gets 17-Year Sentence in Fraud Scheme

The former CEO of a Texas-based investment firm has been sentenced to 17 years in prison for defrauding hundreds of investors out of more than $50 million. Several of his victims watched as Kurt Branham Barton, the former head of Triton Financial, gave a tearful apology at his sentencing hearing…

Nov 4, 2011 10:52 PM CDT

Lawyer Who Paid $725K Kickbacks to Judges in Pa. ‘Kids for Cash’ Case Gets 18 Months

A Pennsylvania lawyer who said he was pressured into participating in a $2.6 million “kids for cash” corruption scheme operated by two then-Luzerne County judges was sentenced today to 18 months in prison by a federal judge in Scranton. Robert J. Powell got a reduced sentence in recognition of his…

Nov 4, 2011 4:22 PM CDT

Lindsay Lohan Gets 30 Days for Admitted Probation Violation, Likely Will Serve 6 Days

Updated: Despite recent efforts to impress the judge by diligently working at her community service sentence in the Los Angeles morgue, actress Lindsay Lohan was sentenced today to 30 days for violating her probation in intertwined drunk-driving and necklace-theft cases. Due to jail overcrowding, the 25-year-old likely will have to…

Nov 2, 2011 6:46 PM CDT

More Than 1,800 Prisoners Eligible for Immediate Release Under Retroactive Crack Sentencing Rules

A June vote by the U.S. Sentencing Commission is good news for more than 1,800 prisoners who are now eligible for immediate release. The commission vote gave retroactive application to a 2010 law reducing crack cocaine sentencing disparities, the New York Times reports. Eventually, about 12,000 inmates could see their…

Nov 2, 2011 2:07 PM CDT

The Battle on the Home Front: Special Courts Turn to Vets to Help Other Vets

Photo of Judge Robert Russell by Jennifer S. Altman. When Assistant District Attorney Ray Herman first became involved with Buffalo, N.Y.’s alternative treatment program for military veterans who’d found themselves on the wrong side of the law, he had his doubts. “The whole program seemed a little—I don’t know—touchy-feely,” says…

Nov 1, 2011 10:10 AM CDT

Letters: Rebel-Rousers

Rebel-Rousers What I liked about this year’s crop of Legal Rebels (September): Two were not lawyers. Too often we forget how important paralegals and other nonlawyer legal workers are. Glad to see some get some recognition. What I didn’t like: Not one of them was doing anything remotely close to…

Nov 1, 2011 9:50 AM CDT

A New Newark: Rekindling Hope with New Community Courts

Newark, N.J., is notorious for murders, shootings and muggings, yet there are a few hopeful signs in the judicial system as a new community court is helping nonviolent offenders change their lives. Newark Community Solutions opened earlier this year in the Newark Municipal Court to promote alternative sentencing—community service coupled…

Nov 1, 2011 9:20 AM CDT

Judge Rebuffs Prosecutors, Sentences Weeping Ex-Greenberg Lobbyist for ‘Cog in the Wheel’ Role

A federal judge in Washington, D.C., has sentenced former Greenberg Traurig partner and lobbyist Kevin Ring to 20 months in prison, far less than the sentence of up to 22 years previously pushed by prosecutors. U.S. District Judge Ellen Segal Huvelle sentenced Ring on Wednesday for his bribery conviction in…

Oct 28, 2011 11:00 AM CDT

Veteran Criminal Defense Attorney Gets Probation for Stealing Ice Cream Shop Signs

A bizarre case in which a veteran Massachusetts criminal defense lawyer admitted he took ice cream shop signs after concluding (wrongly, the shop owner says) that she had called the police on his adult son as he was performing a magic show in front of the shop, has ended with…

Oct 27, 2011 5:32 PM CDT