7th Circuit chastises lawyer for telling judge he was advocating for prosecutors, abdicating his job

A defense lawyer who told an 80-year-old federal judge that he was “advocating for the government” and “abdicating your job as a judge” can’t be rewarded for her inappropriate conduct, a federal appeals court has ruled. The Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected arguments that U.S. District Judge…

Jun 22, 2017 1:02 PM CDT

He walked out of prison after 11 years—now the state wants him back

Robert Woodall and Stephanie Walker just invested in a new sofa. It is a wrap-around sectional, wide enough to fit them and their two sons, Robby and Lance, and perfect for family movie nights at their ranch house in Umatilla, Florida, a small town outside Orlando. “I’m just happy we…

Jun 22, 2017 11:00 AM CDT

Lawyer’s failure to object to closed jury selection doesn’t require new trial, SCOTUS rules

A murder defendant is not entitled to a new trial, even though his lawyer failed to object to closing the courtroom during jury selection, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled. The court rejected an ineffective assistance claim by Kentel Myrone Weaver because he failed to show that a jury would…

Jun 22, 2017 10:04 AM CDT

Day care providers who blame satanic panic for 21-year prison stint are ‘actually innocent,’ DA says

A Texas prosecutor is dropping charges against an Austin couple who spent more than 20 years in prison for alleged sexual abuse of a child at their day care center in a case that involved fantastic allegations of satanic rituals. Travis County District Attorney Margaret Moore announced on Tuesday that…

Jun 21, 2017 12:18 PM CDT

7th Circuit again rejects short sentence for former officer, tosses judge from case

A federal judge who didn’t change his mind about a 14-month sentence for an Indiana police officer in an excessive force case won’t get a chance to reconsider.

Jun 21, 2017 7:45 AM CDT

Inmate attacks lawyer at one hearing, struggles with bailiffs at another

A Washington state inmate attacked his own lawyer during a sentencing hearing last Friday and then struggled with four bailiffs in a return court appearance on Wednesday. The inmate, 27-year-old Jose Linares, appeared to resist the bailiffs who escorted him into the Yakima courtroom, report KOMO News and KIMA-TV. Linares…

Jun 15, 2017 2:53 PM CDT

Judge orders convicted drunken drivers to download ride-hailing apps

An Ohio judge known for creative sentences is ordering convicted drunken drivers to download ride-hailing apps as a condition of their probation. Municipal Court Judge Michael Cicconetti of Painesville, northeast of Cleveland, orders convicted drivers to download Uber and Lyft and to enter a credit card number on the apps,…

Jun 14, 2017 8:00 AM CDT

Trade-secret claims hide details of technology that sends criminal defendants to jail

Criminal defendants are unable to challenge software used to send them to jail because makers of the for-profit technology claim their systems are a trade secret protected from disclosure. When information about computer codes and how the technology works is hidden from criminal defendants, the justice system is less fair,…

Jun 14, 2017 7:00 AM CDT

Collector to use $100M from sale of prized painting to support criminal justice reform

Art collector Agnes Gund had a plan to support criminal justice reform and reduce mass incarceration. To help reach those goals, she started a fund with money from the sale of her prized 1962 Roy Lichtenstein painting, “Masterpiece,” the New York Times reports. The 78-year-old Gund sold the painting in…

Jun 13, 2017 5:00 PM CDT

Person claiming to be aggrieved fugitive lawyer Eric Conn emails terms of his surrender

A person claiming to be the lawyer who fled on June 2 before his sentencing in a $550 million disability fraud scheme is dictating the terms of his surrender in an email that rails about inequitable sentencing. The email purporting to be from Kentucky lawyer Eric Conn was likely written…

Jun 12, 2017 12:02 PM CDT

Supreme Court lifts stay, allowing execution of Alabama inmate on Thursday

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday evening lifted a stay of execution granted to an Alabama inmate who joined with other inmates to challenge the use of the sedative midazolam in the death-penalty cocktail. Inmate Robert Melson, who is scheduled to be executed on Thursday, had been granted a stay…

Jun 7, 2017 12:04 PM CDT

Lawyer disappears while awaiting sentencing in $550M disability fraud scheme

Updated: A lawyer who pleaded guilty on March 24 in a $550 million disability fraud scheme has disappeared after removing his ankle bracelet, according to the FBI. An arrest warrant has been issued for Eric C. Conn of Pikeville, Kentucky, report the Washington Post, the Lexington Herald-Leader and the Louisville…

Jun 5, 2017 12:38 PM CDT

Former Penn State president is sentenced to jail in Sandusky scandal

Former Penn State president Graham Spanier and two other onetime university officials were sentenced to jail time on Friday for their inadequate response to a locker room shower incident involving former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. Judge John Boccabella called the case against Spanier, 68, “a Shakespearean tragedy” and questioned…

Jun 2, 2017 2:43 PM CDT

Federal judge is ‘sick and tired of lawyers from white-shoe law firms’ helping clients avoid charges

A federal judge in Brooklyn, New York, who once criticized Kirkland & Ellis for sending an associate to court had another criticism for BigLaw on Wednesday when he imposed a sentence in a bribery case. U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis wanted to know why the only person facing prison in…

Jun 1, 2017 10:10 AM CDT

Challenges to solitary confinement are effecting change

The United Nations special rapporteur on torture defines solitary confinement as isolation for at least 22 hours a day. The U.N. calls for an outright ban on solitary confinement that is indefinite or lasts more than 15 days.

The ABA’s Governmental Affairs Office has testified before Congress about the detrimental effects of the practice, and the ABA Criminal Justice Standards on the Treatment of Prisoners state: “Segregated housing should be for the briefest term and under the least restrictive conditions practicable.”

Jun 1, 2017 3:40 AM CDT