States

$21 M for Wrongful Birth Needs Fla. OK

A Florida couple has won a $21 million jury award over a misdiagnosis of their first child’s rare genetic defect that led them, they say, to have another child two years ago with the same debilitating disease. But Daniel and Amara Estrada won’t be able to collect the award unless…

Jul 24, 2007 8:30 PM CDT

Kangaroo Shoe Ban Upheld

The California Supreme Court has upheld a state law banning the sale of products made with kangaroo skin. Federal law does not pre-empt the state ban, the court ruled yesterday. The San Francisco Chronicle reports that the ruling could have a big impact on the makers of high-end soccer shoes,…

Jul 24, 2007 8:08 PM CDT

Woman Sues Fidel Castro in Dad’s Death

It isn’t every day that a U.S. court has to figure out how to serve a complaint on Fidel Castro–not to mention his brother, Raul, the Republic of Cuba and the Cuban army. So Justice Nancy Mills, who sits in Waldo County Superior Court in Maine, took a little time…

Jul 24, 2007 7:47 PM CDT

No Murder Charges for Katrina Doctor

A grand jury in New Orleans has refused to indict a doctor accused of murdering four hospitalized patients by having them injected with a lethal drug cocktail in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. However, a prosecutor said after the announcement of the grand jury’s findings that investigators in her office…

Jul 24, 2007 6:56 PM CDT

Fla. Judge: No Execution; It’s Too Cruel

A Florida judge has refused to impose the death penalty on a specific prisoner, following a botched 30-minute execution of another inmate on Dec. 13. Ruling Sunday in Ocala, after an 11-day evidentiary hearing, Circuit Judge Carven D. Angel agreed with the defense, reports the Associated Press. It would be…

Jul 24, 2007 5:18 PM CDT

$3,100 a Week for Summer Associates

Big Washington, D.C., law firms are paying summer associates as much as $3,100 a week while offering plentiful perks. The Washington Post writes about a dinner with a “Masters of the Universe ambience” atop the Kennedy Center, attended by summer associates at Steptoe & Johnson. Competition for top law grads…

Jul 24, 2007 4:45 PM CDT

Mich. Judge’s Warnings Unheeded

A Michigan judge says he tried to warn Virginia lawmakers about the dangers of high fines for motorist misdeeds, to no avail. Judge William Buhl of Van Buren County told the Washington Post he e-mailed all 140 legislators in Virginia opining that a similar Michigan program begun in 2003 was…

Jul 24, 2007 4:27 PM CDT

Interpreter Delay Spurs Dismissal

Prosecutors are appealing a Maryland judge’s decision to dismiss rape charges against a Liberian immigrant because of delays in finding an interpreter. Judge Katherine Savage of Rockville dismissed the case against Mahamu Kanneh last week, the Washington Post reports. He had been accused of raping a 7-year-old girl who was…

Jul 24, 2007 4:03 PM CDT

Gov’t Tracks Individual Pharmacy Buys

If you don’t want the police at your door unexpectedly, it’s best not to have too many colds and allergies. Several Kentucky residents found themselves explaining Sudafed purchases to authorities recently, after buying the non-prescription medicine to treat their symptoms, reports National Public Radio. Unbeknownst to them, the government had…

Jul 24, 2007 1:02 AM CDT

Broker Wins $1.6 M in Merrill Arbitration

An NASD securities arbitration panel has awarded $1.6 million to a broker of Iranian descent, saying that Merrill Lynch & Co. first set him up to be fired and then lied about him in an industry regulatory form, making him unemployable. The panel issued an unusually detailed eight-page decision explaining…

Jul 24, 2007 12:30 AM CDT

Illinois is 19th State to Ban Smoking

With the stroke of the state governor’s pen, Illinois today became the 19th state to ban smoking in most public buildings. The ban, which takes effect Jan. 1, 2008, applies to smokers in “bars, restaurants and just about every other public place where they might still be hanging out,” reports…

Jul 24, 2007 12:19 AM CDT

Ohio Attorney Survives Shark Attack

Harvey Miller is thanking his lucky stars. One, that he survived a rare shark attack off of Oahu, while snorkeling on vacation in Hawaii last week. And, two, that he probably isn’t going to lose the leg that the 8-foot tiger shark chomped. A doctor says the 36-year-old Toledo lawyer…

Jul 23, 2007 11:49 PM CDT

Same-Sex Registry Doesn’t End Alimony

Even under California’s current domestic partnership law, same-sex couples don’t get all the same benefits as married opposite-sex couples. So they also don’t get all the same detriments, an Orange County judge has decided. Thus, the fact that Ron Garber’s ex-wife has registered as a domestic partner of another woman…

Jul 23, 2007 11:16 PM CDT

Arrested Attorney Gambled Away $800 K

A run of good luck has apparently ended for a graduate of Yale Law School who has been a member of the Connecticut bar for more than 40 years and reportedly until now has had an unblemished record as a trusts and estates attorney. Richard C. Hannan Jr. was arrested…

Jul 23, 2007 10:37 PM CDT

Downward Spiral for Minn. Attorney

Only a few years ago, Robert Weisberg seemingly was a successful Minneapolis personal lawyer and businessman. Now, the 45-year-old has a newly shuttered newsstand chain business and an empty law office, as of December, when other attorneys walked out. Plus, he is defending not only an attorney discipline complaint that…

Jul 23, 2007 7:30 PM CDT