States

Chancellor: I Bungled Chemerinsky Hire

The man responsible for the on-again, off-again hiring of a prominent constitutional scholar to serve as dean of a new law school being created at the University of California at Irvine admits his handling of the matter left much to be desired. “This is certainly something that I bungled, and…

Sep 21, 2007 12:14 AM CDT

US: Milberg Weiss Firm Was ‘Racketeering Enterprise’

Updated: In a stunning series of body blows today in an ongoing battle between the government and one of the country’s most powerful plaintiff firms, federal prosecutors in California announced enhanced charges against the firm itself, the indictment of its co-founding partner and the latest plea deal with a former…

Sep 20, 2007 10:10 PM CDT

Time Served, Preacher’s Widow Gets Supervised Visitation

Although her request for custody was not granted, the Tennessee preacher’s widow who served less than a year in prison for killing her husband may have supervised visitation with her three daughters, a judge has ruled. Mary Winkler may visit the children on a schedule to be worked out by…

Sep 20, 2007 7:46 PM CDT

Fundraiser Accused of $60 M Ponzi Scheme

Democratic fundraiser Norman Hsu is accused in a criminal complaint unsealed today of defrauding investors out of more than $60 million and breaking campaign finance laws. Among those who allegedly lost money are New York investors who thought they were investing in a clothing business, the Washington Post reports. They…

Sep 20, 2007 6:59 PM CDT

Pain-Patient Pardon Ends 25-Year Term

The wife of a disabled Florida man serving a 25-year sentence for trafficking in drugs–the medication he needs to suppress his pain–was stunned yesterday when the state pardoned him at a scheduled hearing on his request for a sentence commutation. Richard Paey, 48, who suffers from chronic fiery pain in…

Sep 20, 2007 6:43 PM CDT

Prosecutor Charged in Sex Sting Tries Suicide

A federal prosecutor arrested in a child sex sting tried to hang himself in jail early today. John David Roy Atchison was accused of flying to the Detroit area to have sex with a 5-year-old girl. His suicide attempt comes one day after he assured a judge he would not…

Sep 20, 2007 5:18 PM CDT

CA Lawyer Accused in Investment Scam

A California lawyer has been indicted on charges that he participated in an investment scam that netted more than $1 million from his clients and other victims. Lawyer Gerald M. Shaw of Newport Beach and Gregory De Lavalette of Rancho Santa Fe were indicted yesterday, the Daily Pilot reports. The…

Sep 20, 2007 4:59 PM CDT

Judge Halts TN Lethal Injection

A federal judge has halted an upcoming execution in Tennessee, ruling that the state’s lethal injection procedure presents “a substantial risk of unnecessary pain.” Judge Aleta A. Trauger of Nashville said the three-drug procedure does not ensure that inmates are unconscious when they are executed, the New York Times reports.…

Sep 20, 2007 4:06 PM CDT

Spector Judge Does About-Face

The judge in the murder trial of music producer Phil Spector has agreed to revoke a jury instruction requiring prosecutors to prove the record producer held the gun that fired while in actress Lana Clarkson’s mouth. Deadlocked jurors had told Judge Larry Paul Fidler that they found the instruction confusing,…

Sep 20, 2007 2:34 PM CDT

NY Judge Laments E-Discovery ‘Fiasco’

A New York federal judge has summed up the problems with electronic discovery in an opinion ordering PSEG Power New York Inc. to produce 3,000 e-mails and 211,000 pages of electronic materials in coherent form. Magistrate Judge Randolph F. Treece of Albany labeled the e-discovery problems a “fiasco” that caused…

Sep 20, 2007 2:12 PM CDT

Judge Ito Hoax Fools TMZ

TMZ.com, the Web site known for its celebrity reporting coups, had egg on its face after it learned a video it posted of “Judge Lance Ito” featured an imposter. The person in the video, thought to be the judge who presided over the 1995 murder trial of O.J. Simpson, opined…

Sep 20, 2007 12:54 PM CDT

TN Lawyer Helps Rescue Pilot

A Chattanooga, Tenn., lawyer was among the rescuers who helped pull survivors from a small plane that crashed in a shopping center parking lot Wednesday. The plane had crashed as it approached the runway at the Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport. The pilot and three passengers were taken to a hospital for…

Sep 20, 2007 12:41 PM CDT

Cabbies Sue, Say GPS Risks Trade Secrets

Fearful of an invasion of privacy that could allow others to take advantage of a valuable trade secret—the best driving routes to find fares—New York cabdrivers have filed suit to block new rules requiring the installation of GPS and other new technology. While not all taxi drivers and cab owners…

Sep 20, 2007 1:25 AM CDT

Tax Lawyer Sued for $17 M Over Claimed Dual Role

An unsuccessful horse-breeding investment by wealthy clients has put a Portland, Ore., tax attorney in the hot seat. He and his law firm reportedly are being sued for at least $17 million by two former clients over his alleged dual role in receiving a commission for promoting the venture while…

Sep 20, 2007 12:31 AM CDT

Court to Parents: No Tough Love, No Cars

A lack of tough love has cost two Washington state parents their cars. Because they didn’t act quickly enough to snatch back their car keys from a son who apparently was using their vehicles to deal drugs, according to authorities, they were properly seized by the government under drug-forfeiture laws…

Sep 19, 2007 11:48 PM CDT