States

St. John’s Law Students Part of Lockdown

A three-hour lockdown at St. John’s University in Queens, N.Y., yesterday extended to law students after a man walked onto campus wearing a Halloween mask and toting a rifle in his backpack. Security officers tackled the man, identified as 22-year-old Omesh Hiraman, ABC’s 7online reports. Hiraman’s father said his son…

Sep 27, 2007 12:47 PM CDT

Money Mattered in Spector Trial

Money can buy a lot of things, including a top-notch defense that helped produce a deadlocked jury in the murder trial of music producer Phil Spector. “Whether you are buying a car, a boat or a defense, the bigger the budget, the better the ride,” Houston jury consultant Robert Hirschhorn…

Sep 27, 2007 11:47 AM CDT

Patriot Act Surveillance Provisions Struck

An Oregon lawyer mistakenly identified as a suspect in a terrorist bombing has won a ruling that parts of the USA Patriot Act are unconstitutional because they allow surveillance and searches of Americans without probable cause. U.S. District Judge Anne Aiken of Portland ruled that the government avoided probable cause…

Sep 27, 2007 11:12 AM CDT

Three UK Lawyers Jump to Mayer Brown

A United Kingdom law firm is losing three commercial litigators, including the department head, to Mayer Brown. Clare Canning and two junior partners are jumping to the U.S. firm from Barlow Lyde & Gilbert, Legal Week reports. Canning is known for successfully defending Ernst & Young in a suit by…

Sep 27, 2007 10:38 AM CDT

UK’s ex-AG Joins Debevoise

Debevoise & Plimpton has snagged the United Kingdom’s former attorney general. Peter Goldsmith will join the firm’s London office as European chair of litigation, according to a press release. He told the New York Law Journal he knew of Debevoise for its pro bono and public interest work. He said…

Sep 27, 2007 10:29 AM CDT

State Backs Down in Jena 6 Case

The prosecution in a controversial case against one of the so-called Jena Six defendants has accepted a Louisiana appellate court ruling that he should be tried as a juvenile. Mychal Bell, who was 16 at the time that he and five other black high school students allegedly attacked a white…

Sep 27, 2007 12:50 AM CDT

Mistrial as Phil Spector Jury Deadlocks

Updated: A mistrial has been declared in the second-degree murder trial of Phil Spector, after the judge polled the jury, who all agreed they were deadlocked. The foreman said the panel was split 10-2, in a live broadcast of the trial. But, at the judge’s request, he did not say…

Sep 26, 2007 8:46 PM CDT

No Ruling on Craig Restroom Plea Issue

After a hearing today over Sen. Larry Craig’s request to withdraw his guilty plea in a Minnesota restroom sex sting case, the judge is not expected to rule until next month. Demonstrators—a few equipped with toilets on which to sit—gathered outside the suburban Minneapolis courthouse as lawyers argued about whether…

Sep 26, 2007 8:28 PM CDT

Towns Reconsider Anti-Immigrant Laws

Faced with lawsuits and failing businesses, some municipalities are rethinking laws designed to crack down on illegal immigrants. The town of Riverside, N.J., is among those that have reconsidered, the New York Times reports. Its law had punished landlords who rent to illegal immigrants or employers who hire them. But…

Sep 26, 2007 6:23 PM CDT

Chicago Cop Charged in Alleged Gang Plot to Kill Former Cop

A Chicago police officer has been arrested by federal authorities in an alleged plot to murder a former officer expected to testify against him in a police corruption case. Officer Jerome Finnigan was arrested at home this morning and charged with planning to hire a street gang member to murder…

Sep 26, 2007 5:41 PM CDT

More Murder Charges After Cops Raid Cops Over Cold Cases

Authorities announced new charges yesterday in several cold-case murders in a suburban Chicago municipality. But the charges were overshadowed by the fact that they were brought only after police from other jurisdictions raided the city earlier this year and seized evidence concerning unsolved violent crimes. A task force from the…

Sep 26, 2007 5:32 PM CDT

Lynne Stewart Appearance Roils Law School

Hofstra law school’s decision to invite a disbarred lawyer to participate in a legal ethics conference on defending unpopular clients is raising some hackles. The controversy centers on the invitation extended to Lynne Stewart, who has been convicted of providing material aid to terrorists for helping an imprisoned sheik communicate…

Sep 26, 2007 5:09 PM CDT

Addiction Help Weighed in Discipline Cases

New Jersey’s lawyer discipline body is recommending three-month suspended suspensions for two lawyers who were caught with drugs and attended addiction counseling sessions. But it refused to follow the state supreme court’s lead and impose a lesser sentence, distinguishing the present cases from a May ruling by the court, the…

Sep 26, 2007 3:46 PM CDT

Lawyer’s Knowledge Used Against Him

Connecticut lawyer Philip Russell has a lot of expertise in child pornography cases—but it may hurt his defense in a prosecution for destroying evidence. Prosecutors say Russell should have given the FBI his client’s computer containing child pornography instead of destroying it. He is accused of obstructing justice under the…

Sep 26, 2007 2:18 PM CDT

Linklaters Sends UK Partner to Head US Office

Linklaters is sending a London partner to New York City where he will lead offices there and in Brazil. John Tucker, who oversaw global finance and projects in London, will replace U.S. managing partner Paul Wickes, Legal Week reports. Wickes will become a senior partner. The move is part of…

Sep 26, 2007 1:39 PM CDT