Trials & Litigation

Big, Big Bucks at Issue in ‘Big Dig’ Case?

Attorneys on both sides are still jockeying for position in the so-called Big Dig tort case in Boston. But plaintiff lawyers reportedly could be seeking a settlement in the neighborhood of $500 million in a tort claim over a woman crushed to death when the ceiling of the ill-fated tunnel…

Jun 27, 2007 10:06 PM CDT

CIA Documents Show U.S. Dirty Deeds

From an unsuccessful government plot to have a Chicago mobster assassinate Cuban dictator Fidel Castro to a failed effort to bug the Las Vegas hotel room of comedian Dan Rowan and a sidelines role in the Watergate scandal, recently released CIA documents show a plethora of dirty deeds committed by…

Jun 27, 2007 8:18 PM CDT

3 Not-So-Little Pigs’ Upscale Home Saved

Three not-so-little pigs living in the upscale Chicago suburb of Lake Forest didn’t, of course, have to worry about a wolf huffing and puffing and blowing their rickety house down. But their owner and her children were plenty concerned about a judge’s potential ban of the 200-pound porkers from their…

Jun 27, 2007 7:25 PM CDT

Padilla Jurors See Bin Laden Interview

Jurors in the terrorism trial of Jose Padilla saw a 10-year-old video of an interview in which Osama bin Laden condemned the United States. In the edited, seven-minute tape, the al-Qaida leader praised recent terrorist bombings that killed U.S. soldiers and warned that American civilians could also be targeted. U.S.…

Jun 27, 2007 4:36 PM CDT

Conrad Black Case Moves to Jury

Jurors are expected to begin deliberations today in the trial of media baron Conrad Black, accused of diverting noncompete payments from Hollinger International. Black is on trial along with two co-defendants on charges they defrauded investors of about $60 million and lied to investigators. About 50 witnesses testified, but the…

Jun 27, 2007 2:01 PM CDT

Suit Claims Restaurant a Copy

A New York chef has sued a competitor for copying the look and feel of her restaurant. Rebecca Charles, who owns the Pearl Oyster Bar in the West Village, says the competing restaurateur has copied her white marble bar, gray trim and straw-back chairs, the New York Times reports. She…

Jun 27, 2007 1:03 PM CDT

Convicted Governor Blames Karl Rove for Recommended 30-Year Prison Term

The controversy over alleged White House politicization of the federal prosecution process has moved beyond concern about the perhaps politically motivated dismissals of nine U.S. attorneys to a new issue–the cases they did, or did not, pursue. Now Don Siegelman, a former Democratic governor of Alabama, is contending that he…

Jun 27, 2007 1:46 AM CDT

Doctor, Soldier Among Plaintiffs Suing Feds Over Delayed Background Checks

A 30-year physician in Texas and a former member of the U.S. Army National Guard might seem to be unlikely national security risks. But they are among thousands whose background checks have been delayed for months or even years, reports the Houston Chronicle. As a result, families have been separated…

Jun 27, 2007 1:22 AM CDT

Did Missouri Execute an Innocent Man?

A dozen years after Larry Griffin was executed, despite his continuing proclaimations of innocence, by the state of Missouri, there are major unanswered questions about whether he was actually guilty of the 1980 drive-by shooting he was convicted of committing. After a University of Michigan law professor brought to light…

Jun 26, 2007 8:35 PM CDT

Mandatory Sentence Laws Harsh, Unfair, Federal Judge Tells Congress

Federal laws requiring federal judges to impose mandatory minimum sentences can be unfair and unduly harsh, and certain individual laws are especially objectionable, the chair of the Judicial Conference Committee on Criminal Law told a Congressional subcommittee today. “I have found the application of one particularly egregious mandatory minimum sentencing…

Jun 26, 2007 8:18 PM CDT

U-Haul Sanctioned for Lost Evidence

A Los Angeles Times investigation has found that U-Haul lost, altered or tossed out truck and trailer parts sought by injured customers in almost a dozen lawsuits since 1989. Judges have entered judgments against U-Haul in at least two cases for such misconduct. U-Haul told the newspaper that the few…

Jun 26, 2007 8:12 PM CDT

Recall Stalls Despite Tire Defect Suits

A tire distributor has sued a Chinese tire maker alleging it eliminated a safety feature without notification. But the tires are still on vehicles, even after a fatal accident allegedly caused by the missing feature. The Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) says the case highlights problems with the effectiveness of…

Jun 26, 2007 7:52 PM CDT

11th Circuit OKs Search of Football Fans

“Voluntary” pat-down searches of fans entering football stadiums do not violate the 4th Amendment prohibition of unreasonable searches and seizes, the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals decided today. Ruling in a case brought by a Tampa Bay Buccaneers season-ticket holder Gordon Johnston, a civics teacher, the appeals court said…

Jun 26, 2007 7:24 PM CDT

Strangers Offer $1 M Bond to GA Teen

Eleven entrepreneurs have offered to pay a $1 million cash bond to free a Georgia teen who has been serving a 10-year sentence in a controversial child sex case. Due to a sentencing quirk, Genarlow Wilson received this term after being convicted of the felony of aggravated child molestation for…

Jun 26, 2007 6:05 PM CDT

Appeal of Contempt Ruling to No Avail; Will Phil Spector Lawyer Go to Jail?

A former defense lawyer for music producer and murder defendant Phil Spector may soon be headed for the slam. Sara Caplan had been held in contempt by the trial judge for refusing to testify about missing evidence she allegedly saw an expert collect from the murder scene, at Spector’s home…

Jun 26, 2007 1:17 AM CDT