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M'sian transsexual asks court to say she is woman
Legal World News |
2011/05/26 09:47
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A 25-year-old Malaysian transsexual wants a court to affirm she is a woman following sex-change surgery so she can change her name and gender on her identification documents, her lawyer said Thursday. Sex-change surgery is legal in mainly Muslim Malaysia, but transsexuals often cannot legally change their gender status. Lawyer Horley Isaacs said Ashraf Hafiz Abdul Aziz underwent a complete sex-change operation in Thailand in 2008 but that the National Registration Department refused to update her gender and name on her identity card. "Since young, she has felt like a woman trapped in a man's body," Isaacs told The Associated Press. "Doctors who evaluated her after her operation found her to be a woman in her physical and psychological buildup. We want the court to declare she is a woman and that she be given a change of name and gender." Ashraf, the third of five children, has the support of her parents to change her name to Aleesha Farhana Abdul Aziz, Isaacs said, adding that the High Court will rule on her case July 18. Activists have estimated there are at least 50,000 transsexuals in Malaysia, many of whom face widespread prejudice and often cannot find employment. |
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Documents: Former cop to plead guilty to ID theft
Court Feed News |
2011/05/25 15:39
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A former Anchorage police officer accused of being an illegal immigrant living under a stolen identity plans to plead guilty to federal charges, according to court documents. Mexico-born Rafael Mora-Lopez, who lived for more than two decades in Alaska as Rafael Espinoza, said in court papers he will plead guilty to charges of passport fraud and false claim of U.S. citizenship. The documents filed Thursday say the real Rafael Espinoza is a legal U.S. citizen. Authorities say he also holds citizenship in another unspecified country. Mora-Lopez, 47, worked as a well-regarded police officer for six years until his arrest in April. He initially pleaded not guilty to passport fraud and has been out on bail under home confinement and electronic monitoring. He has declined to comment. His attorney, Allen Dayan, did not immediately respond Monday to a telephone call seeking comment. The court papers say Mora-Lopez's wife, Margarita Cynthia Espinoza, had been a neighbor of the real Espinoza in Guadalajara, Mexico, in the 1980s. But it's not clear how the identity was obtained, Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank Russo said. Mora-Lopez used Espinoza's name, Social Security number and date of birth to apply for an Alaska driver's license in June 1989, presenting a birth certificate and Social Security card as evidence of his identity, the court papers say. |
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High Court Stops Execution for Arizona Inmate
Headline News |
2011/05/25 13:36
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The judge who sentenced O.J. Simpson to prison plans to take over for Nancy Grace on the syndicated television show "Swift Justice." Clark County District Court Judge Jackie Glass, who sentenced the former football star to nine to 33 years in prison for armed robbery and kidnapping in 2008, submitted her resignation to Nevada's governor on Tuesday, her clerk Elana Roberto told The Associated Press. Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval received the letter, his spokeswoman Mary-Sarah Kinner said. Grace said in a release from CBS Television Distribution that she's leaving after the show's first season because it's relocating production to Los Angeles from Atlanta. "Leaving such a successful show was a tough decision," Grace said. "I will miss the California sunshine for now, but I will be back soon." Grace will continue to host her justice-themed cable show "Nancy Grace" on CNN's Headline News. Promoted with the tagline "no robe, no gavel, no prisoners," ''Swift Justice" featured Grace sorting out varied disputes submitted by viewers and fans. Glass said in a statement that she's honored to take the new post. Her last day in court in Las Vegas is June 10. Glass, a former anchor and crime reporter with experience on television and radio, is known for severe sentences and a strong personality in the courtroom. She had been a district court judge since 2003. Simpson was her most high-profile defendant during a closely watched trial that featured several back-and-forth exchanges between Glass and others in the courtroom. Some of Glass' comments were so animated, she was parodied by "Saturday Night Live" and "Tonight Show" host Jay Leno in jokes about the trial. |
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Lawsuit Alleges Staples Center Is Unsafe
Court Feed News |
2011/05/25 11:38
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A lawsuit was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on behalf of the family of Lucas Tang, a 2-year-old who plunged to his death from a skybox after a Lakers game in November. The suit alleges there are unsafe conditions at Staples Center that must be fixed.
The suit claims that Anschutz Entertainment Group and the L.A. Arena Company, which operates the arena, have not warned fans about the luxury boxes’ dangerous design. The filing seeks an injunction that would require taller barriers in front of the boxes. Michael Roth, the vice president for communications for A.E.G., declined to comment because he had not seen the lawsuit. |
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Giffords shooting suspect in court over competency
Criminal Law Updates |
2011/05/25 11:37
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The suspect in the Tucson shooting rampage that wounded U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords appears in court Wednesday for a hearing to determine whether he is mentally competent to stand trial and assist in his defense.
Jared Lee Loughner spent five weeks in March and April at a federal facility in Springfield, Mo., where two court-appointed mental health professionals examined him to determine whether he understands the consequences of the case against him. The competency reports by psychologist Christina Pietz and psychiatrist Matthew Carroll haven't been publicly released.
It's up to U.S. District Judge Larry Burns, who is holding the hearing in Tucson, to decide whether Loughner is competent to stand trial.
The case will continue to move forward if the judge determines Loughner is mentally competent. If he is found to be mentally incompetent, he would be sent to a federal facility for a maximum of four months to see if he can be restored to competency.
Loughner, 22, has pleaded not guilty to 49 federal charges stemming from the Jan. 8 shooting at a meet-and-greet event that wounded Giffords and 12 others and killed six people, including a 9-year-old girl and a federal judge.
Prosecutors had asked for the mental exam of Loughner, citing a YouTube video in which they believe a hooded Loughner wore garbage bags and burned an American flag. |
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Blagojevich attorneys to mount first defense
Legal Career News |
2011/05/25 10:40
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Prosecutors in the corruption retrial of ousted Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich are questioning the value of the two witnesses the defense wants to call, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and US. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr.
Prosecutor Reid Schar says neither could offer relevant testimony to the case, and that both had only one or two conversations with the defendant.
Defense attorney Aaron Goldstein said Jackson can speak to the allegation that Blagojevich sought to sell or trade the appointment to President Barack Obama's vacated Senate seat. He says Jackson will testify that he never offered or directed anyone to offer campaign contributions for the seat.
The defense was set to call its first witnesses Wednesday. Lawyers in Blagojevich's first trial last year did not call any.
Rod Blagojevich's attorneys will begin mounting their first defense of the former Illinois governor Wednesday in his retrial on corruption charges, and new Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel is expected to be one of the opening witnesses.
Emanuel and U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. have been called to testify in the Blagojevich case, according to a person familiar with the defense plans who spoke on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to speak publicly. The two elected officials were expected to appear Wednesday at the Dirksen Federal Courthouse.
In the first trial last year, Blagojevich's attorneys rested without calling a single witness. The jury later deadlocked on 23 of the 24 counts against the former governor, including allegations that he tried to sell or trade President Barack Obama's former U.S. Senate seat in exchange for campaign funds or a job for himself. |
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