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Court: Sex-offender list is not cruel punishment
Criminal Law Updates |
2011/05/30 16:05
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The Michigan appeals court has overturned a Washtenaw County judge and said a young man who committed sexual misconduct at school must be on the state's sex-offender list.
Judge Darlene O'Brien said registration in the case was cruel punishment that violated the Michigan Constitution, but the appeals court disagreed.
A man identified in court papers as T.D. was 15 in 2006 when he was accused of putting a chokehold on a girl and exposing her breast while another boy tugged on her belt. T.D. was placed in a youth home and completed therapy.
AdvertisementHe was required to register when he turned 18. The appeals court says it's not punishment but a way to inform the public even if the risk of another offense is low. |
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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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Fifth Somali guilty plea entered in piracy trial
Criminal Law Updates |
2011/05/25 10:39
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Two more Somali men pleaded guilty on Monday to piracy for their roles in the hijacking of a yacht that left four Americans dead, including one who identified which of the 19 men fired at hostages aboard the boat. Burhan Abdirahman Yusuf and Jilani Abdiali face mandatory life sentences, but as part of a plea agreement they could serve less time than that and eventually be deported to Somalia. The duo are among 14 people from Somalia and one from Yemen facing charges related to the February hijacking of the yacht Quest. Three of those men have already pleaded guilty to piracy in plea deals. The owners of the Quest, Jean and Scott Adam of Marina del Rey, Calif., along with friends Bob Riggle and Phyllis Macay of Seattle, were shot to death several days after being taken hostage several hundred miles south of Oman. They were the first U.S. citizens killed in a wave of pirate attacks that have plagued the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean in recent years. Prosecutors said the men intended to bring the Americans to Somalia and hold them for ransom there. Pirates typically seek millions of dollars for hostages. In a statement of facts Yusuf agreed to Monday, Yusuf said the 19 men who had taken control of the yacht would have split 65 percent of the ransom money among themselves and an interpreter. The other 35 percent would be given to a financier. In Abdiali's statement of facts, he said he saw that pirates were making a lot of money and had big houses and cars, so he spoke with a financier about joining a pirate expedition that ultimately led him to board the American yacht. |
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OC woman sentenced for embezzlement
Criminal Law Updates |
2011/05/24 10:12
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| Orange County prosecutors say a law office manager has been sentenced to four years in state prison for embezzling more than $500,000 from her firm and spending the cash on a lavish lifestyle. The district attorney's office says 68-year-old Donna Joy Henderson pleaded guilty on Monday to one felony count of grand theft by embezzlement. Henderson joined Tustin law firm, Rinos & Martin, LLP, in 2000 and oversaw the firm's financial accounts. Prosecutors say that, between 2003 and 2009, Henderson wrote 122 company checks to herself, to cash, personal credit cards, relatives or fictitious businesses, then deposited them into personal bank accounts. She allegedly spent the money on timeshare properties, vacations, home improvements and room additions, jewelry, pampered pet day spa visits, and gambling.
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Not guilty plea entered for teen in NJ webcam case
Criminal Law Updates |
2011/05/21 16:38
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A former Rutgers student accused of using a webcam to spy on his roommate's same-sex encounter pleaded not guilty Monday to 15 charges including bias intimidation, invasion of privacy and evidence tampering.
It was the first court appearance for 19-year-old Dharun Ravi, the main suspect in the crimes allegedly committed against Tyler Clementi, a fellow Rutgers freshman who killed himself days after the alleged spying. His death sparked a nationwide conversation about bullying against young gays.
Ravi, of Plainsboro, was silent throughout the court appearance, which lasted less than 10 minutes. Clementi's parents and brother sat in the back of the courtroom for the brief hearing.
Ravi wore a dark suit and appeared to bite his lower lip as a chorus of cameras clicked his photo.
Lawyer Steven Altman entered a not guilty plea for Ravi and waived having the indictment against him read in court.
Authorities say the case began in early August, when Ravi learned who he'd be rooming with in his first year at Rutgers. |
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4 ex-Auburn players indicted on felony charges
Criminal Law Updates |
2011/05/19 09:57
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Four former Auburn football players have been indicted on felony robbery and burglary charges by a Lee County grand jury.
Court documents posted online Wednesday show that Michael McNeil, Antonio Goodwin, Shaun Kitchens and Dakota Mosley were indicted on five counts of first-degree robbery, one count of first-degree burglary and one count of misdemeanor third-degree theft of property.
They are scheduled for arraignment on May 26 in Lee County Circuit Court.
Mosley also faces a misdemeanor charge of conspiracy to hinder business.
The players were pulled over and arrested shortly after five occupants of a mobile home reported being robbed at gunpoint on March 11. |
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