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Mass. police chief pleads not guilty in Uzi death
Lawyer Blog News |
2008/12/24 17:07
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A police chief in western Massachusetts pleaded not guilty Monday to involuntary manslaughter in the death of an 8-year-old boy who accidentally shot himself with an Uzi at a gun show. Pelham Chief Edward Fleury owns COPS Firearms & Training, which promoted the October show where Christopher Bizilj (bah-SEEL') shot himself in the head. Fleury's lawyer, David Kuzmeski, also entered not guilty pleas on Fleury's behalf to four counts of furnishing a machine gun to a person under 18. Fleury did not appear at the arraignment in Hampden Superior Court. Fleury could face up to 20 years in prison if convicted of involuntary manslaughter and up to 10 years if convicted of furnishing the weapon to a minor. "We're very disappointed that he's been indicted," Kuzmeski said after the arraignment. "We're optimistic with our defenses. Of course, everybody is just feeling terrible about this accident. Mr. Fleury's sympathies go out to the family." The boy, from Ashford, Conn., was killed Oct. 26 when he lost control of the 9mm micro submachine gun as it recoiled while he was firing at a pumpkin at the Machine Gun Shoot and Firearms Expo. Christopher's father was 10 feet behind him and reaching for his camera when the child fired the weapon. Pelham has appointed an acting police chief while Fleury remains on sick leave until Jan. 6. District Attorney William Bennett has said Fleury wrongly assured two men who brought the weapon to Westfield Sportsman's Club that it was legal for children to use under Massachusetts law. |
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Fort Dix plot jury seeks trial transcripts
Lawyer Blog News |
2008/12/22 16:43
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Jurors considering the case of five men accused of plotting to attack soldiers at the Army's Fort Dix finished their fourth day of deliberations Saturday without reaching a verdict. The jury, which was being sequestered, agreed to resume deliberations at 8:30 Sunday morning — an hour earlier than they have been starting. U.S. District Judge Robert Kugler said the jury gave him a note Saturday saying that it was making progress and getting along. Earlier in the day, the jury asked for transcripts of testimony for the first time since Wednesday, the first day of deliberations, when they also sought transcripts of some testimony. The jury appeared to be focusing on the time when suspect Serdar Tatar told a police officer and later an FBI anti-terrorism task force member that a man had asked him for a map of Fort Dix. The man in question was Mahmoud Omar, an FBI informant. Prosecutors have said Tatar was trying to smoke out an informant, while his defense lawyer said he was concerned about a possible attack. The five foreign-born Muslims on trial face charges including conspiracy to kill military personnel and attempted murder. Government prosecutors claimed the men — all of whom lived for years in the Philadelphia suburb of Cherry Hill — were armed and preparing to attack the base in spring 2007. Defense lawyers said the men were manipulated by a government informant and weren't planning anything. |
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Madoff mobbed by photographers after court
Lawyer Blog News |
2008/12/18 16:45
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Disgraced investor Bernard Madoff made an appearance at the Manhattan federal courthouse to complete paperwork for his bail after a judge set new conditions for release, including a curfew and monitoring bracelet. Madoff, wearing a baseball cap and a black jacket, said nothing to reporters as he walked out of the building and drove away in an SUV. He was at the courthouse to sign over his Upper East Side apartment and his homes in Palm Beach and the Hamptons for his $10 million bond. Madoff was accompanied to the courthouse by two lawyers as he and his wife signed court documents. A chaotic scene erupted as he arrived at his home. Madoff, smiling slightly, was surrounded by about two dozen photographers who jostled each other for a good position as he walked along the sidewalk. Someone said "Don't push me." Madoff appeared to extend his arm protectively, then was pushed backward by a photographer. Madoff has already surrendered his passport, and now will be required to be at his Manhattan apartment from 7 p.m to 9 a.m. His wife was required to surrender her passport as well. Part of Madoff's bail conditions also required that he find people to co-sign for him, and his wife and brother had already done so. Madoff had been required to find two additional co-signers to vouch for him, but with the scandal swirling around him, he was unable to do so. The judge responded by modifying the bail package, and gave lawyers until next Monday to come up with additional paperwork. His lawyer, Ira Lee Sorkin, said the electronic monitoring was in place by Wednesday evening. |
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Last defendant in NM courthouse scandal pleads
Lawyer Blog News |
2008/12/17 16:47
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The last defendant in a courthouse construction scandal that involved a once-powerful New Mexico politician has pleaded guilty in the case. Construction manager Michael Murphy's plea Wednesday in federal court closes the case, which earlier led to guilty pleas by former state Senate President Pro Tem Manny Aragon and six other defendants. Defendants were accused of using inflated and false invoices to bilk the state of $4.2 million during construction of the county courthouse in Albuquerque. Murphy pleaded guilty to accepting a $20,000 check from a co-defendant, former court administrator Toby Martinez. The 59-year-old Murphy faces up to three years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Aragon faces 5 1/2 years in prison in a plea deal. |
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Man accused of threat to Obama cops to gun charge
Lawyer Blog News |
2008/12/16 16:47
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One of three men arrested after allegedly making racist threats against Barack Obama before the Democratic National Convention has pleaded guilty to a weapons charge in Denver federal court. Nathan Johnson pleaded guilty Tuesday in Denver federal court to possession of a firearm by a prohibited person. He faces up to 3 years, 1 month in prison at his March 20 sentencing. Johnson and two others were arrested in Aurora on Aug. 24, the day before the convention began. Authorities said they had methamphetamine, bulletproof vests and guns with them when arrested. Witnesses said the three had discussed killing Obama because he's black. But prosecutors determined they posed no credible threat and did not charge them with making threats. |
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Court sides with NY Times in anthrax libel case
Lawyer Blog News |
2008/12/15 18:43
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The Supreme Court has rejected a plea by former Army scientist Steven J. Hatfill to revive his libel lawsuit against The New York Times over columns falsely implicating him in the deadly 2001 anthrax attacks. The justices did not comment Monday in turning down Hatfill's appeal of a unanimous ruling by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, based in Richmond, Va. A three-judge panel affirmed a lower court's dismissal of the libel claims on the grounds that Hatfill is a public figure and failed to prove that columns written by Nicholas Kristof were malicious. Circumstantial evidence led the FBI to suspect Hatfill was involved in the anthrax attacks that killed five people and sickened 17 just weeks after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Then-Attorney General John Ashcroft publicly identified Hatfill, who worked at the Army's infectious diseases laboratory at Ft. Detrick, Md., from 1997 to 1999, as a "person of interest" in the investigation. In June, the Justice Department agreed to pay Hatfill $5.8 million to settle a lawsuit claiming officials violated his privacy rights by speaking with reporters about the case. No one has been charged in the attacks, although the government now believes another Army scientist, Bruce Ivins, was responsible. Ivins killed himself in July. |
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