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Ill. court rules against releasing Drew Peterson
Lawyer Blog News |
2011/09/20 14:46
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The Illinois Supreme Court says Drew Peterson must stay in jail while the former police officer fights charges that he murdered his third wife. Peterson has been jailed for more than two years. His trial has been on hold while prosecutors appeal a ruling that bars them from introducing statements allegedly made by his wife, Kathleen Savio. Peterson says the long wait violates his right to a speedy trial. The state Supreme Court rejected his petition Monday without explanation. Peterson attorney Joel Brodsky says it's very uncommon for someone to be held so long without a trial. He says he's disappointed by the court's decision. The retired Bolingbrook police sergeant has also been named a suspect in his fourth wife's disappearance but has not been charged. |
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Fugitive siblings from Fla. in Colorado court
Lawyer Blog News |
2011/09/20 11:46
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Three siblings accused in a cross-country crime spree that began in Florida and ended with a police chase in southern Colorado could soon learn whether they'll stand trial. Lee Grace Dougherty and her brothers Dylan Stanley-Dougherty and Ryan Edward Dougherty were in court in Walsenburg, Colo., on Tuesday for a preliminary hearing. Such hearings in Colorado typically involve judges hearing from arresting officers to determine if there's enough evidence to hold a trial. However, defendants can waive their right to have the evidence presented in court. The siblings are accused of robbing a bank in Georgia and shooting at police officers in Florida and Colorado. They're also suspected in two car thefts in Utah. |
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Court reinstates $675,000 damages for downloading
Lawyer Blog News |
2011/09/19 14:51
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A federal appeals court has reinstated a $675,000 judgment against a Boston University student who illegally downloaded and shared songs on the Internet.
In 2009, a jury in Boston awarded $675,000 to the Recording Industry Association of America, representing four record labels, in a lawsuit filed against Joel Tenenbaum.
A judge later reduced the award to $67,500, finding the original penalty "unconstitutionally excessive."
In his appeal, Tenenbaum sought to overturn the penalty. But the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reinstated the full award in a ruling Friday.
Tenenbaum's lawyers argue that federal copyright laws and the Digital Theft Deterrence Act were not meant to target consumers. Lawyers representing the recording industry argue that the economic impact of illegal downloading is much greater than the sharing of one song. |
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Appeals court to weigh Ark. desegregation case
Lawyer Blog News |
2011/09/19 12:54
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A federal appeals court is set to hear arguments over whether Arkansas can stop making desegregation payments to Little Rock-area schools more than 50 years after troops escorted nine black students into an all-white school. The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis will begin hearing arguments Monday about whether a judge erred in May by cutting most of the $70 million that the Little Rock, North Little Rock and Pulaski County districts receive to help them racially balance their schools. The payments are part of a 1989 settlement after the Little Rock schools accused the other districts and the state of not doing enough to help them desegregate. The state argues that the payments are no longer necessary. |
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Illinois high court hears police torture arguments
Lawyer Blog News |
2011/09/15 17:03
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Illinois Supreme Court justices questioned prosecutors Thursday about evidence in the rape conviction of a man who says he was tortured into confessing by Chicago police officers.
In oral arguments in a case with potentially far-reaching impact on how Illinois deals with police torture cases — and one that could lay the groundwork for similar appeals by as many as 20 other inmates — prosecutors argued that the state had enough evidence to convict inmate Stanley Wrice without the confession he claims to have given only after being tortured by officers under the command of notorious Lt. Jon Burge 30 years ago.
But the justices pressed Special Prosecutor Myles O'Rourke about the strength of the state's other evidence, noting that there was no DNA or fingerprints introduced at trial when Wrice was convicted.
Wrice is asking the high court for a new hearing on his long-standing torture claims. The outcome of the case is being closely monitored by about 20 other inmates who say Burge's officers forced them to confess to crimes they didn't commit, and lawyers and experts say the case could lay the groundwork for similar appeals by those inmates. |
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McCourts to argue over spousal support in LA court
Lawyer Blog News |
2011/09/14 15:57
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A judge on Wednesday will consider reducing the amount of spousal support paid by Dodgers owner Frank McCourt to his ex-wife Jamie their divorce battle over ownership of the team.
McCourt filed a motion in July indicating that he's paid more than $5 million to cover the mortgages of six homes and a condominium over the last year as well as $2.7 million in temporary spousal support to Jamie McCourt.
Last May, Superior Court Judge Scott Gordon, who oversaw the former couple's divorce trial, ordered McCourt to pay $225,000 a month in spousal support and more than $400,000 a month to maintain the homes.
McCourt said the payments should be more in line with the $5 million he receives annually and either Jamie McCourt should be ordered to pay the mortgages herself or the properties should be sold.
Jamie McCourt notes in a recent filing that her ex-husband has received more than $44 million into his bank accounts since June 2010.
The Dodgers filed for bankruptcy protection in Delaware last month, blaming a cash-flow crisis on Major League Baseball's refusal to approve a multibillion-dollar TV deal McCourt was counting on to keep the franchise afloat.
MLB assumed control of the club's day-to-day operations in mid-April.
Gordon ruled in December that a postnuptial marital agreement that gave McCourt sole ownership of the Dodgers was invalid, clearing the way for Jamie McCourt, who served as the team's CEO and was fired by her ex-husband two years ago, to seek half the team under California's community property law.
A group backed by Chinese government-owned investment banks has made a $1.2 billion offer to buy the Dodgers, but McCourt has repeatedly said he's not interested in selling the team. |
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