The suit stems from the brief use of his late father's voice in a show about a John Madden video game. Facenda's contract barred commercial use of his deep, solemn voice for product endorsements.

The NFL contends the show was an artistic endeavor. But the three-judge panel ruled Tuesday the show is clearly a commercial. The program aired on the NFL Network just before the game's release.

The suit by John "Jack" Facenda Jr. now appears headed to trial unless the NFL pursues further appeals.

County officials say the trucks, many of which have become the equivalent of neighborhood restaurants, are a nuisance, parking at the same spot every day and bringing in noise and traffic. Operators respond that they meet the same health standards as restaurants and are being unfairly targeted because of organized political pressure from restaurateurs.

At stake is unfettered access to cheap, to-go Mexican food like carnitas, quesadillas and carne asada tacos that are cooked to order and served from literally thousands of elaborate restaurant-trucks that dot the business streets in unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County, particularly in largely Hispanic East Los Angeles, where trucks can be found on almost every block.

"All there is to say right now is that we have filed a motion for reconsideration, requesting that the court reconsider its previous ruling," said Deputy District Attorney Steven Gates. He declined to discuss the basis of Monday's appeal but said the county requested a hearing Sept. 19.

The judge at Wecht's first trial did not follow proper procedure in declaring a mistrial after jurors said they couldn't unanimously agree on a verdict, but that wasn't enough to dismiss the 41 counts against him, the appeals court ruled.

Wecht, 77, has earned millions investigating deaths, including those of JonBenet Ramsey, Elvis Presley and Vince Foster.

He was accused of using his former Allegheny County coroner's staff to benefit his private business and trading unclaimed county morgue cadavers for office and lab space at a university where he taught. Wecht was also charged with mail fraud for allegedly overbilling his private clients for bogus travel expenses.

His first trial lasted seven weeks and jurors deliberated for more than 50 hours before telling U.S. District Judge Arthur Schwab on April 8 that they were "essentially deadlocked." Schwab then declared a mistrial.

Banks killed 13 people in a 1982 shooting rampage in northeastern Pennsylvania. Five of the victims were his own children.

Judge Michael Conahan agrees with defense attorneys that Banks is psychotic and unable to comprehend his death sentence or participate in his defense.

Conahan issued the ruling Monday, several weeks after a hearing on Banks' mental state.

The judge had decided once before that Banks couldn't be put to death. But the state Supreme Court ordered a fresh hearing after finding that Conahan improperly barred a prosecution psychiatrist from testifying.

Prosecutors concede Banks is mentally ill but maintain the execution should go forward.

More than a year after the agreement was announced, the sudden recusal of a retired judge unanimously selected to review the priests' files has threatened to undo the fragile deal and could send both sides back to court for months. At the same time, an attorney who has been paid by the church to defend accused clergy is fighting to keep those records sealed — and plaintiffs accuse the archdiocese of using him as their proxy.

The developments have been gut-wrenching for alleged victims, who believe the church papers will contain evidence of criminal wrongdoing by church leaders. The Los Angeles settlement — by far the nation's largest — was supposed to close the book on the nationwide church abuse crisis that erupted in Boston in 2002.

"Many of us survivors went to litigation to produce the documents," said Esther Miller, one of more than 500 plaintiffs included in last year's agreement. "People want to move on and heal and they still have our feet to the fire. The money did nothing. It just pays for expensive therapy sessions."

The Wayne County prosecutor's office, which has charged Kilpatrick with eight felonies in his perjury case, said the plea would take place during a scheduled docket conference before Circuit Court Judge David Groner on Thursday morning.

And while the mayor's lawyers later insisted that no deal had been struck, Kilpatrick spokesman Chris Garrett confirmed negotiations toward a plea were continuing.

It was "apparent that they are close," Kilpatrick attorney James Thomas said late Wednesday, adding that he was unsure if the deal being negotiated included any jail time for the mayor.

The mayor would automatically be expelled from office if he is convicted of a felony. Kilpatrick also faces assault charges stemming from a confrontation in July.

The announcement of a potential deal by the prosecutor's office interrupted an extraordinary hearing Wednesday in which Gov. Jennifer Granholm is tasked with deciding if Kilpatrick should be removed from office for misconduct for his role in an $8.4 million whistle-blowers' settlement.

The governor's spokeswoman, Liz Boyd, said the removal hearing's second day would resume Thursday, an hour after Kilpatrick's appearance ends in Wayne County Circuit Court. A deal to resign would make Granholm's role moot.

The City Council has asked Granholm to use her constitutional authority to expel Kilpatrick for misconduct, saying it was misled when it approved the settlement last year with fired police officers.

Council members said they didn't know the deal carried secret provisions to keep a lid on steamy text messages between Kilpatrick and Christine Beatty, who was his chief of staff, on city-issued pagers.