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Illinois Supreme Court upholds public works plan
Lawyer Blog News |
2011/07/12 12:22
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The Illinois Supreme Court has unanimously upheld a law that created a $31 billion statewide construction program, averting a threat to the thousands of jobs the projects created.
The decision also removes a roadblock to allowing video gambling at bars, restaurants and truck stops across Illinois.
The court on Monday unanimously rejected arguments that lawmakers improperly mixed different issues in a single law.
Lawmakers approved the public works program in 2009, deciding to fund the construction by raising taxes on liquor and candy, as well as legalizing video gambling.
Chicago Blackhawks owner and liquor distributor Rocky Wirtz challenged the law. An appeals court agreed with him that it violated a requirement that laws be limited to one topic. The Supreme Court said it all was connected to the construction program. |
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Arizona court vacates $75 million cash-only bond
Lawyer Blog News |
2011/07/10 07:46
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An Arizona appeals court has vacated what was perhaps one of the highest bail amounts on record in U.S. history that had been set for a father accused of sexually abusing his children.
The brief order issued last week sends the case back to Yavapai County Superior Court Judge Tina Ainley to reset the $75 million cash-only bond for the longtime Sedona resident. She has scheduled a Monday status conference.
The defendant's attorney, Bruce Griffen, sought relief from the appellate court after he tried unsuccessfully to have the case assigned to another trial court judge.
Griffen accused Ainley of abusing her discretion, and exhibiting bias and prejudice.
Prosecutors say those accusations were not proven. They contend the defendant has significant family ties in Brazil and is a flight risk.
The appellate court said Ainley cannot set a bail amount greater than what is necessary to ensure the defendant appears at trial, and can set other release conditions. The court is expected to elaborate on its decision but had not done so as of Friday. |
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Media cross-ownership ban restored
Lawyer Blog News |
2011/07/08 13:31
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A federal Appeals Court has restored a long-standing ban that prevents media companies from owning both a newspaper and a television station in the same market.
The 3d US Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia said yesterday that the Federal Communications Commission didn’t give the public adequate opportunity to comment on new rules that lifted the ban in the 20 largest media markets. The Appeals Court sent the rules back to the FCC to be rewritten.
The so-called cross-ownership ban dates back to 1975 - a time when newspapers dominated the media industry.
In 2007, then-FCC chairman Kevin Martin, a Bush administration appointee, moved to ease those restrictions in the biggest media markets. He argued that the ban no longer made sense in a media landscape where the Internet had left many daily newspapers struggling for survival.
Public interest groups challenged the changes and warned that too many media outlets falling under the ownership of a handful of large corporations could be detrimental to democracy, which relies on a vibrant press with many voices.
The decision is a setback for media conglomerates, which argue that consumers have more sources of information than ever in an age of 24-hour cable television and an endless supply of online news outlets. |
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US court denies cash for suspected Somali pirate
Lawyer Blog News |
2011/07/07 13:53
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A federal judge has denied a request from a Somali man accused of piracy to have $1,600 in cash returned to him for humanitarian needs, saying he failed to prove he was lawfully in possession of the money.
Mohammad Saaili Shibin is accused of acting as the chief negotiator for a band of pirates that killed four Americans aboard the yacht Quest.
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 in February 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, despite an international flotilla of warships that patrol the area. Four U.S. warships were shadowing the Quest and negotiations were underway when shots aboard the sailing vessel were fired.
Ten Somali men have already pleaded guilty for their roles in the hijacking of the yacht and a Yemeni man also has a plea hearing scheduled for Thursday. Prosecutors don't believe any of those men fired the shots that killed the Americans. Three others are also facing charges.
Unlike the other men charged in connection with the case, Shibin never set foot aboard the Quest. Court documents say he researched the Americans online to determine how much of a ransom to seek for them. |
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No manslaughter convictions in ground zero fire
Lawyer Blog News |
2011/07/06 13:40
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A toxin-cleanup director and a company were acquitted Wednesday of manslaughter in an August 2007 blaze that killed two firefighters at a condemned tower at ground zero, although the firm was convicted of a misdemeanor.
The John Galt Corp. was found guilty of second-degree reckless endangerment, the only conviction in the criminal case filed over the fire at the former Deutsche Bank building. The judge acquitted worker Mitchel Alvo of all charges. Jurors had acquitted two other construction-company supervisors of all charges last week.
"I'm really mystified," said Galt attorney David Wikstrom. He said he couldn't understand how the company could be convicted of a crime when the workers were acquitted. He said he would move to overturn the verdict.
Alvo's fiancee wept tears of joy as they left the courthouse. "Now I've just got to get on with my life and start making a living again," Alvo said.
The district attorney's office said it was preparing a statement.
The fire killed firefighters Robert Beddia and Joseph P. Graffagnino and revealed poor regulation of the damaged building, which was being dismantled in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks.
Alvo, 59; asbestos cleanup foreman Salvatore DePaola, 56; and site safety manager Jeffrey Melofchik, 49, were the only people criminally charged in the fire. Galt, which employed Alvo and DePaola, was the only company charged. |
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Borrowers sue over apparent loan mod mishaps
Lawyer Blog News |
2011/07/05 14:11
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It seemed Maria Campusano's financial problems were behind her when the mortgage on her Victorian home in a Massachusetts mill town was chopped by hundreds of dollars a month.
She soon learned that her troubles had just begun.
Weeks after making her first payment under the new rate, the school district staffer began receiving past-due notices, documents showing wildly inaccurate loan balances and letters threatening foreclosure. She now fears she'll lose her home.
"How can they take away what I have worked so hard for?" Campusano said.
Campusano is one of two named plaintiffs in a proposed class-action lawsuit alleging breach of contract by Bank of America NA and subsidiary BAC Home Loans Servicing LP.
The suit, which was filed in Los Angeles federal court because BAC is located in nearby Calabasas, is among a growing number of legal complaints accusing banks of disregarding what should be binding agreements to reduce the monthly mortgage payments of troubled borrowers.
The suits involve permanent modifications through the U.S. Treasury-administered Home Affordable Modification Program, which offers incentives to loan servicers who extend modifications, as well as so-called proprietary modifications, which banks offer independently of the government guidelines.
They represent a new wave of complaints against banks that have already weathered years of criticism for their reluctance to modify loans and for foreclosing on borrowers after offering them trial modifications. |
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