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Supreme Court rejects Hessler appeal
Law Firm Legal News |
2011/12/26 16:36
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The Nebraska Supreme Court on Friday rejected a death-row inmate’s claim that his lawyer failed to properly represent the convicted kidnapper, rapist and murderer at his sentencing.
Jeffrey Hessler had argued that his trial-court lawyer should have demanded a competency hearing when Hessler moved to represent himself at his sentencing. The state Supreme Court rejected that argument, saying allowing someone to serve as their own attorney did not constitute ineffective counsel and Hessler failed to show he couldn’t adequately represent himself at sentencing.
Hessler was convicted of first-degree murder, kidnapping, first-degree sexual assault of a child and use of a firearm to commit a felony in December 2004. He was sentenced to die for the 2003 kidnapping, rape and shooting death of 15-year-old Heather Guerrero. She was delivering newspapers on her morning route just blocks from her home when Hessler grabbed her and forced her into his car.
A jury found that Hessler took her to an abandoned house at nearby Lake Minatare, raped her and then shot her in the head on Feb. 11, 2003. Guerrero’s body was found the next day at the house, about 12 miles from where she disappeared.
Hessler claimed in his appeal that his trial lawyer was ineffective and failed to tell the court that he suffered from mental health problems, including hallucinations.
Scotts Bluff County District Judge Randall Lippstreu dismissed that claim earlier this year, saying Hessler and his attorneys seemed to have had philosophical differences between the time of Hessler’s conviction and sentencing hearing. But, the judge said, that did not constitute ineffective counsel. |
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The Paul Brunner and Doug Otte Story
Law Firm Legal News |
2011/12/24 16:35
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WATCH: http://www.insiderexclusive.com/show-content/410-dream-vacations-gone-bad--the-paul-brunner-and-doug-otte-story.html
A Dream Big Game Hunting Vacation.... to the Arctic Circle goes horribly wrong.... in the flash of anbsp; moment .....On August 26, 2001.....for experienced big game bow hunters, Paul Brunner from Montana and Doug Otte from Nebraska...who were two of six hunters on a musk ox expedition north of the Arctic Circle in Nunavut, Canada. They went on a trip to the Cambridge Bay area of Nunavut Province, north of the Arctic Circle that was sold to them by Canada North, a foreign based company, to include the housing, food, a cook and other provisions during this 10 day hunt for musk ox. nbsp;
An explosion turned their cabin into an inferno, burning and trapping Brunner, Hampson and Otte. In this TV Special, nbsp; The Insider Exclusive presentsnbsp; Dream Vacations Gone Bad - The Paul Brunner and Doug Otte Story nbsp; nbsp; ...... and the legal challenges Americans face when you purchase your exotic vacations from a foreign-based company.
Litigating on behalf of travelers who have been seriously injured in exotic and distant locations can be challenging.... indeed.nbsp; Where and who, for example, are the viable and liable defendants in real life vacation disasters?
This INSIDER EXCLUSIVE SPECIAL discusses the Rights of Americans while traveling to exotic locations and liability of tour operators and air carriers for the tour participant's injuries sustained in foreign destinations.nbsp; Foreign companies cannot solicit U.S. Citizens for adventure trips and not be responsible for their negligent operations on those trips which result in serious, deforming injuries to their U.S. customers. A tour operator may be held liable for the consumer's physical injuries if the tour operator promised.... either expressly or implicitly.... that the tour would be delivered in a safe and careful manner.
Consumers, especially the parents of students, rely upon promises of close supervision in purchasing such a tour. Consumer injuries caused by the negligence of the tour guide may support claims against the tour operator for negligent selection and supervision of tour guides and misrepresentation of their training, expertise and knowledge of the tour locale. |
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Egypt court orders prominent blogger freed
Law Firm Legal News |
2011/12/23 16:35
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An Egyptian investigative judge ordered the release Sunday of a prominent blogger detained nearly two months ago by the ruling military, which had accused him of attacking soldiers during deadly clashes in October.
Alaa Abdel-Fattah's father, Ahmed Seif, told The Associated Press his son would remain in custody for several more hours until the paperwork has been completed. He said his son has been banned from travel abroad.
Abdel-Fattah's sister, activist Mona Seif, told the AP her brother was on his way to the Egyptian capital's security headquarters where he would be freed later in the day.
Military prosecutors detained Abdel-Fattah on Oct. 30 after he refused to answer questions about their allegations that he played a role in the clashes.
The violence on Oct. 9 began when groups of stone-throwers attacked a crowd of Coptic Christians protesting an attack on a church in southern Egypt. TV footage showed the military moving in with force, including using armored vehicles to run over the crowds. |
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Operative gets prison for bilking NYC mayor
Law Firm Legal News |
2011/12/19 11:31
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A political operative convicted of bamboozling Mayor Michael Bloomberg out of hundreds of thousands of dollars was sentenced to prison Monday un a case that brought the billionaire politician to the witness stand and gave the public a behind-the-scenes look at his campaign and City Hall.
John Haggerty agreed to pay $750,000 in restitution to Bloomberg in addition to his prison term of 1 1/3 to 4 years.
Haggerty, a veteran Republican campaign consultant, was convicted in October after a trial that jurors called a crash course in the workings of politics. Besides the business-mogul-turned-mayor, the case drew in the state's third-largest political party and featured a coterie of Bloomberg insiders sketching their roles in his political, philanthropic and business affairs.
Since starting my career, I've worked hard to make a reputation in the world of politics and government as a dedicated, honorable individual. Today, my reputation is destroyed, Haggerty told the judge in a strong voice. If I could do it all over again, I would certainly do it much differently than I did.
He walked out of court briskly, without handcuffs, after state Supreme Court Justice Ronald Zweibel pronounced a sentence he said he felt necessary to restore the public's confidence in the electoral process and to serve as a deterrent. Haggerty's lawyers said they planned to ask an appeals court to let him out on bail during a planned appeal. |
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Next ICC prosecutor warns against sex crimes
Law Firm Legal News |
2011/12/13 13:05
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The next chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court pledged Tuesday to strengthen efforts to bring to justice the perpetrators of sexual and gender crimes.
A day after her election by the 119 countries that support the tribunal, Gambian lawyer Fatou Bensouda said too often gender crimes go unreported and unpunished and the victims are trivialized, denigrated, threatened and silenced, which enables the abuses to continue unimpeded.
In its first cases, she said, the ICC has sent the message that this is no longer acceptable and must stop.
The International Criminal Court, which began operating in 2002, is the world's first permanent war crimes tribunal. It is a court of last resort, stepping in only when countries are unwilling or unable to prosecute alleged war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.
At the moment, the ICC is dealing with cases from Congo, the Central African Republic, Uganda involving the Lord's Resistance Army, the Darfur conflict in Sudan, the recent Libyan uprising, and post-election violence in Kenya and Ivory Coast.
At present, crimes such as rape, sexual slavery, and forced prostitution and pregnancy are alleged in some cases before the court in all of these situations except Libya, where an investigation of alleged gender-based crimes is still under way. |
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