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Pa. high court fast tracks juvenile lifer appeals
Legal News Interview |
2012/08/08 12:41
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Pennsylvania's highest court is moving quickly to determine how to respond to a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that mandatory life-without-parole sentences for juveniles aren't constitutional.
The Sentencing Project, an advocacy group based in Washington, has said Pennsylvania leads the nation in the number of juvenile lifers.
The state Supreme Court scheduled oral argument for Sept. 13 in a pair of cases that will determine what to do about the hundreds of people serving such sentences, as well as how to handle the issue going forward.
The 5-to-4 U.S. Supreme Court decision issued June 25 still makes it possible for juveniles to get life, but it can't be automatic.
The Pennsylvania Department of Corrections says 373 lifers were under age 18 at the time they were sentenced. |
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Appeals court reinstates lawsuit against Glock
Legal News Interview |
2012/07/27 11:34
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A California appeals court has reinstated a now-retired paralyzed Los Angeles police officer's product liability lawsuit against gun manufacturer Glock.
Enrique Chavez was paralyzed from the waist down when his 3-year-old son accidentally shot him with his service pistol.
The lawsuit claims the .45-caliber Glock 21 pistol lacks adequate safeguards against accidental discharge. There is no grip safety on the Glock.
A Los Angeles judge dismissed the suit two years ago, saying a Police Department review of the gun's design found the Glock's advantages outweighed any inherent risks.
The San Francisco Chronicle says the 2nd District Court of Appeals on Tuesday reinstated the suit, saying a jury could conclude that a grip safety strong enough to withstand a child's grasp would minimize the risk of accidental discharge. |
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Police Brutality Cases
Legal News Interview |
2009/12/28 21:05
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| pOn a cold freezing night in Milwaukee, December 10, 2003, Curtis Harris was arrested in his home on a routine “disorderly conduct” charge, handcuffed and then punched in the face and shoved in the mud by former Milwaukee Police Officer Kevin Clark. Dragged to the Milwaukee Police Jail, Curtis walked into the Milwaukee booking room, where his life changed forever when Clark deliberately and maliciously used excessive force, throwing Curtis headfirst into a concrete wall for no reason whatsoever, rendering him a quadriplegic for the rest of his life. The Insider Exclusive will show how the actual Milwaukee Police surveillance camera video, in the booking room, completely contradicted the lies of Clark and his fellow officers; how Clark and his fellow officers taunted, ridiculed and laughed at Curtis as he lay paralyzed on the cold cement jailhouse floor and drifted in and out of consciousness; how the wheels of justice turn in police brutality cases like Curtis’s; how Jason Alexander and Todd Korb of the law firm of Hupy amp; Abraham, S.C. got some justice for Curtis; and how all Americans are protected against police brutality by the nation’s civil rights laws. /ppa href=http://www.insiderexclusive.com/component/content/article/1-shows/110-police-brutality-cases-harris-v-city-of-milwaukeehttp://www.insiderexclusive.com/component/content/article/1-shows/110-police-brutality-cases-harris-v-city-of-milwaukee/a/p |
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Ill. gov's legal woes worsen as fundraisers defect
Legal News Interview |
2008/12/17 09:12
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| Jailed political fundraiser Antoin Tony Rezko's attorneys sent a strong signal Tuesday that he has resumed his on-again, off-again cooperation with federal prosecutors in the criminal case against Gov. Rod Blagojevich, and another one-time adviser to the governor served notice that he intends to plead guilty to tax charges.pRezko has been among the Democratic governor's top fundraisers and advisers and can provide prosecutors with a penetrating glimpse into the workings of Blagojevich's inner circle. He was convicted in June of scheming to squeeze companies seeking state business for payoffs./ppThere were signs that Rezko's relationship with prosecutors had soured in recent weeks. But on Tuesday, both sides agreed to postpone his sentence indefinitely, a sign that prosecutors think their sometimes reluctant witness has more to tell them./ppWhile Rezko squared things with federal prosecutors, attorneys for former Blagojevich campaign chairman Christopher Kelly said he intends to plead guilty to tax charges next month. Among other things, Kelly, a roofing contractor and consultant, is charged with using company funds to pay gambling debts and in at least one case writing the payment off as a business expense./ppKelly could also give the government an inside look at the workings of the Blagojevich administration. But chief defense counsel Michael Monico said Tuesday that cooperation isn't part of the agreement under which Kelly will plead guilty./p |
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DA: Criminal charges possible in boy's Uzi death
Legal News Interview |
2008/10/29 19:43
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| A prosecutor said Tuesday he is investigating whether criminal charges should be filed after an 8-year-old boy accidentally killed himself while firing an Uzi submachine gun at a gun fair in western Massachusetts.pChristopher Bizilj (Bah-SEAL) of Ashford, Conn., shot himself in the head when he lost control of the 9mm micro submachine gun as it recoiled while he was firing at a pumpkin. Police have said the shooting at the Machine Gun Shoot and Firearms Expo at the Westfield Sportsman's Club on Sunday was an accident./ppHampden County District Attorney William Bennett said he is investigating whether the gun fair violated the state's firearms law by allowing the boy to fire the machine gun, and also whether it was a reckless or wanton act to allow an 8-year-old to use a fully loaded automatic weapon./p |
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