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Calif. court hears appeal on gay juror dismissals
Legal Information |
2011/08/05 09:16
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A federal appeals case pending in California could determine if trial lawyers should be barred from dismissing potential jurors because they are gay.
The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments Thursday in Pasadena that challenge a Los Angeles prosecutor's decision to strike a lesbian from the jury in an assault case against a gay federal inmate.
The Los Angeles Times reports a favorable ruling could extend constitutional discrimination protections to homosexuality, along with race, creed and gender.
Inmate Daniel Osazuwa says he hugged a guard who was homophobic and he overreacted. The guard fell and Osazuwa landed on him.
A public defender argues the trial judge erred in dismissing a lesbian from the jury, but a prosecutor says she was let go for another legitimate reason. |
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Phone hack lawsuits loom, foam attack sentence cut
Law Firm News |
2011/08/05 09:15
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Several alleged victims of tabloid phone hacking in Britain will soon file lawsuits against a second newspaper group, Piers Morgan's former employer Trinity Mirror PLC, their lawyer said Friday.
Mark Lewis said the claims would be filed in a few weeks, but would not disclose identities of his clients or say precisely when the papers would be presented at court.
Lewis represents the family of Milly Dowler, a 13-year-old girl abducted and murdered by a pedophile in 2002. The revelation a month ago that her voicemail messages had been accessed by the News of the World tabloid while she was still missing outraged British opinion, and triggered a crisis for Rupert Murdoch's News Corp.
The phone hacking scandal centers on allegations that journalists eavesdropped on private phone messages, bribed police for information and hacked email accounts.
So far the crisis has centered on Murdoch's media empire, leading him to shut down the News of the World and abandon a bid to take over British Sky Broadcasting. Several former executives of the newspaper have been arrested by police investigating the eavesdropping.
But there have also been allegations of hacking by other newspapers. This week Paul McCartney's ex-wife, Heather Mills, claimed in a BBC interview that she was hacked by a Trinity Mirror journalist in 2001. |
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Lawyer pleads guilty to illegal Edwards donations
Law Firm News |
2011/08/04 09:15
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A prominent Los Angeles attorney could face six months in federal prison for making illegal contributions to the 2004 presidential campaign of former Sen. John Edwards.
The U.S. attorney's office says Pierce O'Donnell pleaded guilty Thursday to two counts of making illegal campaign contributions and agreed to a six-month sentence and a $20,000 fine. O'Donnell is set to be sentenced in November.
In a statement, O'Donnell's attorney Brian J. O'Neill says he and O'Donnell are pleased with the resolution.
O'Donnell acknowledged he provided some $20,000 to Edwards' campaign for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination by reimbursing straw donors.
In 2006, O'Donnell was ordered to pay more than $155,000 after pleading no contest to using a false name while making political contributions to former Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn's campaign. |
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NYC lawyer pleads guilty to tax charge
Legal Information |
2011/08/04 09:15
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A lawyer has pleaded guilty to not paying taxes on nearly $11 million in income while working at a major Wall Street law firm.
John O'Brien entered the plea Thursday in federal court in Manhattan.
The government had accused the 48-year-old O'Brien of failing to pay $2.5 million taxes on $10.8 million in income from 2001 to 2008. They say during that time, he splurged on a weekend home, international travel and a rare book business.
Prosecutors say O'Brien has agreed to pay $2.8 million in back taxes and interest. At his Nov. 16 sentencing, he faces a maximum of four years in prison, though the term will probably be shorter under sentencing guidelines. |
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