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US appeals court upholds gun laws after Newtown massacre
Legal Interview |
2015/10/19 17:31
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A federal appeals court has upheld key provisions of New York and Connecticut laws banning possession of semi-automatic assault weapons and large-capacity magazines.
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Monday, finding that the core parts of the laws do not violate the Second Amendment.
The laws were passed after the December 2012 shooting massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut killed 20 first-graders and six educators.
The three-judge panel did, however, agree with a lower court that a seven-round load limit in New York could not be imposed. And it found a Connecticut ban on a non-semi-automatic
Remington 7615 unconstitutional.
The laws were opposed by groups supporting gun rights, pistol permit holders and gun sellers.
Lawyers did not immediately return messages seeking comment.
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OJ Simpson appeal rejected by Nevada Supreme Court
Legal Interview |
2015/09/11 18:07
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Imprisoned former football star O.J. Simpson lost his latest appeal of his 2008 kidnapping and armed robbery conviction in Las Vegas.
A three-member Nevada Supreme Court panel rejected Simpson's request for a new trial, ruling in a 16-page order Thursday that there was no reason to overturn a lower court judge's decisions in the case.
"We ... conclude the district court did not err in denying these claims," justices Ron Parraguire, Michael Douglas and Michael Cherry said.
Simpson lawyers filed the appeal last October, arguing that Clark County District Court Judge Linda Marie Bell was wrong to deny Simpson a new trial on charges that got Simpson sentenced to 9 to 33 years in a botched hotel room heist.
Simpson lawyers Patricia Palm, Ozzie Fumo and Tom Pitaro argued that his trial attorney mishandled his case and had conflicts of interests. The three attorneys didn't immediately respond to messages late Thursday, and it wasn't immediately known if Simpson was aware of the ruling.
Simpson, 68, is serving his sentence in a northern Nevada prison after a jury found him guilty of multiple felonies for leading five other men in a September 2007 confrontation with two sports memorabilia dealers at a Las Vegas hotel. Two of the men with Simpson testified they brought guns, at Simpson's request.
The Heisman Trophy winner, NFL Hall of Fame member and former television and movie star didn't testify at his robbery trial in Las Vegas. His attorneys, Yale Galanter and Gabriel Grasso, claimed Simpson was just trying to retrieve items stolen from him after his 1995 acquittal in Los Angeles in the deaths of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ronald Goldman.
The Supreme Court in September 2010 rejected a previous Simpson appeal, filed by Galanter.
Simpson's appeal argued that his multiple convictions and sentences for assault with a deadly weapon and robbery with use of a deadly weapon constitute double-jeopardy; that Galanter should have challenged his multiple convictions and punishments; and that the jury should have been given a chance to consider lesser kidnapping and theft offenses.
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Texas turns away from criminal truancy courts for students
Legal Interview |
2015/06/20 18:32
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A long-standing Texas law that has sent about 100,000 students a year to criminal court — and some to jail — for missing school is off the books, though a Justice Department investigation into one county's truancy courts continues.
Gov. Greg Abbott has signed into law a measure to decriminalize unexcused absences and require school districts to implement preventive measures. It will take effect Sept. 1.
Reform advocates say the threat of a heavy fine — up to $500 plus court costs — and a criminal record wasn't keeping children in school and was sending those who couldn't pay into a criminal justice system spiral. Under the old law, students as young as 12 could be ordered to court for three unexcused absences in four weeks. Schools were required to file a misdemeanor failure to attend school charge against students with more than 10 unexcused absences in six months. And unpaid fines landed some students behind bars when they turned 17.
"Most of the truancy issues involve hardships," state Sen. John Whitmire, D-Houston, said. "To criminalize the hardships just doesn't solve anything. It costs largely low-income families. It doesn't address the root causes."
Only two states in the U.S. — Texas and Wyoming — send truants to adult criminal court. In 2013, Texas prosecuted about 115,000 cases, more than twice the number of truancy cases filed in juvenile courts of all other states, according to a report from the nonprofit advocacy group Texas Appleseed. An estimated $10 million was collected from court costs and fines from students for truancy in fiscal year 2014 alone, the Texas Office of Court Administration said.
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Washington, DC Criminal Defense Lawyer
Legal Interview |
2013/11/01 22:07
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Criminal defense should not be taken lightly and getting an attorney with experience is crucial so you are able to achieve your goals in each situation. Mr. Ney has represented criminal defendants in felony cases in both trial and appellate courts.
With extensive experience in litigating criminal appeals, he know what it takes to obtain the best possible outcome in the courts. He has also represented clients in felony and potential felony cases in state and federal trial courts and investigations.
Brad has represented criminal defendants in felony cases in both trial and appellate courts. Brad has extensive experience litigating criminal appeals on behalf of the Maryland Public Defenders’ Office. He has also represented clients in felony and potential felony cases in state and federal trial courts and investigations.
The Law Office of W. Bradley Ney
601 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Suite 900
Washington, DC 20004 |
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Illegal immigrant in Fla. fights for law license
Legal Interview |
2012/10/05 22:07
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A Florida man's bid to become the first illegal immigrant to obtain a law license in the United States met skepticism Tuesday from most of the state's Supreme Court justices.
Jose Godinez-Samperio came to the U.S. with his parents on visitors' visas when he was 9 years old, but the family never returned to Mexico. He graduated from New College in Florida, earned a law degree from Florida State University and passed the state bar exam last year.
"He's somebody who has done everything he's supposed to do. He complied with every rule," Godinez-Samperio's attorney and former American Bar Association president Talbot "Sandy" D'Alemberte, said after the hearing.
Godinez-Samperio's case is one of a few across the country. Illegal immigrants in New York and California also want to practice law there.
The Board of Bar Examiners in Florida found no reason to deny the 25-year-old Godinez-Samperio a license but asked the state's high court for guidance, said the board's lawyer, Robert Blythe.
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LAs leave 25% of class action settlements unclaimed
Legal Interview |
2009/10/05 22:32
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UK – Local authority pension schemes could be losing up to £125m (€136m) by not participating in class actions, a report from the Goal Group has claimed.
The firm, which provides specialist class action services, calculated that between 2007 and 2008 UK local authority pension schemes lost almost £8.5bn on their investments, of which around £140m could be recovered through legal action.
Article continues below
Between 2008 and 2009, however, it revealed the losses by UK local government pension schemes (LGPS) increased to £22.5bn while the potentially recoverable funds from class actions more than doubled to £370m, because the financial crisis is likely to create a "far more sustainable stream of cases, albeit at less inflated settlement values".
In total, this means LGPS' lost around £31bn between 2007 and 2009 but have the potential to recover £500m. Goal Group claims, however, that £125m, or 25% of potentially recoverable funds, could be left unclaimed if local authorities do not start to increase their participation in legal actions.
Goal Group quoted statistics from Nera Economic Consulting stating the number of federal class action filings in US courts, the main location for these cases, peaked at 258 in 2008. This was the highest level since 2002, but the report noted the first half of 2009 has already seen 127 cases filed, of which 67% named at least one financial company as the primary or co-defendant.
Read more... |
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ABA Antitrust Fall Forum
Legal Interview |
2008/10/20 16:44
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What will a new administration mean to the practice of antitrust lawand how will it affect Congress, the agencies and the courts in comingyears? What changes can be expected at the Federal Trade Commissionand Department of Justice? How will enforcement activity in the U.S.affect the international arena? How will the current state of theeconomy affect competition policy going forward?
The Fall Forumof the American Bar Association Section of Antitrust Law will addressthese and other issues relating to the impact of antitrust policy andenforcement on the national and global economy. Antitrust officialsand practitioners will gather at the National Press Club in Washington,D.C., Nov. 13-14 for sessions exploring the full spectrum of recent andexpected developments in antitrust law and policy. Section Chair JamesA. Wilson, conference chair Lynda K. Marshall and vice-chair David AHigbee will preside over the meeting.
Highlighting theconference will be keynote addresses on Nov. 13 by FTC Chair William E.Kovacic and U.S. Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust Thomas O.Barnett. Other noteworthy speakers at the annual forum include FTCCommissioner J. Thomas Rosch; Vinod Dhall, retired acting chair of theCompetition Commission of India; Anant Raut, majority counsel,Committee on the Judiciary; U.S. House of Representatives; HouseJudiciary Committee Minority Counsel E. Stewart Jeffries; Melinda ReidHatton, senior vice president and general counsel, American HospitalAssociation; Mark D. Whitener, General Electric Company; Deputy U.S.Assistant Attorneys General Deborah A. Garza and James J. O’ConnellJr.; Randolph W. Tritell, director, Office of International Affairs,FTC; and Robert L. Hubbard, director of litigation, Antitrust Bureau,New York State Attorney General.
Programs on Nov.13 include:- Past is Prologue: Taking a Hard Look at the Last Administration’s Agenda and Accomplishments
- The Substantive Scope of Section 5 of the FTC Act: Where are the Boundaries and Where Should They Be?
- International Cooperation – Where Do We Go From Here?
- Healthcare Reform – Lessons and Guidance From the Antitrust Front
Programs on Nov. 14 include: - Transitioning to the Next Administration – What to Expect From the Agencies, the Hill and the States
- Grading the Agencies on Merger Process Reform
- The Rise of Antitrust in the Far East – A Changing Landscape
- The Litigious FTC: FTC Litigation and Administrative Process
For more information about the fall forum visit the section’s Web site at http://www.abanet.org/antitrust.
TheABA Section of Antitrust Law, with more than 9,000 members, is theleading forum for ongoing analysis of policies and developmentsaffecting competition and consumer protection law.
With morethan 400,000 members, the American Bar Association is the largestvoluntary professional membership organization in the world. As thenational voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve theadministration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers andjudges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legaleducation, and works to build public understanding around the world ofthe importance of the rule of law. |
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Headline Legal News for You to Reach America's Best Legal Professionals. The latest legal news and information - Law Firm, Lawyer and Legal Professional news in the Media. |
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