Category: Criminal law

Bizarre, Criminal law

Coroner Rules That Kayak Death On Hudson Was Homicide

kayakpicWe have been following the case of Angelika Graswald who is accused of murdering her fiancé Vincent Viafore by sabotaging his kayak on a river outing on the Hudson. Indeed, we previously heard that she had confessed and said “it felt good” to see Viafore die. Now there is a report that Graswald confessed , saying “All right, I’ll give you a f–king statement . . . I wanted him dead and now he’s gone . . . And I’m OK with it.” It is a bad defense case getting worse but I am still surprised by the report of the New York medical examiner that she determined the death to be homicide from an examination of the body.

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Bizarre, Criminal law

Virginia Doctor Admits To Stabbing Himself After False Report Of Attack Outside of Clinic

UnknownWythe county citizens were shocked recently when Dr. Paul A. Williams was found stabbed twice outside of his clinic. Melton said that a man approached him as he was leaving the back door and asked him if he was Dr. Williams. When Williams confirmed that he was but said that the clinic was closed, he said that man responded with “I’m going to teach M F’er. You need to write more scripts for pain meds” and stabbed him twice. A manhunt ensured, but now Williams has admitted that he stabbed himself in the shoulder and the stomach.

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Bizarre, Criminal law

“I Didn’t Finish The Job”: Virginia Police Halt Tryst In Parking Lot

jackson-kimberlyKimberly M. Jackson, 36, is every defense attorney’s nightmare . . . though it is not like she had a particularly strong defense to begin with. Jackson was photographed having sex, or at least trying to have sex, with her boyfriend in a parking lot Norfolk, Virginia. She helpfully explained that “[I] was in the mood, and that’s basically what happened.” Her boyfriend, Earl Palmer, did not exactly help things out when he came in to “clear her name.”

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Criminal law, Society

Valor Stolen: Burglar Steals Deceased SEAL’s Medals From Father’s Home

By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor

jeffrey-lucas
Jeff Lucas

bronze-star-v-deviceThere truly is no honor among thieves, and this was definitively demonstrated in Corbett, Oregon the evening of September Seventh when a burglar broke into the residence of a deceased Navy SEAL’s father and stole several medals and challenge coins, including his Bronze Star and Purple Heart.

Jeff Lucas was killed in combat operations in Afghanistan on June 28th, 2005. He died along with several of his fellow SEALS during a helicopter operation during a heavy firefight. He was laid to rest in Arlington Cemetery. A stadium was constructed in his honor at the high school he attended–Corbett High School.

With the loss of his son, now his father lost to thieves a few of the honors he earned.

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Criminal law, International

Hungary Reportedly Considering Public Nuisance Charges Against Camera Woman Seen Kicking Immigrants

Screen Shot 2015-09-08 at 9.30.05 PMHungarian camerawoman Petra Laszlo has publicly apologized for kicking migrants but insisted that she was acting out of fear for her own safety. The government is reportedly considering a public nuisance claim against her though it would seem a simple case of assault. We previously discussed her controversy.

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Bizarre, Criminal law, Religion, Society

Police Arrest Notorious Islamic State Supporter and Bomb Adviser . . . Only To Discover That He Is A Jewish Guy Living With His Parents In Florida

1441941996245There is a truly bizarre case out of Australia where a 20-year-old has been arrested after posting bomb making instructions and encouraging fellow Islamic State supporters to engage in terrorism. Unfortunately, there is nothing particularly new about that story except that the “Australi Witness” is Joshua Ryne Goldberg, a Jewish man living with his parents in Florida.

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Criminal law, Lawyering, Politics, Uncategorized

North Carolina Prosecutor Charged After Allegedly Offering $20,000 For Opponent Not To Run For Court Seat

55f0e026b667a.imageWendy Joyce Terry, 43, the longtime prosecutor in Davidson County, North Carolina, was indicted this week in a bizarre case where she is accused of texting an offer to pay $20,000 to get an opponent to drop out of an election for a superior court seat. Putting aside the wisdom on texting bribes or payoffs, Terry is accused of texting the offer to district court Judge April Wood.

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Criminal law, Society

Obama Administration Cracks Down On Nebraska Company For Requiring Proof Of Lawful Status From Non-U.S. Citizens

US-DeptOfJustice-Seal_svgThe Obama Administration has secured a settlement with Nebraska Beef Ltd., a Nebraska-based meat packing company, over discriminatory practices. However, the company’s improper actions involved a requirement for employees to show proof of legal status for employment. The company was targeted because it did not also require proof of legal status from U.S. citizens.

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Bizarre, Criminal law

TSA Officer Arrested After Allegedly Stealing $7,500 Wristwatch and Then Destroying It

TSA screener Margo Lauree-Grant, 41, is the latest TSA employee to be arrested for theft or other crimes at an airport security area. Lauren-Grant is accused of stealing a $7,500 Diamond Master watch from a Canadian traveler after he placed it in a plastic bin. To make matters worse, Lauree-Grant is accused of then destroying the watch when security officials began to investigate.

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Criminal law, Society

Teen Couple Exchange Explicit Photos With Each Other . . . North Carolina Prosecutors Charge Them Criminally As Adults

2BFFCF1B00000578-3223533-image-a-43_1441472934882I have previously been critical of the blind application laws on sending sexually explicit photos and other laws to teenagers. While purpose of these laws is laudable, we have seen various cases of teenagers facing ruinous charges over consensual exchanges. A case in point is Cormega Copening, 17, and his girlfriend, Brianna Denson, who were charged as adults in February for sending “sexually explicit” photos of minors. However, they are the minors. They were 16. However, in some twisted logic, prosecutors have charged them as adults . . . for sending minors these photos . . . when the minors are themselves and they are being charged as a adults.

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Columns, Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Free Speech, Lawyering, Media, Politics, Religion, Society

Kim Davis: Hero or Villain?

kim-davis-mugshotDefiant Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis has appealed the contempt order that has left her languishing in jail. At the same time, her lawyer has argued that marriage licenses issued without her signature are invalid — an interesting question given the state’s requirement that her signature be affixed to every such license. Below is my recent Washington Post column on Davis and how she fits within our collective social and legal iconography. Defiance is a heroic value when it is Martin Luther King violating police orders and standing unbent before biting dogs and swinging batons. It was inspiring to millions when King cited St. Augustine to declare “an unjust law is no law at all”. Such figures stood against not just our prejudice but our laws in their defiance. As Henry David Thoreau stated “Unjust laws exist; shall we be content to obey them, or shall we endeavor to amend them, and obey them until we have succeeded, or shall we transgress them at once?” Those who transgress upon unjust laws today are often heralded as heroes tomorrow from early American patriots to abolitionists to suffragists to desegregationists. Even today many praise Edward Snowdon for his criminal actions in disclosing a massive surveillance system of U.S. citizens even though those same laws are designed to protect our national security. Yet, Davis is using her public office to impose her religious values on neighbors. That contrast led to the column below.
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Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Justice, Politics, Religion, Society, Supreme Court

County Clerk Who Refuses To Issue Marriage License To Gay Couple Says She Will Remain In Jail, So Be It.

By Darren Smith Weekend Contributor

kim-davis-mugshotAfter the Rowan County Kentucky Clerk, Democrat Kim Davis, defied a court order to issue gay couples marriage licenses, and was subsequently arrested by the U.S. Marshal’s Service and jailed, her husband stated that she chose to remain in jail rather than compromise her religious beliefs by performing her statutory duty. Her contempt of court ruling will stand until she resumes issuing such licenses and thus in jail she shall remain.

And so it should.

The issue is not the content of her religious beliefs that are on trial. It is that of failure to perform her duty and denial of a civil right as mandated by the Supreme Court. For this reason she has two choices: being in contempt indefinitely; or resigning her position. For the near term it is as simple as that. If she continues her defiance, a third party must step up, show some leadership, and make the decision for her by ejecting her from office.
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Criminal law

Manhunt Continues For Killers Of Illinois Officer While Nanny Is Arrested For False Report

150901-charles-joseph-gliniewicz-mug-529p_887965c3b55a9c546e86ec0fa7dacd28.nbcnews-ux-2880-1000The manhunt continues for the killers of a much loved and respected officer, 30-year-veteran Lt. Joseph Gliniewicz. The officer from Fox Lake was a married father of four boys and nicknamed “G.I. Joe,” for his toughness and professionalism. The police are searching for two white men and one black man who Gliniewicz described shortly before his death. He was found lying in a marshy area, stripped of his weapon and pepper spray. The weapon was later found. In another development, a woman has been charged with giving police a false report that may have cost them precious time and manpower in looking for the murderers of Gliniewicz.

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Criminal law

Suffolk County Police Accused Of Tackling Citizens Videotaping Arrest Scene and Attempting To Delete His Videotape

Screen Shot 2015-09-04 at 8.25.31 AMThere is another disturbing account of police reacting abusively to citizens attempting to videotape them in public in an Associated Press account out of Hauppauge, New York. Thomas Demint began filming police who were arresting two of his friends and allegedly body slammed their mother. Dement says that he was tackled by police who took away his smartphone and erased the video. However, they failed to delete the right one. The actual video is below and shows the eight minute encounter. The videotape itself shows how these situations are highly explosive and came be seen from both the perspectives of the police and the citizens in the use of force, including whether the person videotaping was getting too close. The alleged attempted deletion however is another matter entirely.

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Bizarre, Criminal law

Massachusetts Police Call Off Massive Manhunt After Concluding That Officer Shot Up His Own Cruiser

qQOmNNto_400x400The manhunt is over in Massachusetts for the man who shot up the cruiser of a rookie Millis police officer. It appears, according to police, that it was the officer himself. The police have refused to identified the 27-year-old officer but confirmed that the officer was found to be the one who shot up the car and will likely be fired (I would hope so) and face criminal charges.

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