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KC law firm owner faces murder, forgery charges
Headline Legal News |
2012/09/12 19:03
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The owner of a Kansas City law firm was indicted Friday on first-degree murder and forgery charges, but authorities would not confirm whether it's related to the 2010 shooting death of the attorney's father.
The Jackson County Sheriff's Office said in a news release that Susan Elizabeth Van Note, 44, of the Kansas City suburb Lee's Summit, was arrested shortly after the indictment and that the charges are in connection to an investigation into a 2010 homicide in Camden County. The release does not name the homicide victim.
Van Note's father, 67-year-old accountant William Van Note, was shot in October 2010 along with his companion, Sharon Dickson, 59. Dickson died in the shooting at their Sunrise Beach home at the Lake of the Ozarks in Camden County. Van Note died four days later in a hospital in Boone County. |
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Ga. county must $4 million to billboard firm
Headline Legal News |
2012/09/07 22:58
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A Georgia county has been ordered to pay more than more than $4 million in damages and attorney fees to a billboard company as part of its ongoing fight to keep billboards out of Atlanta's northern suburbs.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the verdict is the latest blow to Fulton County in its long-running legal battle against billboard companies.
A U.S. District Court in Atlanta jury last month awarded the $3.97 million in damages to KH Outdoor, which sued the county in 2003. Last week, a federal judge ordered the county to pay $477,156 in attorneys' fees and expenses to the company's lawyers.
Adam Webb, a lawyer for the billboard company, declined to comment. Fulton County Attorney David Ware said an appeal by the county "remains a viable option." |
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W.Va. court hears 'rescue' funding arguments
Legal Business |
2012/09/05 22:58
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Whether West Virginia Supreme Court candidate Allen Loughry receives additional public funds for his campaign hinges on whether the U.S. Supreme Court sees a difference between elections for the judiciary and races for other political posts, the state court was told during a hearing Tuesday.
Adam Skaggs, lawyer for the Republican hopeful, argued that legislative and executive branch officeholders are expected to favor agendas and interest groups that helped them win. But judges are supposed to harbor no bias, and West Virginia created the public financing pilot program amid concerns about campaign cash influencing the judiciary, said Skaggs, an official with the nonpartisan Brennan Center for Justice at New York University's law school.
"The state has compelling interests in the context of judicial elections that are absent from any other type of election," Skaggs told the court.
The point is crucial to Loughry's pursuit of "rescue" funds, normally triggered by spending by a traditionally financed candidate or outside group. With two, 12-year terms up on the court this year, Loughry alone among the four Supreme Court candidates has sought and received funding through the pilot program. Provided $350,000 for the general election, Loughry is seeking another $144,500 or so in matching funds. |
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California deputy pleads guilty to weapons charge
Areas of Focus |
2012/08/31 18:28
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A former Sacramento County sheriff's deputy has pleaded guilty to a federal charge stemming from the illegal sale of dozens of weapons, some of which were used by criminals.
Prosecutors in Sacramento say Thomas Lu and fellow former deputy Ryan McGowan, both of Elk Grove, bought and sold handguns that cannot be legally owned by citizens in California.
Lu, age 42, pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court to one count of dealing in firearms without a license, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.
He is agreeing to cooperate with investigators as part of a deal that could bring him a lighter sentence.
The deputies are charged with serving as straw buyers who trafficked in restricted handguns. |
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Ohio man pleads not guilty to Pitt threat charges
Legal Business |
2012/08/29 18:28
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An Ohio man charged with conspiracy for allegedly claiming to be part of the computer hacking group "Anonymous" and posting a YouTube threat to release confidential computer information belonging to the University of Pittsburgh pleaded not guilty on Tuesday.
Alexander Waterland, 24, of Loveland, Ohio, and his attorney declined comment after his 15-minute arraignment before U.S. Magistrate Judge Maureen Kelly.
A federal grand jury earlier this month indicted Waterland and Brett Hudson, 26, of Hillsboro, Ohio, on charges they posted the threats in April and May. Online court records don't list an attorney for Hudson, who is scheduled to be arraigned in Pittsburgh on Sept. 6. Hudson has previously told The Associated Press he won't comment on the charges.
Although Pitt officials later determined their computer information was never hacked, the threats claimed it was and the FBI determined that Waterland and/or Hudson had downloaded some personal information from students and faculty and emailed some of it to Pitt officials to "prove" the hacking had occurred. |
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Appeals court removes key civil service protection
Legal Topics |
2012/08/24 21:54
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A federal appeals court ruling that has taken key civil service protection away from government employees involved in national security work will have far-reaching implications, advocates for federal workers say.
Tom Devine, legal director of the Government Accountability Project, a whistle-blower advocacy group, said Tuesday that the appeals court has given agencies "a blank check to cancel all government accountability in civil service law."
In a 2-1 decision Friday involving two Defense Department employees, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit said the Merit Systems Protection Board is prohibited from reviewing dismissals and demotions of government employees who hold "noncritical sensitive" positions, regardless of whether those jobs require access to classified information.
The dissenting judge in the case said the decision "effectively nullifies" the 1978 civil service law. Advocates for federal workers point out that federal employees in "noncritical sensitive" jobs work at many federal agencies, making the impact of the ruling government-wide. |
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Appeals court affirms oil company polar bear rules
Legal Business |
2012/08/22 21:54
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Oil companies operating in the Chukchi Sea off Alaska's northwest coast will have a negligible effect on polar bears and walrus, according to a federal Appeals Court ruling Tuesday that backed U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rules on harassment of the animals.
A three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals said the agency correctly issued rules that provide legal protection to oil companies if small numbers of polar bears or Pacific walruses are incidentally harmed.
"We're glad that the court has reaffirmed the appropriateness of our conservation measures," agency spokesman Bruce Woods said.
The Center for Biological Diversity sued over the rules, claiming both individual animals and entire populations must be analyzed for protection. Center attorney Rebecca Noblin said the Appeals Court agreed but concluded the Fish and Wildlife Service had done sufficient separate analyses. Noblin called the decision disappointing.
The Marine Mammal Protection Act generally prohibits the "take" of marine mammals. Take is defined to include harassment or annoyance that has the potential to injure or that could disrupt behavior patterns such as migration, nursing, breeding and feeding. |
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