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Law links

April 2nd, 2011, 8:30 pm by

Here are a few interesting court stories for your weekend reading:

You may recall, the El Paso County District Attorney’s office has dealt with cases of teenagers sending sexually explicit text-messages. Here’s a recent story in the New York Times on the topic.

Also in the Times, there was this blog post on a dispute over whether to allow reporters to tweet from the courtroom during a hearing for Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.

My friend and former Rocky Mountain News colleague Sara Burnett had this interesting story in the Denver Post about federal prosecutors seeking the death penalty against two men accused of killing fellow inmates at the Supermax prison in Florence.

And finally, my friend and colleague Andrew Cohen had this analysis in The Atlantic on a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision.

Happy reading.

John C. Ensslin

Legal affairs reporter

The Gazette

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Law links

February 26th, 2011, 9:02 am by

There were plenty of great court stories this week. Here are a few for your weekend reading:

First, my Society of Professional Journalists colleague (she’s the national president) Hagit Limor had this troubling report on a court case in Ohio that could result in malpractice fees being passed along to taxpayers.

Next, something you might have expected to see in Baghad instead turns up in Peoria, Arizona: a man accused in the honor killing of his daughter. Here’s the story from the Arizona Republic.

The Washington Post had this interesting story about a call for an ethics code for U.S. Supreme Court justices.

My Gazette predecessor and SPJ colleague Dennis Huspeni had this excellent story in Denver Magazine on the victims of two recent Ponzi schemes.

This New York Times story on a lawsuit filed by the former lawyers of a former editor reads more like the inside dish of a gossip column than a court story. It  opens an amazing window onto some bad behavior by several public figures.

And finally, this Denver Post story about an Adams County trial that involved murder, money and Scientology. The defendant was later found guilty after the jury deliberated for about two hours.

Happy reading,

John C. Ensslin

Legal Affairs reporter

The Gazette

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Law links

February 5th, 2011, 3:02 pm by

Here are some interesting court stories for your weekend reading:

First my SPJ colleague Ron Sylvester had this post on a talk by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor on his always very readable blog “What the Judge Ate for Breakfast.”

My friend Andrew Cohen posted this interesting analysis at Atlantic.com on a federal judge’s ruling that found the new health care legislation unconstitutional.

Here’s an interesting story from the New York Times on lawsuits that have resulted from some rather unethical behavior by journalists in England.

My former Rocky Mountain News colleague Kevin Vaughan had this story in the Denver Post on an unraveling scandal involving paving contracts in Adams County.

And finally, New York Times reporter Adam Liptak had this amusing post on his Sidebar blog about an analysis of humor on the U.S. Supreme Court. The most humorous justice? Antonin Scalia.

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Law links

January 22nd, 2011, 12:01 pm by

Here are some interesting court stories for your weekend reading:

First, a  story from the New York Times about companies that make loans to plaintiffs in civil lawsuits. Note the Colorado connection: a lawsuit by the attorney general’s office against two of these firms.

Next, here’s a fascinating story by my SPJ colleague Ben Winslow on a group in Utah that is seeking to decriminalize polygamy.

Here’s a story I’ve been following for some time: a former Chicago cop accused of torturing suspects, mostly African-Americans. Here’s an interesting column from the Chicago Sun-Times on the fall out from his sentencing this week.

Next, an interview in Film Maker Magazine with a lawyer who has made a new documentary called “Hot Coffee.” It’s about the case in which a woman in Albuquerque, N.M. sued McDonald’s after being scalded by a cup of hot joe. The film screens this month at the Sundance Film Festival.

Here’s an amusing post on the ABC News blog, “The Note” on Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan getting called for jury duty. I take it she didn’t get picked.

I love the lead on this Los Angeles Times story about a big mafia bust this week.

And last but not least, my former Rocky Mountain News colleague Al Lewis had this amusing column poking some barbed fun at a lawyer who is drawing on literary forms as part of his client’s defense.

Happy reading.

John C. Ensslin

Legal Affairs reporter

The Gazette

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Law links

January 15th, 2011, 9:57 am by

Here are some interesting law and court stories for your weekend reading:

First, my colleague Andrew Cohen had this interesting column on a divorce in which home school has been a point of contention.

Next, law professor Jeffrey Rosen wrote an interesting column in the New York Times on Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia’s world view . I met Rosen several years ago when the Denver Press Club hosted a talk on his book “The Unwanted Gaze.”

One of the funniest court stories of the week comes from Boston television station WHDH which aired this story on a cat who was drafted for jury service. Seems to me a cat could help a jury in its deliberations.

Reporters often come across suits filed by so-called “jail house lawyers”, inmates who make extensive use of a jail’s law library. Few of them ever get very far, but here’s an amazing story in the Wall Street Journal about one inmate who managed to free himself. Sounds almost like a movie script.

My friend and colleague Bill Johnson at the Denver Post had this interesting column on Gov. Bill Ritter’s pardon of long time anti-gang activist Rev. Leon Kelly. Leon is a friend of mine. I’ve admired the work he’s done over the years and I’m glad to see he was able to deal with this difficult part of his past.

And finally, here’s one of the strangest court stories of the week, this post on a lawsuit over a practice I’d never heard of before: ear candling.

Enjoy your weekend,

John C. Ensslin

Legal Affairs reporter

The Gazette

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Law Links….Thanksgiving edition

November 25th, 2010, 12:26 pm by

Happy Thanksgiving court watchers,

Here are some interesting court stories for your holiday weekend reading:

First, my friend Andrew Cohen had this amusing and insightful column about his day on jury duty.

Next from my SPJ colleague Ron Sylvester’s excellent court blog , here’s a post on efforts to use DNA evidence to test prior criminal convictions in several states.

The guilty verdict in the money laundering of former Texas GOP congressman Tom Delay generated several leads with the pun “Hammer avoids Slammer.” But the best reported and written story I’ve seen was this one from The New York Times.

Here’s an interesting law blog post on a talk that U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia gave during an interview at a banquet. Scalia talks about why he did not want the job of Chief Justice.

Closer to home, my Denver Post colleague Felisa Cardona had this story on Denver District Court Chief Judge Larry Naves stepping down from the bench.

And then, under weird court news, here’s a story from Florida about a chief judge admitting he was asked to step down.

And finally, this curious story about the controversy surrounding the dismissal of a court spokesman in Los Angeles. The case generated this note of concern from SPJ’s Los Angeles chapter.

I hope your Thanksgiving is a happy and peaceful one.

Yours truly,

John C. Ensslin

Legal Affairs reporter

The Gazette

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Law links

November 20th, 2010, 1:27 pm by

Hello court watchers,

Here are some interesting law stories for your weekend reading:

First, can a tweet be a terrorist threat? Even if it’s a prank? A British court decided yes in the case of an accountant who foolishly sent a bomb threat via Twitter. Here’s a story from the Guardian.

And here’s some interesting analysis of the verdict from The Telegraph.

(don’t you love it when a paper named after an archaic form of communictions takes on new technology.)

Next, one of my favorite court stories of the week was lame duck Florida Gov. Charlie Crist’s plan to seek a pardon of the late rock and roll legend Jim Morrison. If nothing else, the story gave headline writers across the nation a way to weave in lyrics from the Doors.

First, here’s a story from the New York Times on the effort. And here’s a interesting profile of the lawyer who defended Morrison on the indecency charge in Miami so long ago.

My Denver Post colleague Felisa Cardona had this story on Colorado’s new Chief Justice Michael Bender.

From the Washington Post, here’s a thoughtful analysis of the recent verdict in a high profile terrorist trial.

And finally, here’s an eye-opening story from the New York Times on companies that try to make a profit bankrolling lawsuits.

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Law links

November 6th, 2010, 9:15 am by

Here are some interesting court stories for your weekend reading:

First, the New York Times had this story about Iowa voters rejecting several Supreme Court judges. The results were in contrast to Colorado, where voters retained all the Supreme Court and Court of Appeals judges on the ballot.

Next, Times reporter Adam Liptak had this disturbing post on his Sidebar blog about secrecy surrounding a First Amendment case.

Here’s a story from the San Francisco Chronicle about a judge giving the minimum sentence to a BART security guard in the fatal shooting of an unarmed passenger.

And in reaction to the sentence, here’s a story in the Oakland Tribune about the rioting that followed.

My Denver Post colleague Felisa Cardona had this story on federal sentencing guidelines aimed, in part, at correcting a disparity in penalties for crack vs. powder cocaine.

My Utah SPJ colleague Ben Winslow had this update on the trial of a man accused of kidnapping Elizabeth Smart.

And last but not least, the Bergen Record had this preview of testimony in the trial of William Silvi, a Colorado Springs man accused of having his father executed outside a New Jersey restaurant. The Record is sharing its stories on the trial with the Gazette, so watch for news on the verdict later this month.

Happy reading,

John C. Ensslin

Legal Affairs reporter

The Gazette

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Law links, election day edition

November 2nd, 2010, 8:39 am by

Normally, I save my collection of links to interesting law stories for the weekend.

But today is election day, so I’ll be working in the newsroom tonight rather than court this morning.

Plus there are quite a few interesting stories already this week. So here they are:

My SPJ colleague Ben Winslow has this interesting story on jury selection getting underway in the trial of a man accused of kidnapping Elizabeth Smart.

Next, from TechCrunch comes this story about a legal skirmish over a clever new Facebook spinoff product.

Here’s the Arizona Republic’s story on the hearing over the legality of Arizona’s immigration law.

The Austin American-Statesman had this story on the opening arguments in the trial of former GOP congressman Tom Delay.

My SPJ colleague Howard Pankratz at the Denver Post had this well-read story about a woman sentenced in a boy scout popcorn fund theft case.

The Los Angeles Times had this fascinating profile of a lawyer representing two American hikers imprisoned as spies.

And finally, from the New York Times, another in the seemingly bottomless supply of stories about jurors gone amok.

Happy reading and don’t forget to vote.

John C. Ensslin

Legal Affairs reporter

The Gazette

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Labor Day Law Links

September 4th, 2010, 12:42 pm by

Here are some interesting court stories for your perusal on this holiday weekend.

First, my Denver Post colleague Felisa Cardona wrote this profile of Fourth Judicial District Judge David Prince. It’s the first in a series of stories she’s doing on the three finalists for a vacancy on the Colorado Supreme Court.

Next, here’s a disturbing story from KMGH-Channel 7 about a Denver woman who discovered her Facebook pictures had been used by someone for online dating services with names like “Sugar Daddies.” Ick. It may be creepy, but the District Attorney has ruled it doesn’t amount to identity theft.

Here’s an Associated Press story on a lawyer with a unique job. He’s the Burning Man Barrister, serving as legal advisor to the annual counter-culture festival in the Nevada desert.

The New York Times had this long but fascinating story on an effort to create a separate high speed court for the flood of foreclosure cases that has inundated the Florida legal system.

My SPJ colleague Ron Sylvester wrote this interesting story for the Wichita Eagle about a wrongly convicted being released from prison.

Then there’s this tragic story about a man who slit his throat in the courtroom while being sentences. What happened to all that security?

And finally, my favorite court story this week: an interview by Reuters with a man who is becoming the legal scourge of the insanely popular televison show Jersey Shore.

Have a safe and happy Labor Day weekend.

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