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Michigan court ends conflict over juvenile life sentences
Attorney Interview |
2018/06/21 08:58
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Judges, not juries, have the sole power to decide whether someone under 18 gets life in prison without parole, the Michigan Supreme Court said Wednesday.
The 4-2 decision settles a conflict at the state appeals court and clears the way for more than 200 new sentencing hearings for so-called juvenile lifers that have been on hold for more than a year.
The Supreme Court said there are no constitutional violations in allowing a judge to order a no-parole sentence for a teen. Chief Justice Stephen Markman, writing for the majority, said a trial judge doesn't need to find any particular fact before choosing the highest punishment.
The case landed at the Supreme Court after the Michigan appeals court in 2015 said a no-parole sentence for a minor would fit only if a jury finds that the crime is the result of "irreparable corruption," something so heinous that parole shouldn't apply. Markman, however, said the interpretation was wrong.
"If the trial court simply finds that there are no mitigating circumstances, it can sentence a juvenile to life without parole," he wrote.
Separately, many Michigan juvenile lifers who are serving no-parole sentences are eligible for a new hearing because of a U.S. Supreme Court decision. But those hearings were suspended while the state Supreme Court grappled with two cases that led to a decision Wednesday.
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Court to consider fraud investigator in NFL concussion case
Attorney Interview |
2018/06/10 00:26
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A federal judge in Philadelphia is scheduled to hear arguments in the NFL's request for a special investigator to look into what the league says are fraudulent claims in a $1 billion concussion settlement.
The league last month cited an independent study it said found that more than 400 claims had been recommended for denial based on evidence of fraud by attorneys, doctors and former players.
Plaintiffs' lawyers contend the league is not awarding settlement funds fast enough. So far, $227 million in claims have been awarded.
The league says attempts to scam the system are responsible for delays. The NFL has asked that the investigator be granted subpoena power.
League officials say a special investigator would help ensure the integrity of the settlement. Arguments are scheduled for Wednesday.
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Dispute on eye drop size fails to catch Supreme Court's eye
Attorney Interview |
2018/05/12 00:22
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A dispute about the size of eye drops has failed to catch the eye of the Supreme Court.
Drug companies including Allergan, Bausch & Lomb, Merck and Pfizer had asked the court to get involved in the case. The companies were sued by patients using their eye drops to treat glaucoma and other eye conditions. The high court said Monday that it won't take the case. That means a lower-court decision allowing the lawsuit to go forward will stand.
The patients said that drug companies' bottles dispense drops that are too large, leaving wasted medication running down their faces. The patients said they would pay less for their treatment if their bottles were designed to dispense smaller drops.
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New York court says Trump can't delay defamation lawsuit
Attorney Interview |
2018/04/26 00:19
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A New York court says former "Apprentice" contestant Summer Zervos can proceed with her defamation lawsuit against President Donald Trump, at least for now. A state appeals court on Thursday turned down a request by Trump's lawyers to delay the case while they appeal a lower-court decision.
Zervos appeared on Trump's former show, "The Apprentice," in 2006. She says he subjected her to unwanted groping and kisses when she sought a job in 2007.
When Trump called her a liar, she sued. Trump's lawyers want to freeze the case until an appeals court decides whether a president can be sued in state court. That's likely to take at least until fall.
The decision means Zervos' lawyers can proceed with demands that the president give a deposition and turn over documents.
A former Deere & Co. factory manager cannot sue the company under the Iowa Civil Rights Act because he worked and lived in China when he was disciplined for having sexual relationships with two Chinese woman also employed by the company, the Iowa Supreme Court said Friday.
The ruling establishes for the first time that the Iowa Civil Rights Act does not apply to circumstances that occur outside the state even though the parties involved may have some Iowa connection. The decision means the lawsuit filed by Matthew Jahnke will be dismissed.
Jahnke, who began working for Deere in 1998, took a job with the company in Harbin in the northeast part of China in 2011 to oversee the construction of a new factory and to manage it once completed.
In April 2014, Deere received internal reports that one of Jahnke's employees had "procured several very expensive luxury cars" for Jahnke, and helped Jahnke "find beautiful women" in exchange for favorable performance reviews. The reports prompted an investigation that revealed Jahnke had sexual relationships with two Chinese women who also worked at the Deere Harbin factory.
The company concluded that Jahnke violated its code of business conduct because he failed to timely disclose sexual relationships with women he managed.
The Deere employee responsible for the initial investigation concluded in his report that Jahnke, a 60-year-old man involved in a sexual relationship with a 28-year-old woman, could cause embarrassment and negative perception for the company and "there could be the obvious perception of an oldish factory manager abusing his influence/position—and create (sic) some possible exposure for the company." |
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