TheRepublic.com - Legal proceedings News

Ex-north NJ firefighter sentenced on theft count

Sun, 19 May 2013 14:00:30 -0400

MORRISTOWN, New Jersey - A former volunteer firefighter in northern New Jersey who improperly tried to sell some department-issued gear will not be headed to prison.

Ex-nurse pleads guilty in Riverside County

Sun, 19 May 2013 13:53:12 -0400

MURRIETA, California - A former nurse at a Riverside County hospital was sentenced to two years in state prison after pleading guilty to a charge resulting from patient molestation allegations.

Making mentally ill defendants ready for trial

Sun, 19 May 2013 13:40:52 -0400

KERRVILLE, Texas - The judge ascended the bench. He looked down at cafeteria-style tables marked "Prosecuting Attorney" and "Defense Attorney." To his left, two men sat in a box marked "Jury." The witness stand was marked "Witness."

Somali reaction to al-Shabab sentences mixed

Sun, 19 May 2013 13:40:23 -0400

MINNEAPOLIS - Wide-ranging sentences handed down in the yearslong federal investigation into recruiting and financing for the terrorist group al-Shabab have kindled a mix of outrage, confusion and relief among members of Minnesota's large Somali community.

Jurors to mull death penalty in Pa. slayings of 12

Sun, 19 May 2013 12:55:30 -0400

PHILADELPHIA - Jurors return to federal court in Philadelphia on Tuesday to hear arguments and evidence on whether a drug dealer convicted in the deaths of a dozen people should be sentenced to death or to life in prison without possibility of parole.

Vt. hard cider company takes aim at coffee roaster

Sun, 19 May 2013 12:40:07 -0400

RUTLAND, Vermont - A Vermont company that makes hard cider is suing a Vermont coffee company for trademark infringement over the use of the word "woodchuck."

NY 'frisk' judge calls criticism 'below-the-belt'

Sun, 19 May 2013 12:34:36 -0400

NEW YORK - The federal judge presiding over civil rights challenges to the stop-and-frisk practices of the New York Police Department has no doubt where she stands with the government.

Arkansas treasurer remains in Pulaski County Jail

Sun, 19 May 2013 12:06:10 -0400

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas - Arkansas Treasurer Martha Shoffner remained in custody Sunday in the Pulaski County Jail on federal extortion charges.

Former city administrator sues Sun Valley

Sun, 19 May 2013 11:59:28 -0400

KETCHUM, Idaho - A former Sun Valley city administrator has filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against the city.

Fate of LA pot shops left to voters

Sun, 19 May 2013 11:59:07 -0400

LOS ANGELES - Los Angeles politicians have struggled for more than five years to regulate medical marijuana, trying to balance the needs of the sick against neighborhood concerns that pot shops attract crime.

Analysis: Bigger push on Kan. courts may be coming

Sun, 19 May 2013 11:29:19 -0400

TOPEKA, Kansas - A prominent conservative Kansas legislator has launched what could become the most aggressive campaign to date to rein in the state Supreme Court after a proposal failed that would have changed how its justices are selected.

SPOTLIGHT: Mock murder trial challenges students

Sun, 19 May 2013 10:02:24 -0400

SYCAMORE, Illinois - A murder trial held at the DeKalb County Courthouse was no easy assignment for the handful of students involved.

Ex-Pa. officer once hailed as hero faces charges

Sat, 18 May 2013 21:28:13 -0400

PHILADELPHIA - A former Philadelphia police officer once hailed as a hero and given a seat next to the first lady at a speech by President Obama has been arrested and charged with rape and other crimes.

Homeless man guilty of rape in Eugene

Sat, 18 May 2013 20:34:09 -0400

EUGENE, Oregon - A homeless man in Eugene has been convicted of raping a woman he met at a campsite.

Mistrial declared in N. Idaho rape trial

Sat, 18 May 2013 19:37:14 -0400

SANDPOINT, Idaho - A northern Idaho judge has declared a mistrial after the jury deadlocked in a rape trial against a Montana man.

Miss. mayoral candidate: Radical or mainstream?

Sat, 18 May 2013 18:54:50 -0400

JACKSON, Mississippi - An attorney who was active in a black nationalist group decades ago and still refers to a client as a "former Black Panther heroine" is running for mayor of Mississippi's capital city.

Powerboat operator in collision pleads guilty

Sat, 18 May 2013 17:58:21 -0400

SANDPOINT, Idaho - A northern Idaho man who crashed his powerboat into a moored sailboat on Lake Pend Oreille has pleaded guilty to simple negligent operation of a vehicle.

New suit filed over alleged Golden Corral illness

Sat, 18 May 2013 17:46:27 -0400

CASPER, Wyoming - A new lawsuit has been filed on behalf of four people who say they fell ill after they ate at a Golden Corral restaurant in Casper last year.

Auxiliary officer acquitted in fatal chase

Sat, 18 May 2013 17:02:11 -0400

UPLANDS PARK, Missouri - A judge acquitted an auxiliary police officer from a St. Louis County village of charges that he was not licensed to act as a police officer when he chased a speeding car that caused a fatal accident.

Diocese of Manchester pays $2K to settle lawsuit

Sat, 18 May 2013 16:58:15 -0400

CONCORD, New Hampshire - The Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester is paying $2,000 to settle a lawsuit accusing a priest of making inappropriate comments to a 14-year-old boy during confession.

Groups sue federal agency after grizzly death

Sat, 18 May 2013 16:38:53 -0400

BOISE, Idaho - Four environmental groups are asking a federal judge to order the temporary shutdown of a sheep research station on the Idaho-Montana border that they say is harming the region's grizzly bear population.

Man sentenced to 12 years after manslaughter plea

Sat, 18 May 2013 16:12:14 -0400

WILMINGTON, Delaware - A man has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for manslaughter after his first-degree murder conviction was thrown out in 2010.

Judge sentences burglar trapped in bar's air ducts

Sat, 18 May 2013 16:04:14 -0400

BISMARCK, North Dakota - A man who was arrested for burglary after he became trapped in the ventilation system in a Bismarck bar has been sentenced to more than a year in prison.

Ex-Compton firefighter pleads not guilty to arson

Sat, 18 May 2013 15:46:35 -0400

COMPTON, California - Marcel Melanson was one of this hardscrabble Southern California suburb's heroes, a reality TV star hailed for his dedicated and sometimes dangerous work for the Compton Fire Department.

Okla. man to be tried on charge from 1997 death

Sat, 18 May 2013 14:44:05 -0400

SALLISAW, Oklahoma - A judge has ruled there is enough evidence to put a Sallisaw man on trial for a 1997 beating death during a robbery.