Smart Case Defense Discounts Competency Report
Defense attorneys for the man charged for his involvement in the 2002 kidnapping of Elizabeth Smart say that a psychiatrist’s report deeming him competent for trial is an act of advocacy, not an objective interpretation of facts. Defense attorneys criticize Dr. Michael Welner in a filing released Thursday, saying that his research did not rely [...]
Jurors Begin Deliberation on NJ ‘Fat Defense’ Case
Deliberations have begun in the New Jersey trial of a Florida man whose attorney says that he was simply too obese to have murdered his former son-in-law. Edward Ates, age sixty-two, weighed two hundred eighty-five pounds when Paul Duncsak was shot in 2006. His attorney states that he simply would not have had the energy [...]
Scientists Accused of Espionage Due in Court
A leading space exploration scientist accused of spying on the United States is due to appear in court to determine whether he will have to remain in custody while awaiting trial. Fifty-two-year-old Stewart Nozette was arrested last week for attempting to sell classified information on United States defense secrets to an FBI agent posing as [...]
Florida Man Uses Obesity as Murder Defense
A Florida man accused of murder has used his obesity as a rather unique defense. Edward Ates is accused of having shot and killed Paul Duncsak, a pharmaceutical executive, in 2006. Ates’ attorney, Walter Lesnevich, insists that his client (at five-foot-eight and 285 pounds) was simply not in good enough physical condition to have performed [...]
Teen Convicted in Michigan Homeless Killings
A jury recently convicted a fifteen-year-old boy of two counts of felony murder after the beating deaths of two Michigan homeless men. The jury deliberated for five hours before delivering the verdict for Thomas McCloud. McCloud had been charged for the deaths of Wilford Hamilton and Lee Hoffman. The homeless men, both age sixty-one, died [...]
Man Took Pay from Company He Never Worked For
An Illinois man has confessed to cashing almost five hundred thousand dollars’ worth of paychecks from a New Jersey company for which he never worked. Anthony Armatys, 35, pled guilty on Monday in the New Jersey Superior Court to a single count of theft as part of a plea bargain. Prosecutors say that Armatys took [...]
Wrongfully Convicted Man Awarded $14 Million
A federal jury recently awarded fourteen million dollars to a man who spent almost fifteen years in prison after he was wrongly convicted in the 1988 killing of a twelve-year-old girl. The jury in the United States District Court awarded Shawn Drumgold with compensatory damages on Wednesday. Drumgold had accused Boston police detective Timothy Callahan [...]
DA Asks Court to Stop OJ Co-Defendent’s Appeal
O.J. Simpson’s co-defendent was convicted in a fair trail, and was not a victim of “spillover prejudice” as he alleges in his appeal, prosecution said. David Roger, District Attorney for Clark County, said “A defendant ‘is not entitled to a perfect trial, but only a fair trial,” citing federal and state case law supporting his [...]
Woman in Smart Case’s Competency Hearing Set
Officials from Utah plan to provide information to a state judge regarding the mental competency of the woman charged in the 2002 kidnapping of Elizabeth Smart. Wanda Eileen Barzee, aged sixty-three, has been receiving court-ordered psychiatric treatment since May 2008 in an effort to restore competency. She has been deemed mentally incompetent on two different [...]
Official Gets a Year in Prison for Abramoff Scandal
The former top procurement official in the cabinet of George W. Bush was recently sentenced to a year in prison for lying about his relationship with lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Paul Friedman, a United States District Judge, told David Safavian that he is being punished for lying to authorities investigating the Abramoff scandal. Safavian gave Abramoff [...]