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Man Pleads Guilty After Verdict Tossed
Court News |
2008/03/20 08:59
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| A man who was on death row for nearly 20 years until the U.S. Supreme Court overturned his verdict because of racial discrimination has pleaded guilty to the 1985 slaying for which he was originally sentenced to die.pThomas Miller-El accepted a deal with prosecutors Wednesday that spares the 56-year-old from heading to death row for a second time but virtually assures he will never leave prison./ppA judge sentenced Miller-El to life in prison after he pleaded guilty to capital murder and aggravated robbery in the killing of a hotel clerk. He waived his right to appeal in exchange for prosecutors not seeking the death penalty, reported Thursday./ppThe plea appeared to end a two decades-old saga in which Miller-El, who is black, had his original conviction tossed in 2005 by the high court on the grounds of racial discrimination in jury selection./ppThe attitude currently in the DA's office is not conducive to the tone that existed back when Mr. Miller-El's case was tried, said Doug Parks, Miller-El's attorney./ppThe Supreme Court cited a manual, written in 1969 and used until at least 1980, that instructed prosecutors on how to exclude minorities from Texas juries. Supreme Court Justice David H. Souter called racial discrimination in Dallas County's jury selection process unquestionable./ppMiller-El was sentenced to death row in 1986 by a 12-member jury that included one black. Prosecutors struck 10 of the 11 blacks eligible to serve./ppMiller-El pleaded guilty to killing Holiday Inn clerk Douglas Walker during a robbery. Walker and co-worker Donald Ray Hall were bound, gagged and shot. Hall, who was paralyzed in the shooting, identified Miller-El as the triggerman. /p |
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Court Rules in Favor of Wash. Primary
Court News |
2008/03/18 11:07
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| The Supreme Court has upheld the state of Washington's open primary election system.pBy a 7-2 vote, the court says the state may use a primary system that allows the top two vote-getters to advance to the general election, even if they are from the same party./ppWashington never held a primary under the new system because of legal challenges./ppWriting for the majority, Justice Clarence Thomas said that overturning Washington's plan would have been an extraordinary and precipitous nullification of the will of the people./ppIn dissent, Justice Antonin Scalia said Washington's system would cause a political party to be associated with candidates who may not represent its views. Scalia was joined by Justice Anthony Kennedy./ppLawyers for the political parties said David Duke has identified himself as a Republican, despite GOP repudiation of his racial views, while perennial presidential candidate Lyndon LaRouche has called himself a Democrat, despite wide disagreement with Democratic leaders./ppUnder Washington's system, all candidates for a particular office may list their political party preference after their names./ppThe top-two plan was created after state voters approved a law in 2004 allowing them to pick their favorite candidate for each office. The top two vote-getters would advance to the November general election, even if they are from the same party./ppThe major parties challenged the law in federal court, asserting a First Amendment right to select their own nominees without outside interference./ppA federal judge and the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco struck down the election plan./ppWashington state Attorney General Rob McKenna argued there was no evidence that the parties would be harmed, since they can publicize through advertising and other means which candidates they support./ppTuesday's decision is the second of two this year on the rights of political parties. In New York, the justices said the state's method of electing trial judges, which gives party bosses effective control of the process, does not violate the Constitution. /p |
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Miami appraiser pleads guilty to fraud scheme
Court News |
2008/03/11 09:58
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pA Miami real estate appraiser has pleaded guilty to wire fraud for her involvement in the Southwest Ranches-area fraud scheme in Broward County, the office of the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida said. /ppMartine Yanisse Castrillon is one of 15 defendants charged with buying homes through straw buyers at an inflated price, and then getting cash back at the closings. So far, nine defendants have pleaded guilty to various federal charges in the indictment. /ppCastrillon admitted that she did fraudulent appraisals -- valuing the properties at the amount requested by another defendant, not the true market price -- and forged the name of the certified appraiser who was to review her work. /ppAccording to the indictment, co-defendants Lazara Villalba and Henry Quintero-Lopez would offer the owner's full asking price and then inflate the contract purchase price to allow their companies, New World International and Damp;H Investments of South Florida, to receive a finder's fee, assignment fee or additional funds to allegedly construct improvements to the properties. They would then recruit individuals, who, for a fee, acted as straw buyers of the properties. Villalba and a co-defendant would obtain fraudulent pay stubs, IRS documents, verification of employment and verification of deposit forms; documents would be submitted to cooperating mortgage brokers and the loans were approved to purchase the properties. /ppCastrillon faces a maximum of 20 years in prison on each of the wire fraud counts and a fine of up to $250,000 on each count. Sentencing is scheduled for May 22.
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US court dismisses suit on Barr's Plan B pill
Court News |
2008/03/07 02:57
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A U.S. court dismissed on Tuesday a lawsuit against U.S. health regulators over their decision to allow the sale of Barr Pharmaceuticals Inc Plan B contraceptive without a prescription.
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Barr were sued by the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons and other groups that sought to overturn the FDA's decision.
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The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia granted FDA's and Barr's motion to dismiss the suit.
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The court said it agreed with defendants that plaintiffs failed had to identify a single individual who has been harmed by Plan B's OTC (over-the-counter) availability, according to the ruling.
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Plan B was approved in 1999 and the FDA broadened the approval in 2006 to allow sale to adults without a prescription. The pills must be kept behind pharmacy counters and only sold to girls younger than 18 years old with a doctor's order.
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Separately, on Monday, another U.S. court found the patent for Bayer AG's Yasmin contraceptive drug to be invalid, paving the way for Barr to sell a generic version.
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It's a big win for Barr, Natixis Bleichroeder analyst Corey Davis said of the Bayer ruling. This could be one of those nice generic products with a long tail on it, he said./div |
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