Suspect in bodies-in-suitcases case due in court

Attorney News 2014/07/17 12:13   Bookmark and Share
A former police officer charged with dumping two bodies in suitcases along a rural Wisconsin road is due to enter a plea.

Fifty-two-year-old Steven Zelich is scheduled to attend a plea hearing in Walworth County Circuit Court Thursday on two counts of hiding a corpse.

Zelich's attorney, Travis Schwantes, says the charges might not stand up because prosecutors need to show the former West Allis officer tried to conceal a crime. Schwantes says Zelich claims he killed the two women in the suitcases accidentally during sexual encounters.

Authorities say homicide charges are expected to be filed in the counties where the women died. The bodies of 19-year-old Jenny Gamez, of Cottage Grove, Oregon, and 37-year-old Laura Simonson, of Farmington, Minnesota, were found in the suitcases by highway workers June 5.
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Court issues partial win to bin Laden assistant

Legal Insight 2014/07/15 13:37   Bookmark and Share
A federal appeals court on Monday set aside two of three convictions against a former personal assistant to Osama bin Laden.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued the ruling in the case of Ali Hamza al-Bahlul, who produced propaganda videos for al-Qaida and assisted with preparations for the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist strikes.

A military commission had convicted him of conspiracy to commit war crimes, providing material support for terrorism and soliciting others to commit war crimes. He has been sentenced to life imprisonment.

The appeals court rejected al-Bahlul's challenge to his conspiracy conviction but overturned his material support and solicitation convictions.

The court, in an opinion by Judge Karen LeCraft Henderson, said the government had offered little backup for the notion that a military commission could try defendants on the charges for which the convictions were overturned — material support for terrorism and solicitation to commit war crimes.

On the conspiracy conviction, the appeals court said Congress has positively identified conspiracy as a war crime.
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Court OKs suit over San Francisco jail guard rule

Headline Legal News 2014/07/07 14:34   Bookmark and Share
A federal appeals court has reinstated a lawsuit challenging the San Francisco Sheriff's Department's policy of forbidding male guards to work in the women's jail.

The San Francisco Chronicle says a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday that the policy constituted sex discrimination which the city had failed to demonstrate was absolutely necessary.

The 9th Circuit decision overruled the finding of a federal judge who dismissed the lawsuit after finding that excluding male guards made sense as a way to protect the safety and privacy of female inmates.

The policy was adopted in 2006. The Chronicle says the 35 guards who sued the next year included women who alleged it had increased their work loads and men who said it cost them overtime and possible promotions.
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MJM Law Office, P.C. - Eugene, Oregon DUII and Criminal Defense Services

Attorney News 2014/07/07 14:33   Bookmark and Share
Driving under the influence is not a good idea, but it's a common occurence in all states. Oregon residents should be warned that the state's drunk driving laws are among the most unforgiving in the country. If you've been charged with a DUI, you'll want to have an experienced DUI lawyer by your side to ensure you make the best possible decisions throughout your case. Detailed reviews and investigations by a criminal defense lawyer can either make or break your case. Why risk losing your license and driving privileges? Following a DUII arrest, you're placed at risk of losing your license through the court and through DMV. Don't delay in getting in touch with an experienced Eugene DUI attorney. At the MJM Law Office, P.C., we will give your case the attention and detail it deserves.

We work closely with clients to understand and resolve their issues. We will listen to your unique situation and explain the available options. MJM Law Office, P.C. was founded to provide clients with quality representation in DUII Cases. Mr. Mizjewski, founder of MHM Law Office, understands the difficult and complex process of working through the legal system. We will help you every step of the way. MJM Law Office focuses on serving clients in Lane County, Oregon and are very familiar with the individual judges, district attorneys, and court staff.

If you find yourself in need of a Eugene DUII Lawyer, look no further and contact us today!



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US Supreme Court lets Equifax tax ruling stand

Attorney News 2014/06/30 16:47   Bookmark and Share
The U.S. Supreme Court said Monday that it won't hear an appeal from credit bureau Equifax Inc. involving what it considered an adverse tax ruling in Mississippi.

The appeal was a reaction to a 2013 Mississippi Supreme Court decision that Equifax had to prove that it didn't earn any taxable income in the state. The state Department of Revenue examined Equifax's income and allocated some to Mississippi, ruling it owed taxes and penalties.

The Mississippi court upheld the Revenue Department's calculation of the company's taxes based on revenue earned in Mississippi, thus increasing its tax liability from zero to over $700,000, according to court documents.

The Council on State Taxation, Georgia Chamber of Commerce and The Institute for Professionals had filed "friend of the court" briefs in the case.

Lawmakers responded during the 2014 session by passing a law to change how the state collects taxes.

A key part of the law could make it harder for the state to rule that multistate corporations are paying too little in taxes to Mississippi. It says the Department of Revenue would have to present clear and convincing proof before it could reallocate how a company splits its income among states, and only do so in "limited and unique, nonrecurring circumstances."

The Department of Revenue estimates all changes in the law, including a phase-in of lower interest rates for overdue taxes, will cost Mississippi $100 million a year.
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Court rules against HealthSouth in auditor dispute

Headline Legal News 2014/06/16 15:13   Bookmark and Share
The Alabama Supreme Court ruled against Birmingham-based HealthSouth Corp. on Friday in a legal dispute linked to the accounting fraud that rocked the rehabilitation company more than a decade ago.

The justices rejected an appeal filed by HealthSouth in a legal fight involving its one-time auditing company, Ernst & Young.

Shareholders filed a complaint on behalf of HealthSouth blaming Ernst & Young for failing to detect the $2.6 billion accounting scam that occurred under former CEO Richard Scrushy, who was acquitted of criminal charges in 2005. A civil court later held him responsible for the swindle.

An arbitration panel ruled against HealthSouth in a complaint aimed at making Ernst & Young share responsibility for the fraud, and HealthSouth appealed to Jefferson County Circuit Court. That court sided with the auditor, and HealthSouth appealed again.

The Supreme Court, in a decision written by Justice James Main, upheld the ruling against HealthSouth. The justices said there was no evidence the arbitration decision against HealthSouth was fundamentally unfair or that the panel engaged in any misconduct.

Evidence showed HealthSouth inflated its earnings by some $2.6 billion from the late 1990s through the early 2000s, when the scheme was uncovered. Fifteen HealthSouth employees pleaded guilty and jurors convicted one other.

Scrushy blamed everything on underlings but later served time in federal prison after being convicted in a bribery scheme involving former Gov. Don Siegelman, who remains in prison in Oakdale, La.

Scrushy, who maintains his innocence to all charges, now lives in Texas and sometimes lectures about corporate fraud.
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