Finding snitches in the want ads

walterreaves@att.net (Walter Reaves) — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 15:13:23 GMT

Thanks to Grits for this post. Most police departments rely on confidential informants out of necessity. The people who know about crime are usually are the ones involved in it. Some departments rely on informants more than others; its easy to make a case with an informant, and some officers may become too dependent on them. Such apparently is the case in Albuquerque, N.M., which ran this ad recently:

The Albuquerque Police Department put a want ad in the city's weekly newspaper for "people that hang out with crooks to do part-time work."

"Make some extra cash! Drug use OK. Criminal record? Not a problem." The ad in the Weekly Alibi prompted 93 calls during its two-week run before it was taken down last week, police spokesman John Walsh said.

He said some calls yielded valuable information in a drug investigation and two violent crime cases. Walsh said the ad will run again "as soon as the detectives feel they need the help" and it could become a model for other agencies

This story is from USA Today - if it was from anywhere else, I would have trouble believing it.

I can see all sorts of problem with this tactic, the most significant one being people willing to manufacture information to make some extra cash. We all know times are hard, and this is an offer of easy money. The ad targets drug users, and those with criminal records, which are probably either people not working, or having a hard time finding a job. You hope they verify any information they get before making an arrest, but if they are having to advertise for informants you have to wonder.

The problems with informants have been well documented. Behind faulty eyewitness identifications, they are one of the biggest factors involved in wrongful convictions. Most of those involved in the criminal justice system are looking at ways to limit their use, not expand it. So I hope this isn't a tactic picked up by other departments.

Finding snitches in the want ads

walterreaves@att.net (Walter Reaves) — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 15:13:23 GMT

The Albuquerque Police Department put a want ad in the city's weekly newspaper for "people that hang out with crooks to do part-time work."

"Make some extra cash! Drug use OK. Criminal record? Not a problem." The ad in the Weekly Alibi prompted 93 calls during its two-week run before it was taken down last week, police spokesman John Walsh said.

He said some calls yielded valuable information in a drug investigation and two violent crime cases. Walsh said the ad will run again "as soon as the detectives feel they need the help" and it could become a model for other agencies

This story is from USA Today - if it was from anywhere else, I would have trouble believing it.

How Can you Defend Those People/Criminals

matt@scheinerlaw.com (Matthew Skillern) — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 20:38:16 GMT

I get this question all the time. Everyone including, close family members, a waiter I bounce a fact pattern off of, people I go to church with, close friends who I deem to be intelligent, moral, and ethical, and EVEN LAWYERS ask me this same question.

So, is it a stupid question? Texas Monthly has the answer. YES!

I was at my In-Law's house over the Thanksgiving holiday. After the last bit of desert was gone, I had a few minutes to kill before the Cowboys game came on and there it was. The Answer.

I picked up the November issue of Texas Monthly and began reading The Exonerated. The article details the nightmare lived by 37 men. From the case, to the incarceration, and life after being exonerated. One exonerated person tells how he missed his children growing up, lost his wife, and his father died before his innocence was brought to light. There is a Play that tells this type of story that I wish would come to Houston.

These are the men that keep every freedom-loving criminal defense attorney awake at night. These are the men of To Kill a Mocking Bird, but were not represented by Atticus Finch. Everyone knows the saying, "it is better to let 99 guilty persons go than to lock up 1 innocent person." These men are that 1 person. Each one of them.

The Article answers how this can happen in America:

"The short answer is simple: People make mistakes. Most of these cases share a common story line: A woman, usually a traumatized rape victim, wrongly identifies her attacker. Sometimes her testimony is backed by rudimentary serology tests. Sometimes the cases are pushed too hard by aggressive police officers or prosecutors. Sometimes the accused already has a criminal record and becomes a suspect in an unsolved case in which he resembles (or is the same race as) the perpetrator. Almost every man here had a solid alibi, but cops, prosecutors, and juries chose not to believe it."

These 37 men were lucky enough that evidence was preserved in their cases. Are there others locked up unjustly? Do I even have to answer that? For you skeptics who just want blood when a horrible crime has occurred, think of it this way. In these 37 cases, the real culprit was not apprehended at the time. An innocent man was locked away why the RAPIST was lurking in your neighborhood.

I want to hear from the other people involved in these cases. The prosecutors, the judges, the defense lawyers, and especially the juries.

This article ought to be mandatory reading for every judge, lawyer, and prospective juror. Great work Texas Monthly!!

How Can you Defend Those People/Criminals

matt@scheinerlaw.com (Matthew Skillern) — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 20:38:16 GMT

So, is it a stupid question? Texas Monthly has the answer. YES!

I was at my In-Law's house over the Thanksgiving holiday. After the last bit of desert was gone, I had a few minutes to kill before the Cowboys game came on and there it was. The Answer.

The Article answers how this can happen in America:

I want to hear from the other people involved in these cases. The prosecutors, the judges, the defense lawyers, and especially the juries.

This article ought to be mandatory reading for every judge, lawyer, and prospective juror. Great work Texas Monthly!!

The Benefits of the Family Meeting - Hull on Estate and Succession Planning #141

Wed, 03 Dec 2008 15:50:00 GMT

Listen to The Benefits of the Family Meeting

This week on Hull on Estate and Succession Planning, Suzana Popovic-Montag speaks with Rodney Hull about the benefits of holding a family meeting to discuss estate matters while the testator is still alive. They both extend their condolences to the family of Ted Rogers, who passed away today.

If you have any comments, send us an email at hullandhull@gmail.com or leave a comment on our blog.

Listen to The Benefits of the Family Meeting This week on Hull on Estate and Succession Planning, Suzana Popovic-Montag speaks with Rodney Hull about the benefits of holding a family meeting to discuss estate matters while the testator is still alive. They both extend their condolences to the family of Ted Rogers, who passed away today. If you have any comments, send us an email at hullandhull@gmail.com or leave a comment on our blog.

The End of Lawyers? Rethinking the Nature of Legal Services

rich@granat.com (Richard Granat) — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 00:22:17 GMT

Richard Susskind's new book, The End of Lawyers?: Rethinking the Nature of Legal Services was just published by Oxford University Press, in the United Kingdom. I received a copy from my associates in London today, and US distribution should begin within 10 days. For law firms thinking about the future of the legal profession, this book should be mandatory reading.

Susskind sees the legal market as “broken.” Access to justice is available only to citizens who are very poor or very rich. The cost of dispute resolution in the courts often exceeds the amount at issue. Small businesses invariably claim that mainstream legal services are beyond their budgets. And even the world's largest companies and financial institutions are seeking radically new ways of meeting their legal needs.

Susskind argues that, in this time of grave economic uncertainty, the market will no longer tolerate traditional, expensive lawyers who handcraft tasks that can be better discharged with the support of modern systems and techniques. He claims that the legal profession will be driven by two forces in the coming decade: by a market pull towards the commoditization of legal services, and by the increase of disruptive, Internet-based technologies. The threat here for lawyers is clear - their jobs may well be eroded or even displaced.

Susskind challenges the legal profession to ask what elements of their current workload could be undertaken more quickly, more cheaply, more efficiently, or to a higher quality using different and new methods of working. Susskind argues that if automation can streamline certain legal tasks and that the market will forces lawyers to adapt to the "digitization" or they won't survive.

I am still working my way through this important book, so will have more to say in future blog posts when I finish it.

The Art of the Japanese Chrysanthemum - cocktail hour at The New York Botanical Garden November 7, 2008 and November 14, 2008

sevans@foxrothschild.com (Samantha Evans) — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 20:51:37 GMT

If you are in the New York City area on Friday November 7, 2008 and Friday November 14, 2008, consider participating in a cocktail hour at The New York Botanical Garden from 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. There will be a flower show and art exhibition - The Chrysanthemum in Japanese Art, which includes live Japanese music and a performance. See www.nybg.org/kiku08/hours_and_prices.php.

The Art of the Japanese Chrysanthemum - cocktail hour at The New York Botanical Garden November 7, 2008 and November 14, 2008

sevans@foxrothschild.com (Samantha Evans) — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 20:51:37 GMT

How to Have a Happy Halloween

Tue, 21 Oct 2008 16:52:59 GMT

Halloween is a time for cute little children (or big children) to go "trick or treating." Halloween is a time for fun (and sometimes outrageous) costumes. Unfortunately, the same costumes as adults may choose to wear to their friends' parties or out "trick or treating" may not be appropriate for work-sponsored Halloween activities. In this Helpcast, Host Helene Wasserman offers ways to enjoy some workplace Halloween fun (without the risks of being "haunted" for years to come.)

Political Speech in the Workplace

Tue, 21 Oct 2008 16:40:17 GMT

In this historic political year, and anytime politics become a topic of conversation, employers need to be aware of what they can, and can't, do to restrict their employees abilities to discuss and participate in politics in the workplace. In this Helpcast, Host Helene Wasserman addresses what employers can, and should, do to allow their employees to express themselves, while maintaining workplace decorum.

Salmon Labeling Probably Headed to Supreme Court

KMODZA@stoel.com (Kenneth Odza) — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 21:10:12 GMT

The U.S. Supreme Court signaled last week that it may review a California Supreme Court decision finding that federal law does not preempt claims for violations of state consumer protection laws concerning “selling artificially colored farmed salmon without disclosing to . . . customers the use of color additive.” Following a petition for certiorari filed in April, the Supreme Court issued an order last week inviting the Solicitor General “to file a brief in this case expressing the views of the United States.”

The Bush administration generally favors federal preemption of state consumer protection laws. Most Supreme Court watchers believe that the Court will grant certiorari if the Solicitor General advocates doing so. This case, if considered by the Supremes, is sure be significant with wide ranging implications for consumer protection claims concerning food product labeling.

Starbucks Settles NLRB Charge With Wobbly Organizer

dwestlind@stoel.com (Dennis Westlind) — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 16:43:53 GMT

The New York Times is reporting that Starbucks has settled with the National Labor Relations Board an unfair labor practice claim filed by a former employee who alleged he was terminated for attempting to organize his coworkers to join the Industrial Workers of the World, aka "the Wobblies."

Under the terms of the settlement, Starbucks will post a notice in the employee's store for 60 days informing workers they have a right to unionize under federal law. Starbucks will also remove from its files any reference to the employee's firing and will repay him for any loss of earnings. (Starbucks had already voluntarily reinstated the employee before he filed his charge with the NLRB). For more about the Starbucks Workers' Union (a branch of the IWW), click here.

This case is a reminder to employers that it is unlawful to discharge or take any other adverse action against an employee because of that employee's support for or activities on behalf of a labor union. Just because the employee supports a union does not require you to give him or her special treatment, nor does it make them immune for discipline unrelated to their union activities; however, if you terminate a union organizer, you proceed at your own (substantial) risk.

Sympathy is Hard to Find - Gosselin Job is Safe

jgosselin@gosselinlaw.com (John Gosselin) — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 11:47:45 GMT

By Sean P. Murphy

Globe Staff / August 29, 2008

Text size – +

Soaring gas prices, job losses, and other components of New England's struggling economy have taken a bite out of slot machine revenues, resulting in the first significant, sustained dip in the region's gambling market since Connecticut opened its tribal casinos in the 1990s.

Slot machine players wagered 6.5 percent less at the two Connecticut casinos and two Rhode Island slot parlors in July, compared with July 2007, a decrease of $137 million.

The downturn, reflective of a national slide in gambling revenues, has taken hold even as New England gambling operators have increased the supply of slot machines. About 1,300 new machines were placed on line in Connecticut and Rhode Island in the last year. And today, Mohegan Sun in Connecticut is hosting the grand opening of a $925 million expansion, adding 650 machines.

Mitchell Etess, Mohegan Sun president and chief executive, said yesterday that the economic downturn "clearly is having a negative impact" on Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods, Connecticut's other casino. "But this is a very solid market and will turn around," he said.

For years, Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun and the Twin River and Newport Grand slot parlors in Rhode Island added more slot machines to keep up with increasing demand. But now the demand appears to be more than satisfied, at least temporarily.

What will happen in the future is difficult to predict, gambling analysts said. The divergent trends - more slot machines, less demand from gamblers - could complicate the debate over whether to legalize casinos in Massachusetts. Governor Deval Patrick proposed a plan to license three casinos in Massachusetts last year; it was defeated by the Legislature, but advocates and opponents expect that the issue to emerge again in 2009.

"It's got to give people pause, and surely it will give opponents to casinos in Massachusetts new arguments" about market saturation, said Arthur Wright, a University of Connecticut economist who has tracked the industry for years.

The economic downturn alone means that bids for Massachusetts gambling licenses, pegged by Patrick last year at a minimum $200 million each, would be substantially less, because of increased borrowing costs, Wright said. And it may well preclude some would-be bidders from getting into the game because they cannot line up financing, he said.

Kofi Jones, a spokeswoman for the Patrick administration, said it was premature to discuss future casino initiatives.

The one location that could be immune to market saturation in New England is in metropolitan Boston, however. With its high per-capita earnings, dense population, and huge tourist market, the Hub remains an attractive location for a new megacasino, he said.

Laura Everett - a spokeswoman for Casino Free Mass, a coalition of groups opposed to an expansion of legalized gambling - said a casino in or near Boston may succeed for the investors, but would do so at the expense of other businesses in the vicinity.

"Casinos suck up all the available discretionary spending in a area, and that means owners of restaurants and other small business need to be very concerned," she said.

Locating a casino in a urban area also ratchets up the social costs, especially for less affluent patrons who can least afford gambling losses, Everett said.

Wright's analysis of whether a saturation point is being reached indicates that locating casinos in areas of Massachusetts outside metropolitan Boston, including the proposed Mashpee Wampanoag casino in Middleborough, would involve more economic risk for developers.

But Scott Ferson, a spokesman for the tribe and the investors in the $1 billion Middleborough proposal, said the downturn raises no great concerns. Even though Middleborough is 40 miles from Boston, he said, "people in New England like casinos, and they have shown they're willing to drive to them by going to Connecticut all these years."

Nationally, the gambling picture is a little better than in New England, said the American Gaming Association, an industry lobby that tracks commercial casinos. Holly Thomsen, a spokeswoman for the organization, said gambling revenue in casinos was down 2 percent in the second quarter of 2008, compared to the previous year, in the 12 states where they are legal, excluding Indian-operated casinos.

Measuring by the full quarter, instead of just July, slot revenues at Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun declined by more than 4 percent.

Michael Pollock - managing director of the Spectrum Gaming Group, which recently completed a gambling study for the state - said the national downturn in the gambling industry is unprecedented. In the past, the industry managed to ride out business cycles, leading some to consider casinos to be recession-proof.

But the current slide is different, Pollock said. Today's turbulence is closely tied to a bust in the housing market. High housing prices fueled the kind of confidence and even exuberance that fills casino floors and sometimes financed casino spending through home equity loans, he said.

Moreover, the industry was a lot smaller in the last recessions and less dependent on casual or new gamblers. "This industry is in uncharted waters right now," Pollock said.

The downturn has been particular unforgiving at Twin River, where investors say they are on the verge of bankruptcy and are trying to negotiate a deal with the state to reduce the amount they pay to the state in taxes.

The investors, including some who put money into developing Mohegan Sun in the 1990s, took on $577 million in loans to buy the old Lincoln Park racetrack and refurbish it. They doubled the amount of "video lottery terminals," which operate similarly to slot machines, to 4,741, and have added 24-hour operations on weekends. While those moves have increased revenues, they have not been enough to cover the higher debt costs.

The owners - including Len Wolman and Sol Kerzner, the developers of the proposed Mashpee Wampanoag casino in Middleborough - have received a credit downgrade and are negotiating with lenders.

****** Jon Gosselin from Jon & Kate Plus 8 has no association with this website or this law firm, but we welcome all Massachusetts and New Hampshire visitors to enjoy our legal information.

How I Learned to Litigate at the Movies (Audio Download)

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 09:00:00 GMT

From Anatomy of a Murder and To Kill a Mockingbird to My Cousin Vinnie, the movies are infatuated with trials and trial lawyers. After all, there's inherent drama in the trial process--and sometimes even humor. In turn, lawyers often point to film to help make their points about how to litigate effectively. This ABA Connection Teleconference will ask several leading trial lawyers to discuss their favorite trial film and what it teaches about effective trial techniques.From Anatomy of a Murder and To Kill a Mockingbird to My Cousin Vinnie, the movies are infatuated with trials and trial lawyers. After all, there's inherent drama in the trial process--and sometimes even humor. In turn, lawyers often point to film to help make their points about how to litigate effectively. This ABA Connection Teleconference will ask several leading trial lawyers to discuss their favorite trial film and what it teaches about effective trial techniques.

How I Learned to Litigate at the Movies (PDF Written Materials)

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 09:00:00 GMT

The written materials in PDF accompany the audio program "How I Learned to Litigate at the Movies "The written materials in PDF accompany the audio program "How I Learned to Litigate at the Movies "

British Legal Expert Promotes International Environmental Court

dpfaff@thelen.com (Dennis Pfaff) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 21:26:45 GMT

Here's an idea that could probably not be much more controversial: Put the lawyers in charge of tackling climate change. Really in charge, with their own court and everything.

That, without stretching it too much, is the basic concept put forward by a British lawyer in the U.K.'s Guardian newspaper and given some bounce by the Wall Street Journal's Environmental Capital blog on Tuesday. In his article, Stephen Hockman, a former chairman of the Bar Council, Britain's professional body for courtroom advocates known as barristers, proposed the establishment of an international court handling environmental issues. In his article, Hockman bemoaned the lack of solutions at hand for addressing climate change:

"The understandable reluctance of developing countries to sign up to carbon commitments - unless the developed world is prepared to make an equitable contribution - calls for more radical options. Those options must be realised at state, regional and international levels, and they will require political, economic and legal solutions.

"In this mix, international legal instruments are crucial. The existing tools lack the necessary jurisdiction, clout and transparency. The time is ripe for a serious consideration of an international court for the environment. Such a court was mooted in Washington in 1999, but sank without trace. Today, however, we cannot afford to drop the ball."

Hockman, who is also a trustee of Client Earth, a nonprofit environmental law group, argued that such an institution would also offer a centralized system, "an enhanced body of law regarding environmental issues, and consistency in the resolution of environmental disputes. He wrote that such a court should be compulsory and have its own scientific body to assess technical issues.

Environmental Capital's analysis of the idea was a bit skeptical, noting, for instance, that neither the United States nor China have exactly wrapped their figurative arms around the idea of submitting to an international legal body. And those two countries are particularly relevant to the climate change debate, since recent estimates, as Climate Law Update has noted, put the two countries near the top of the list in terms of carbon dioxide emitters on the planet. The key report cited in that dispatch showed the nations together accounted for about 45 percent of all such emissions in the world.

Concluded Environmental Capital: "Are lawyers really the best way to save the earth?"

Good question, it seems, and perhaps not so easy to answer, given the intimate and vital involvement of attorneys in environmental advocacy, government regulation and policy, and in advising business, including of course the renewable energy industry. Anyone care to weigh in on it?

--Dennis Pfaff

Class Action Against The Pope?

fpileggi@foxrothschild.com (Francis G.X. Pileggi) — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 09:55:18 GMT

It seems that I finally have a good faith basis to pen a law-related post relevant to this blog that warrants the use of a photo of His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI.

As reported recently by the ClassActionBlawg.com here, apparently descendants of The Knights Templar have sued the Supreme Pontiff about alleged confiscation of property that was owned by the secretive group over 700 years ago. Yes, there may be a statute of limitations problem, and as head of state for the sovereign nation referred to as The Holy See and known affectionately as The Vatican, there is also an issue of sovereign immunity. ( Delaware litigation and class actions go together like ham and eggs, so that was my hook.)

As a member of the Knights of Malta, which traces its history, according to some accounts, approximately back to the year 1085, I have an interest in these things and I have finally found a litigation-based reason to post about it on this blog.

Deductions from Compensation - Hull on Estates and Succession Planning Podcast #125

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 05:10:00 GMT

Listen to Deductions from Compensation.

This week on Hull on Estates and Succession Planning, Ian and Suzana finish up the discussion on the question of accounting by reviewing deductions from compensation and briefly sum up the procedure of the passing of accounts.

Comments? Send us an email at hullandhull@gmail.com, call us on the comment line at 206-457-1985, or leave us a comment on the Hull on Estate and Succession Planning blog.

Listen to Deductions from Compensation. This week on Hull on Estates and Succession Planning, Ian and Suzana finish up the discussion on the question of accounting by reviewing deductions from compensation and briefly sum up the procedure of the passing of accounts. Comments? Send us an email at hullandhull@gmail.com, call us on the comment line at 206-457-1985, or leave us a comment on the Hull on Estate and Succession Planning blog.

Chapter 13: No Minimum Time Length For The Ninth Circuit: Part 2 of 2.

Sun, 10 Aug 2008 20:50:57 GMT

In my last blog, I discussed how the Ninth Circuit has now eliminated minimum plan lengths in Chapter 13 cases, as well as eliminated payments to unsecured creditors from disposable income. This blog will focus further on the “means test” used to get to that result and the artificial income and expenses created using [...]

The Absentee Act - Hull on Estates #121

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 05:10:00 GMT

Listen to The Absentee Act

This week on Hull on Estates, Christopher Graham and David Smith talk about The Absentee Act and some of the different scenarios that it applies to.

Comments? Send us an email at hull.lawyers@gmail.com, call us on the comment line at 206-350-6636, or leave us a comment on the Hull on Estates blog.

Listen to The Absentee Act This week on Hull on Estates, Christopher Graham and David Smith talk about The Absentee Act and some of the different scenarios that it applies to. Comments? Send us an email at hull.lawyers@gmail.com, call us on the comment line at 206-350-6636, or leave us a comment on the Hull on Estates blog.

Recent Articles tagged the from LexMonitor

Finding snitches in the want ads

Finding snitches in the want ads

How Can you Defend Those People/Criminals

How Can you Defend Those People/Criminals

The Benefits of the Family Meeting - Hull on Estate and Succession Planning #141

The End of Lawyers? Rethinking the Nature of Legal Services

The Art of the Japanese Chrysanthemum - cocktail hour at The New York Botanical Garden November 7, 2008 and November 14, 2008

The Art of the Japanese Chrysanthemum - cocktail hour at The New York Botanical Garden November 7, 2008 and November 14, 2008

How to Have a Happy Halloween

Political Speech in the Workplace

Salmon Labeling Probably Headed to Supreme Court

Starbucks Settles NLRB Charge With Wobbly Organizer

Sympathy is Hard to Find - Gosselin Job is Safe

How I Learned to Litigate at the Movies (Audio Download)

How I Learned to Litigate at the Movies (PDF Written Materials)

British Legal Expert Promotes International Environmental Court

Class Action Against The Pope?

Deductions from Compensation - Hull on Estates and Succession Planning Podcast #125

Chapter 13: No Minimum Time Length For The Ninth Circuit: Part 2 of 2.

The Absentee Act - Hull on Estates #121