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Richard Tom crashed into a car in 2007 and killed one of the occupants. He was tried and convicted of manslaughter. As part of its case, the prosecution brought up the fact that Tom hadn’t once inquired about the other car’s passengers at the scene of the accident. Though Tom didn’t bring the Fifth Amendment self-incrimination issue up on appeal, the Court of Appeal did, and reversed his conviction. So, was Tom’s Fifth Amendment privilege violated when the trial court admitted evidence that he “failed to inquire about the welfare of the occupants of the other vehicle”?...

What do Mark Wahlberg, Martha Stewart, and Tim Allen all have in common? They are all very successful ex-felons. How did they do so well even after their convictions? Somebody saw their potential and gave them a chance. So should your company hire ex-convicts or ex-felons, too? Felonious Lives Matter It’s not exactly a movement, but more companies are giving ex-cons a second-look as potential workers. Dave’s Killer Bread, for example, employs about 100 people who have criminal backgrounds....

An Illinois teen who shot himself in the groin gave police a weird explanation: He blamed “ninjas” for causing his injuries. The unidentified 17-year-old was playing with a gun when it accidentally went off, shooting himself in the “lower groin” area, police say. At the time, the teen was riding in the backseat of a car, The Huffington Post reports. Given the painfully embarrassing act, police say that the teen then tried to spin to them a less embarrassing account of why he’d been shot....

Robert MacLean became a Federal Air Marshal in 2001. In 2003, the Marshals received word of a potential hijacking plot. Unsurprisingly enough, because the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) fails at everything, they botched the response. Because of a budget shortfall, they cancelled all missions on certain flights. MacLean discussed his concerns through the proper channels, but nothing was done. So he did what he thought was best: leak the story to the press....

Foreclosure and bankruptcy are two words no homeowner ever wants to hear. But when you’ve given it your all, the only thing you can do is find the next best thing. Here are a few tips to consider. Foreclosure is the process by which the bank which loaned you money in the form of a mortgage, repossesses your home. The bank will often sell it in a public auction, take what is owed to them, and give you back the remainder....

It’s hot. If you’re unlucky it’s also humid and your clothes are probably not made for summer weather. Your pants stick to your legs, your socks squish in your shoes. It’s not a good time to have to wear a suit to the office. It also doesn’t look like most law firms are lifting the business dress code anytime soon. The answer is to change your wardrobe. That doesn’t mean ditch the suit....

Being a lawyer can be stressful. And while the work can be fiscally, mentally, and spiritually rewarding, it is also rather taxing. Taking regular vacations is a good way to ensure that the work doesn’t grind you down. Below are five of the best vacation destinations for busy lawyers. Seriously. If you’re really busy and can’t find time to spend with your family at home, or enjoy all that worldly splendor you’ve been working for and amassing, then what’s the point?...

When professionals get together, they have dinner parties. Yes, it’s time for the world of adult conversations, cocktails, and meal courses. As a newly minted associate, you’ll need to mingle with colleagues in this time-honored bourgeois ritual, but if you’ve never hosted a dinner party, it can seem daunting. Never despair: We’re here to help! Check out these five tips: 1. Planning Is Key. As with any social function where there will be multiple people, the key is plenty of planning beforehand....

In an appeal from a juvenile court’s order terminating dependency jurisdiction over Defendant’s daughter, the order is affirmed, where: 1) the court properly dismissed dependency jurisdiction and allowed the daughter to remain in her group home; 2) Defendant’s challenge to the risk of detriment finding was moot; and 3) reversal and remand to require the juvenile court to comply with the Indian Child Welfare Act would be futile because the daughter had reached the age of majority, and therefore was not an “Indian child” within the meaning of the Act....

Another website is testing the boundaries of what constitutes “legal advice” – in much the same way your friends criticize you and then walk it back with, “Just sayin’.” Pro Se Planning Inc. operates websites where non-lawyers can fill in some forms and get customized legal paperwork. Except that allegedly, they don’t always work. Latoisha Van Buren is suing Pro Se Planning in Louisiana, Courthouse News Service reports, because “the company is not licensed to practice law in Louisiana and any contracts for legal services with nonlawyers in the state ‘are absolutely null....

Yesterday, California Congressman Duncan Hunter became the first US legislator to vape at a congressional hearing. Exhaling vapors from his e-cigarette during a debate on their use on planes held by the Transport Committee, Hunter explained the advantages of “vaping” over smoking. “This is called a vaporizer,” Hunter said, as his colleague beside can be seen waving the vapors around with her hand. Congresswoman Candace Miller’s gesture is typically used to indicate how irritating cigarette smoke is to the person sitting by a smoker, but Hunter was unfazed and continued, “There’s no combustion....

Prosecutors in Aaron Hernandez’s murder case are looking into whether the former football player’s tattoos contain clues to his alleged murders. Investigators are hoping to speak with any tattoo artists who inked “specific tattoos on [Hernandez’s] right forearm” between February 2012 and June 2013 – the period of time covering the three killings. What clues could investigators hope to find in Hernandez’s tattoos? Tattoos May Memorialize Murders It’s a bit of a mystery why investigators would believe the former Patriots player’s tattoos would be evidence in his murder case, but the authorities are playing this one pretty close to the vest....

Sometimes you hear about a lawsuit and just wish it had been you who handled the case. Jealousy hits as you ask yourself “Why couldn’t I have gotten that case?” Prepare to be jealous, this time of the in house counsel at Sears. The Sears legal department recently discovered DieHard “sexual enhancement” spray, a desensitizing product that shares its unfortunate name with the retailer’s line of DieHard car batteries. Of course, Sears promptly took the good people at RockHard Industries, Inc....

Whenever state gun laws tighten restrictions on firearms, a demand is created for devices that will skirt the new restrictions. And that’s just what has happened with the recent release of the “Bullet Button Patriot Mag Release,” which defies California’s new gun laws. Days after Jerry Brown signed into law new language that made quick release of magazines more difficult, a company softened the sting for gun lovers by introducing a device that helps speed up reloading after the gun has been partially disassembled....

A federal appellate court has affirmed a man’s conviction for making a crap-stained mess of a federal courthouse bathroom, proving to the nation what was long suspected: Judges hate poop. The First Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Ronald J. Strong’s conviction for willfully “damaging” along with “creating a nuisance” and “hazard” on federal property – crimes for which the weak-bowelled Strong served seven days in jail, reports Salon. Is it really illegal for a person to make a big mess in a federal restroom, even when he allegedly tried to clean it up?...

In plaintiff’s action under the California Uniform Trade Secrets Act claiming that the defendants misappropriated certain trade secrets belonging to plaintiff, trial court’s dismissal of the complaint on the ground that plaintiff had forfeited its standing to maintain an action for misappropriation when it had gone through bankruptcy proceedings shortly after filing the complaint is reversed where: 1) a current ownership requirement is not supported by general principles of property or tort law; 2) existing authority imposes no “current ownership requirement” on trade secret plaintiffs; 3) adoption of a current ownership requirement in trade secrets cases is not warranted by analogy to trademark, patent, or copyright law; and 4) no policy concern preponderates in favor of current ownership requirement....

It’s not normal for a judge to pull a gun in court, but leave it to Georgia to produce one that does. Judge David Barrett of the Enotah Judicial Circuit brandished a pistol mid-hearing last week while a witness was being questioned on the stand. The act was not one of self-defense, but instead an attempt to make “a poor rhetorical point.” When a sexual assault victim stopped cooperating with her attorney, he told her she was “killing her case....

When Richard Catalano was accused of violating Florida’s loud music law, he responded by saying that the law itself wasn’t constitutional. Sometimes it pays to be a lawyer. In 2007, Catalano was accused of playing his music loud enough to violate a Florida law prohibiting drivers from playing music that was “plainly audible” from 25 feet away. But the Justin Timberlake fan is also an attorney. So instead of giving in and paying the fine, Catalano argued that the law was unconstitutionally vague....

Looking for a great deal on a pre-owned vehicle? Tired of negotiating with those uppity, big-time salespeople? Having trouble getting approved for a car loan and want to pay cash instead? Well come on down to Kansas City’s impounded car auction! Where you’ll find great deals on wrecked and abandoned cars, illegally parked vehicles, or newer models seized by police in criminal investigations! We’ve even got Chrysler sedans, Ford trucks, and a Lexus ES 300, straight off the lot....

In plaintiff-school district’s petition to compel the county and the city and others to increase its allocation of community redevelopment project mitigation payments under Health and Safety Code section 33607.5, judgment in favor of the defendants is reversed and remanded where, as a matter of law, the school district’s pass-through payments have been based on erroneous calculation of its percentage share of property taxes, and LAUSD’s right to reimbursement has yet to be litigated....