What do juries think of attorneys?

 Regardless of the verdict given, what attorney—having argued a case—hasn’t come away wishing for more insight into the minds and perceptions of the jurors? Given ten years of data from systematic surveys of jurors, some patterns in their responses emerge.

article here.

Michigan Supreme Court to consider resentencing juvenile "lifers"

The law is now clear that juveniles convicted of first-degree murder can no longer be automatically sentenced to life in prison without parole, without a judge first considering the circumstances of the case and potential mitigating factors.

What’s in dispute in arguments the Michigan Supreme Court will hear this morning is whether more than 350 teenagers who received mandatory life sentences under the old rules are now entitled to new sentencing hearings.

Article here. 

Persuaded by recorded pocket-dial, jury convicts law grad of murder

A cellphone pocket dial that recorded on voice mail some of the final minutes in the life of Jason Bohn's girlfriend in 2012 helped persuade a New York City jury that the University of Florida law graduate should be convicted of first-degree murder on Wednesday.

Article here. 

What is the meaning of "Willfully annoy?" Grand Rapidians no longer have to worry about it.

Grand Rapids decided to strike an ordinance from their code book. It's one from 38 years ago, and it made it a crime for one person to "willfully annoy" another person.

Article here.

The city attorney recommended repealing the language, saying it’s “subject to a variety of interpretations” as to what exactly is annoying.
“It’s unconstitutional in terms of being vague,” City Attorney Catherine Mish said. “It’s simply unenforceable.”

Why stress makes it hard for you to think and work effectively, or how to be mindful

Is "mindfulness" just a new buzzword that in effect says "hey, quit getting side-tracked and pay attention?" Or can attempting to "practice mindfulness" make you a better, more effective thinker and worker?

The lawyerist asked the same question. (article here).

Lawsuit in Federal court alleges East Lansing officers maliciously prosecuted MSU student

The incident involving Justin Socha happened in September 2010, the night after a football game between MSU and Notre Dame.
According to a complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids: Officers Jeffrey Thomas and Anthony Fuller were investigating a house and ordered Socha and a friend to convince the residents to come outside.

After spending at least 25 minutes knocking on the home’s front and back doors without a response, the officers told Socha and his friend to sweep up broken glass in the street, the complaint says.

The officers then “intimidated” Socha and his friend and “coerced” them into spreading the glass in the parking lot outside the house, behind vehicle tires, the complaint says.

Upon returning to the home, Socha was charged with urinating in public, a disorderly conduct charge, but eventually was found not guilty by a jury.

Courthouse security - asleep at the switch

Scanners (and their operators) are there at the courthouse to keep people from doing dangerous things inside the court. For example, stopping someone with a bomb or weapon in their clothes or bags, who might present a threat to anyone else in the courthouse. And we all know how annoying it is to walk through the detectors or get "wanded" by a sheriff.

But the Toledo Blade tells the story of the scanner picking up a gun in a purse, but the sheriff paying no attention.

Story here. (via State Bar of Michigan blog).