Court Roundup

Illinois
Judge to rule on request to certify innocence in '57 killing

SYCAMORE, Ill. (AP) - A 77-year-old Washington state man hopes an Illinois judge will help eliminate a stain on his reputation by formally declaring him innocent in the 1957 kidnapping and killing of a 7-year-old girl.

A DeKalb County judge is expected to rule Wednesday on whether to grant Jack McCullough a certificate of innocence. Getting one would also enable McCullough to sue Illinois for damages for his wrongful conviction in 2012 in Maria Ridulph's killing.

A prosecutor concluded last year that evidence backed McCullough's alibi he'd been 40 miles away when Maria disappeared. A judge agreed, ordering McCullough's release after serving four years of a life sentence.

McCullough said at a hearing last week that his reputation is damaged, that he's been portrayed "as a monster" and that people still think he's one.

Ohio
Watchdog: Inmates hid ­computers, tapped into prison network

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Ohio's government watchdog says two prisoners took computers from a disassembly program and used them to access their prison's network, create inmate passes for restricted areas, and apply for credit cards under another inmate's name for a planned tax fraud scheme.

The inspector general's report says a lack of supervision at the Marion Correctional Institution enabled the inmates to hide two computers in the ceiling and run wiring to connect to the prison network. Investigators also concluded that prison officials didn't properly report the problem after finding the computers in July 2015.

A prisons spokeswoman says authorities took steps to address some of those findings and will review the report to determine any further action needed.

A prosecutor and the Ohio Ethics Commission also are expected to review the findings.

Ohio
Slain killer, inmate suspect were in protective custody unit

TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) - A union representing corrections officers says the suspect in the fatal prison beating of a serial killer dubbed the "Angel of Death" was a fellow Ohio inmate in a protective custody unit.

Former nurse's aide Donald Harvey died last month after he was found beaten at the state's prison in Toledo.

A prison spokeswoman tells The Blade the 64-year-old Harvey was in protective custody because of his case's notoriety, but the unit isn't extra-restrictive housing.

Investigators haven't publicly identified or charged the suspect or said why the suspect was in protective custody.

Harvey was serving multiple life sentences after admitting in 1987 to killing three dozen hospital patients in Ohio and Kentucky. He said he was trying to end their suffering and claimed he killed even more.

Illinois
Chicago police question people of interest in judge slaying

CHICAGO (AP) - Chicago police say they're questioning multiple people of interest in the fatal shooting of a judge who oversaw criminal cases in Cook County, Illinois.

Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in an email Wednesday that investigators are "questioning individuals" in the case who are "people of interest." He declined to specify how many.

Police said in a statement Tuesday that they're making "considerable progress" on the investigation into the slaying of Associate Circuit Court Judge Raymond Myles, who was shot to death Monday outside his home on the South Side of Chicago.

A woman he knew also was shot and wounded.

The FBI is offering a $25,000 reward.

Investigators are considering whether the shooting was an attempted robbery gone wrong, although police don't believe anything was stolen in the pre-dawn attack.

Pennsylvania
Death penalty off the table for defendant in '84 murder case

DOYLESTOWN, Pa. (AP) - The death penalty is off the table for a Florida man charged in the 1984 murder of a Pennsylvania teen.

Prosecutors took the death penalty off the table for 56-year-old George Shaw at a court hearing during which he elected for a trial by judge. The Bucks County Courier Times reports the Geneva, Florida, man also faces rape charges.

Officials say Shaw drugged and suffocated 14-year-old Barbara Rowan inside a Bensalem apartment, then dumped her body near a highway. He was arrested and charged with Robert Sanders, who admitted he helped Shaw with the girl's remains.

Defense attorney Louis Busico says Shaw is confident in his upcoming trial, and his client "strongly maintains his innocence."

Shaw's trial before Bucks County Judge Wallace H. Bateman Jr. is scheduled for July 18.

Texas
Federal lawsuit filed in high school hazing scandal

LA VERNIA, Texas (AP) - A federal lawsuit contends football players at a San Antonio-area high school were subjected to hazing, sexual abuse and other mistreatment as part of an initiation that coaches and others failed to stop.

The lawsuit was filed Tuesday by the parents of a former player who has since withdrawn from La Vernia High School. It names as defendants the La Vernia Independent School District, its superintendent and others.

Authorities say objects were used to sodomize young players and that the hazing primarily involved the football team, with other teams involved to a lesser degree.

KENS-TV in San Antonio reports that three students were arrested Tuesday. Ten others have been charged with sexual assault.

Superintendent Jose Moreno has said new protocols are being adopted so students can report instances of abuse.

Arizona
Man accused of stealing a woman's purse on first date

PHOENIX (AP) - Police say a Phoenix man has been arrested for allegedly stealing a woman's purse during a first date.

They say 38-year-old David Harlow met the woman on an online dating site and the two talked for several weeks before meeting at a Phoenix resort.

During the date, the unidentified woman went to the restroom and asked Harlow to watch her belongings. When she got back, Harlow and her purse were reportedly gone.

Police say Harlow allegedly took the victim's credit card to a casino and tried to withdraw money from several banks.

They say Harlow has been booked into jail on suspicion of felony theft, theft of a credit card and taking the identity of another person.

It was unclear Tuesday if Harlow has a lawyer yet.

Pennsylvania
DA: Disbarred lawyer took $147K from ­special needs clients

NORRISTOWN, Pa. (AP) - A disbarred Pennsylvania attorney has been charged with stealing nearly $147,000 from special needs clients whose money he was supposed to manage.

Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele says 45-year-old Patrick Bradley used his clients' funds like an automatic teller machine and spent it on his own mortgage payments, gasoline, sporting goods and dining out.

Bradley is accused of stealing more than $116,000 from the trust accounts of five clients, then also taking nearly $31,000 for legal work he never did for seven other special needs clients.

Online court records don't list an attorney for Bradley, who was disbarred in September.

He faces a preliminary hearing May 2 on 59 theft and related counts.

Published: Thu, Apr 13, 2017