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Social Security disability cases are becoming increasingly contentious. The Social Security judges who hear the cases have recently been facing violent threats from angry claimants upset over the process itself or denial of benefits. Fortunately no judges have been hurt this year, but there have been plenty of past incidents. It’s a somewhat strange and ironic trend, especially considering that if you’re healthy enough to physically menace a judge, you’re probably healthy enough to show up for work....

A squirrel monkey from the San Francisco Zoo named “Banana-Sam” was stolen last week. The squirrel monkey theft even encouraged zoo officials to ramp up security during the holiday weekend. The break-in occurred either late Thursday or early Friday. The vandals cut netting around the squirrel monkey pen. Two security guards were on patrol in the 100-acre zoo at the time. Luckily, there’s a happy ending to the story. Banana-Sam was found a few days later....

An alleged drunken driving crash at SXSW claimed two lives and injured about two dozen people after a car barreled into a crowd Thursday morning. Austin, Texas, Police Chief Art Acevedo told CNN that an unnamed male suspect is in custody facing two counts of capital murder and 23 counts of aggravated assault by vehicle for plowing into the crowd at the South by Southwest festival. What will prosecutors have to prove in order to convict, and what legal options may be available for victims of the crash?...

The Taylor Swift, or more accurately, the TAS Rights Management Company, has recently filed for several different trademarks including multiple iterations of the word “swiftie.” In case you don’t know, or couldn’t just figure it out, a “swiftie” is a person who identifies as a Taylor Swift fan so much so that their fandom is actually a personality trait for them. So what does the trademark filing mean? Despite reports claiming that Swift has various plans for using the newly trademarked terms, very little is actually known about her plans....

Although a jury handed down the death penalty last month, a judge formally sentenced Dzhokhar Tsarnaev to death today for his role in the Boston Marathon bombing that killed three and injured hundreds more. While the sentencing in some ways felt like a mere formality, it was noteworthy for those who spoke during the nearly four hour hearing. Two dozen survivors and family members of the victims were allowed to give victim impact statements, and Tsarnaev himself addressed the court and the victims for the first time....

In case you missed it, a Connecticut man was arrested this week for allegedly stabbing a watermelon in a “passive aggressive” way. Of course, violence against fruit isn’t typically a crime (otherwise fruit salad would be a lot more expensive). But in this case, police say the man’s alleged melon mangling was meant to send a threatening message to his wife – who had just reported the man’s drug stash to police and was going through a divorce, reports The Register Citizen....

Two 19-year-old Minnesota women, Brianna Marie Broitzman and Ashton Michelle Larson, were brought into court today to face charges of assault and other counts alleging they abused 15 nursing home residents. Prosecutors claim that over several months in early 2008 they physically, emotionally and sexually abused 15 residents who suffered from Alzheimer’s disease, dementia or both. Although the AP did not report on what might have motivated Broitzman and Larson, the economic downturn is only exacerbating the problem of elder abuse....

The horrible case of a child abduction in Georgia early this morning reminds us that after a child kidnapping, the first steps you take can be crucial. In the Georgia case, two gunmen broke into a home near Atlanta about 2 a.m., shot the family’s dog, and demanded jewelry and money. But with no valuables in the home, the robbers instead abducted 14-year-old Ayvani Hope Perez, NBC News reports. A nationwide Amber Alert has been issued....

Alan Newton, the man accused of rape that served over twenty years in prison until he was ultimately exonerated by DNA evidence, will finally have some closure. The now 49 year-old Newton was released from prison four years ago. He has finally settled his wrongful conviction suit with New York City for $18.5 million. The judgment represents the largest award ever given to a victim of a wrongful conviction. Like many victims of a wrongful convictions that ultimately find exoneration through DNA evidence, his claim was supported by the Innocence Project....

Well-known Arizona bankruptcy attorney Daniel Gukeisen has been convicted of manslaughter in the stabbing of an Arizona State University student, sources report. Gukeisen was reportedly not present at court for the verdict, and a warrant has been issued for his arrest, according to Alex Morris’ blog. The charges against Daniel Gukeisen, 39, relate to a September 2008 argument that left Garrett Hohn, an Arizona State University student, dead. On an early Friday in September 2008, Garret Hohn and a friend were outside of Gukeisen’s downtown Tempe home when the attorney went outside to complain about the noise, the Arizona Republic reported....

Yesterday, earthquakes rattled Costa Rica and Southern California and while, thankfully, no lives were reported lost in the California earthquake, the death toll from the Costa Rica quake has risen to fourteen as of today. People might wonder where they can turn in the event they or those they love are injured in an earthquake, or perhaps simply in the event their property is damaged. If they are going to look to the court system, it could be a tough row to hoe....

In addition to being a time-honored institution, marriage has been a hard-won civil right in America. So can inmates in jail or prison take part in the legal sanctity of marriage? Good news for jail birds and love birds: In most cases, it is possible for prisoners to legally marry their spouses – even if they’re serving life sentences. So before you start asking the prison commissary if it carries wedding invitations, check out these legal facts about marriage behind bars:...

The Missouri company that makes Happy Apple brand caramel apples has issued a recall after the Centers for Disease Control warned consumers that the apples could be linked to a deadly outbreak of listeria. Happy Apple Co. announced the recall Wednesday involving caramel apples with a “Best Used By” date of between August 25 and November 23, reports The Washington Post. The apples were sold in grocery stores and at other food outlets in packs of one, three, four, and eight....

Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood are getting sued by a Dallas songwriter who claims the country duo’s 2011 platinum hit “Remind Me” was actually her creation. Now she’s taking the singers, songwriters and Sony to court for $10 million. But what will the songwriter need to prove in order to win her copyright case and secure monetary damages to the “tune” of millions? Amy Bowen once lived in Nashville and performed as Lizza Connor....

They say you can’t fight city hall. That may be true, but you can make ’em cough up quite a bit of cash if you hang in there. In the weeks since November 23rd, the city of Washington D.C. has settled three cases with protestors stemming from police violations of first amendment rights during protests dating back as far as the year 2000. Nearly 400 protesters who were subjected to a mass arrest in Pershing Park during the World Bank meetings of 2002 will receive a settlement of $8....

William Jefferson, the former Congressman who represented New Orleans, Louisiana, was convicted by a jury today of 11 of 16 criminal counts that included federal bribery, racketeering and money laundering charges. The scandalous 95-page criminal indictment filed in 2007 charged Jefferson with conspiring to enrich him “and his family members by corruptly seeking, soliciting, and directing” that he and his family member members be paid “things of value” in exchange for performing official acts while in office that would favor those whom he sought to bribe....

The family of Charla Nash has sued Sandra Herold, the owner of the chimpanzee who mauled Nash, for $50 million. While Nash remains in critical condition, the lawsuit claims that Herold caused the attack by negligently and recklessly owning a wild animal that she could not control. Nash has remained in critical condition since the Travis Chimp mauled her on February 16. As reported by the Greenwich Times, the attack cost Nash her hands, lips, nose, eyelids and bone structure in her mid-face....

If you’ve been following the George Zimmerman shooting case in Florida, or if you’re a fan of Law & Order, you’ve probably heard the term “grand jury” tossed around a few times. You might be wondering what a grand jury is. Is it simply a “grander” version of a regular jury panel? Actually, it isn’t. Grand juries serve a different purpose than trial juries. Here are some of the main differences:...

Ted Williams, the homeless “Man with the Golden Voice,” skyrocketed to fame earlier this year when a YouTube video of his radio-quality tenor hit the airwaves. Though the sudden attention brought job offers and a chance to get off the streets, it hasn’t been all good from Williams’ perspective. In a lawsuit filed against his agents–the producers of America’s Next Voice–he alleges that he practically signed his life away while under the influence of drugs and alcohol....

After you’re arrested, your mug shot may appear on any number of websites – even if you weren’t convicted of any crime. So how do you get your online mug shot removed? An arrest can follow you for the rest of your life and put a permanent blemish on your record. Even if you were innocent, or have paid your dues, that initial photo taken during the booking process can often still be seen on many sites that post mug shots....