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An Illinois inmate has been released after over a decade in prison for a double-homicide conviction that was key to ending the state’s death penalty. Alstory Simon was the second person to be convicted for a 1982 double murder, but there were serious questions about whether Simon’s confession was coerced, the Sun-Times Media Wire reports. Now, more than three decades after the deaths, Illinois prosecutors have asked that charges against Simon be dropped....

A California Court has rejected a bid by Dr. Conrad Murray, the former personal physician to Michael Jackson, to resolve a child support issue. A Santa Clara County Superior Court commissioner rejected Dr. Conrad Murray’s child support deal to relieve him of an obligation to pay about $16,000 in back child support to the mother of his 12-year-old son, the Associated Press reports. A hearing in Nevada affecting his Nevada licensure is set June 25 before a Family Court hearing officer in Las Vegas....

Chrysler has had its share of recall problems lately, especially with its Jeeps. For the most part, these issues might’ve flown under the radar, but those days may be over. Actor Anton Yelchin, perhaps most famous for his role as Chekov in the recently rebooted Star Trek movies, was killed when his Jeep Grand Cherokee rolled over him in his own driveway. And now, what would be seen as a tragic accident has exposed more issues with Jeeps, as Yelchin’s death has been linked to a known defect with the vehicle’s gear shifter that was already subject to a recall from Chrysler....

Actress and singer Jennifer Hudson took the stand on Monday in the murder trial of the man accused of killing her mother, brother and 7-year-old nephew in 2008. The first witness called by the prosecution, she reportedly broke down in tears while talking about defendant William Balfour, the estranged husband of her sister Julia. Hudson offered jurors some insight into Balfour’s relationship with her sister and the Hudson family. They were not warm to the marriage, and she repeatedly told her sister not to marry him, as she didn’t like how he treated her or her son....

For former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards, prosecution looms. Federal prosecutors seem set to indict Edwards for the Rielle Hunter affair cover up, citing sources that Edwards misused campaign funds in order to hide his mistress and her pregnancy. “DOJ has made its decision to move forward with charges,” a source told The New York Times. It is unclear if prosecutors will move for an indictment, which would drag Edwards’ name and reputation through the mud once again, or a more low-key plea bargain, reports The Times....

Trust might be an issue if you decide to spy on your spouse, but eavesdropping on your husband or wife can also lead to legal consequences. For those dead set on recording their loved one or surreptitiously following their spouse, there are some privacy laws to consider, along with some potential legal effects of using the fruits of spying in court. Here’s what suspicious spouses need to know: Keeping tabs on every aspect of your spouse’s private life is a multifaceted endeavor....

Louisiana Citizens Insurance Corporation has reached a $23 million settlement in post- Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita homeowners dispute, according to Insurance News. The sizeable settlement affects upwards of 10,000 claimants, who argued that the insurance company insufficiently compensated them for storm repairs following the two hurricanes. Louisiana Citizens Insurance Chief Executive Officer, John Wortman told Insurance News, “We are happy to have this behind us so we can move forward....

The Mel Gibson recordings just keep on coming. The newest debacle has the “Lethal Weapon” star seriously looking into suing Joe Eszterhas. Eszterhas recorded Gibson’s latest rant while in the star’s home in Costa Rica. The actor was angry over Eszterhas’ lack of progress with “The Maccabees” script. Among the audio jewels from Gibson this time include him screaming sarcastically at his guests to eat and arbitrarily yelling “hate.” And of course, the usual deluge of F-bombs....

Atlanta rapper Young Jeezy was arrested on weapons charges two days after a shooting backstage at a California stop of his tour with Wiz Khalifa left one man dead. Jeezy, whose real name is Jay Wayne Jenkins, was one of six men arrested at the Verizon Amphitheatre in Irvine on Sunday when police, while executing a search warrant, found assault weapons backstage, reports the San Jose Mercury News. To be clear, “We haven’t made any arrests for the homicide,” a police spokesman told the newspaper....

The survivor of a hit-and-run allegedly perpetrated by Marion “Suge” Knight refused to implicate the hip-hop mogul in a pretrial hearing. Cle “Bone” Sloan was uncooperative with prosecutors’ questions about the incident, saying, “I don’t want it to get misconstrued that I told on this man,” while pointing at Knight. Sloan continued, “I’m no snitch. I will not be used to send Suge Knight to prison.” More Like Vinegar It’s difficult to tell what Suge Knight is most famous for at this point....

A federal defamation suit by New Orleans Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma against NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell was dismissed Thursday. U.S. District Judge Helen Berrigan in New Orleans said Vilma failed to show that Goodell acted with “actual malice” in making six reportedly libelous or slanderous statements between early March and early May of last year. These statements came after the NFL determined that some Saints players, coaches and officials were involved in a program that awarded cash to players for knocking opponents out of games between 2009 and 2011....

We all have hopes and dreams. And perhaps it was those aspirations that led Contessa Bourbon to list the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, London Times, Guardian, and Washington Post in her Twitter bio. But according to two of those news agencies, at least, Bourbon has never worked for them. The New York Times sued Bourbon last year, saying she falsely claimed she was a reporter representing the paper at news events and interviews....

Raymond Clark III, 26, has received a 44-year sentence without eligibility for parole for the killing of Yale student Annie Le. Le, 24, was murdered in 2009. A doctoral pharmacology student, her body was found upside down behind a wall at the research lab on the Yale campus where she worked. Her body was found the same day that she was to be married. Clark was an animal research technician at the lab....

With gas prices high, anything below $4 a gallon is a miracle. But $1 a gallon? Well, that might just be a bona fide gift from the Gods. Or a computer glitch. Residents in Pasadena, Texas were sent into a frenzy on Tuesday when word spread that a local Conoco gas station was selling gas for $1 a gallon. Residents began calling friends and family. Some even posted the news on Facebook, according to the local Fox affiliate....

Every now and then, a legal drama has to take a break from the courtroom and show how often legal battles are fought behind the scenes, without a judge and jury around. And if there are backroom deals or any backs that need stabbed on this particular legal drama, you know Eli Gold is probably involved. Both Alicia’s new firm and her old one were trying to settle differences out-of-court this week, so here’s what you need to know from last night’s episode, entitled “Payback....

In September PayPal joined Apple, Facebook, Spotify, Twitter, and YouTube in banning Alex Jones and his conspiracy website Infowars from its platform, based on violations of policies barring promotion of hate and violence. Jones fired back this week, claiming in a lawsuit that the payment processing company discriminates against conservative voices and that his exile was based purely on “viewpoint discrimination.” You can read the full lawsuit below. According to PayPal, Infowars “promoted hate and discriminatory intolerance against certain communities and religions,” which violated company policy....

In a hearing last April, Arkansas Department of Correction Deputy Director Rory Griffin admitted he deliberately avoided a paper trail when he ordered vecuronium bromide – one of three drugs in the state’s lethal injection cocktail – from McKesson Medical-Surgical Inc. That could be because he knew McKesson didn’t want the drug used for executions. While Griffin says he didn’t keep the text messages he exchanged with McKesson salesman Tim Jenkins, Jenkins did, and he testified that Griffin never told him the drug would be used for lethal injections....

We’ve all heard stories supposedly out of Texas where a mean ol’ cowboy, when faced with an intruder, made use of his rifle before he made use of his phone. While it’s common knowledge that Texas (and some of its neighbors) is fairly lenient towards homeowners who shoot a burglar to protect their property, the fact is that, in most states, this is not the case. Instead, in most of the country, you can only shoot a burglar in self-defense....

What do you do when someone you love refuses to get help for health, psychiatric, or addiction issues? An upcoming episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians will focus on the Kardashian family’s struggles to convince Rob Kardashian to get treatment for alleged drug abuse and depression. Despite their efforts to take Rob to several treatment facilities, he apparently refuses their help. In the show’s preview, Khloe pleads with Rob to get help, but he seemingly rebuffs her exhortations....

Holiday decorating is often depicted in movies by characters who hang countless strings of lights and suffer falls from ladders or rooftops for comic effect. Unfortunately, these types of incidents are grounded in reality and, unlike in the movies, they are often no laughing matter. In fact, each year it is estimated that about 12,500 people go to hospital emergency rooms for falls, cuts, shocks and burns related to holiday decorating, according to U....