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Police in Westfield, New Jersey have arrested Carlton Franklin, a 51-year-old man accused of raping and murdering Lena Triano. When police were unable to identify the suspect, the 1976 case was marked unsolved. But a prosecutor recently came across the file while investigating another unsolved murder. He was able to match the preserved DNA evidence with Franklin, who had served 20 years in prison for kidnapping and robbery before being released in 1999....

Big news out of Connecticut’s House of Representatives: Lawmakers have voted in favor of a bill to repeal the death penalty in Connecticut . If the measure passes, Connecticut would be the fifth state in five years to end capital punishment. Members of the House voted 86-62 in favor of the measure. It must now be sent to Governor Dannel Malloy for final approval. But Malloy has promised to sign the bill into law, MSNBC reports....

Never one to avoid controversy, Courtney Love has gone to trial in an alleged “Twibel” case. (That’s “Twitter libel,” in case you’re wondering.) Love’s former attorney, Rhonda Holmes, is suing Love for suggesting on Twitter that Holmes was “bought off” when she refused to help Love in a legal battle over her late husband Kurt Cobain’s estate, according to ABC News. So how can “Twibel” be proven, and will Love and her “Celebrity Skin” prevail?...

As Sir Elton John so famously said about the press, “They can say I’m a fat, old sod. They can say I’m an untalented bastard. They can call me a poof. But they mustn’t lie about me.” Sir Elton John and David Furnish have accepted an apology, undisclosed monetary damages, and legal fees in the libel suit they brought against News Group Newspaper (NGN) over a printed statement that their spaniel inflicted “Freddy Krueger-like injuries” on a five-year-old girl while at their Berkshire estate....

The FBI released its annual mortgage fraud report, detailing trends seen in data from 2008. It reads much like last year’s report with additions to the every-growing cast of schemes being employed. With real estate markets predicted to experience further decline, the report warns that the upward trend in mortgage fraud will likely continue. The upshot of the 2008 Mortgage Fraud Year in Review is that depressed rea estate markets breed new ways for people to commit mortgage fraud....

The federal Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals today struck down North Carolina’s voter identification requirement, saying the state legislature enacted the law with discriminatory intent. The court bluntly rejected the statute, saying “the General Assembly enacted them in the immediate aftermath of unprecedented African American voter participation in a state with a troubled racial history and racially polarized voting. The district court clearly erred in ignoring or dismissing this historical background evidence, all of which supports a finding of discriminatory intent....

Florida’s Governor Rick Scott signed a new death sentencing law yesterday after the US Supreme Court invalidated the state’s sentencing system in January. Capital punishment has been on hold since the old law was deemed a violation of a defendant’s constitutional right to a jury trial. The old Florida law allowed a mere majority of jurors to recommend a death sentence, according to The Miami Herald. The new Florida law allows the death penalty to be imposed if 10 of 12 jurors agree it is appropriate, among other developments....

Hoverboards, those inaccurately named and infinitely injurious contraptions, remain a thing. But one hoverboard company is claiming that their product could be more of a thing, if only Jennifer Lopez had properly promoted the brand on Instagram and Twitter. Sidekick Group Corp says it gave J.Lo over $50,000 worth of merchandise to use in a concert series, in return for promotion on social media, and is now contending that one tweet didn’t fulfill that obligation....

If you thought shoplifters were lone wolves who either couldn’t afford food or were looking for a cheap thrill, think again. Just like in any industry, pooling your resources leads to increased profits. And shoplifters have learned that certain consumer products become very valuable when they hit the street and have begun coordinating attacks on stores designed to get the most bang for their robbery buck. It’s referred to as “organized retail crime,” or ORC, and according to one California police sergeant, it works “just like a Fortune 500 company....

Daphne Melin, 32, of Long Island was arrested this week after video surfaced of her egging on a schoolyard fight between her 12-year-old daughter and a fellow tween classmate. Cell phone footage of the fight, which occurred outside a local school this past Sunday, also allegedly depicts Melin spitting on another youngster, and then kneeing her in the neck and head at least twice. She says the fight was the result of cyberbullying....

Airline refund policies–they have a tendency to apply at the most inopportune times. One such instance involves Lynn McKain, a Maryland woman diagnosed with terminal breast cancer. McKain thought she had the disease beat in 2009, prompting her and her family to buy five roundtrip tickets to Belize. But just months before the big trip, Fox News reports that the cancer had returned, and in a more aggressive manner. Armed with a doctor’s note advising her to cancel the trip, McKain sought a $4,200 refund from U....

Roughly 400 acres of property held by the Fundamentalist Church of the Latter Day Saints (‘FLDS’), the polygamous sect formerly headed by convicted child rapist Warren Jeffs, must be sold to raise money for the sect’s trust to help alleviate some $3 million in debt, according to a Utah judge. Judge Denise Lindberg, a former law clerk to retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, ruled that the Berry Knolls property in Mohave County, Arizona must be sold....

Iconic rock band The Velvet Underground is suing the Andy Warhol Foundation over an “a-peel-ing” piece of artwork. To paraphrase rocker Gwen Stefani: This suit is bananas – b-a-n-a-n-a-s. Actually, The Velvet Underground’s lawsuit focuses on one banana in particular: a pop art banana image, graced with Andy Warhol’s name in the corner and the words “Peel Slowly and See” in fine print near the stem, the New York Post reports....

While you might have the right to remain silent, you certainly don’t have a right to lie to the police. State laws can vary when it comes to false statements, but lying during federal investigation is a felony carrying a potential five year prison sentence. And that’s just your standard, run-of-the-mill federal obstruction of justice charge. What about misleading the FBI regarding your alleged contact with the Russian ambassador? Michael T....

Jury nullification is a legal phenomenon in which jurors choose to acquit a defendant despite the facts and law presented to them supporting conviction. The practice is often cited as a boon for juries who wish to free sympathetic defendants and block unjust enforcement or unjust laws. Do juries have the right to nullification, and is there any recourse for refusing to convict a defendant? Juries can acquit defendants for a variety of reasons, but it is often because they believe that the prosecution has failed to meet its burden to prove a defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt....

Do you love going to that cute little diner for lunch but absolutely hate having to pay cash? There are drawbacks to carrying a lot of bills. Maybe you don’t want to get mugged. Or, maybe you’re just busy and can’t make pit stops at the ATM before going out for a meal or a snack. You might wonder if it’s legal for stores to impose a credit card minimum charge before they’ll swipe your plastic....

Unmarked police cars are used for a variety of traffic law enforcement purposes, ranging from catching drivers committing violations to promoting traffic safety. But are unmarked police cars legal? The answer may depend on factors such as which state you’re in, what time of day it is, and what the unmarked vehicle is being used for. Generally speaking, a police car is considered unmarked if it doesn’t have fixed, visible flashing lights, a siren that emits a loud signal, or prominent markings that identify it as a police vehicle....

After two botched executions in 2014 of an Arizona inmate, and an Oklahoma inmate, much public attention was brought to the issue of what drugs are administered to execute death row inmates. After the two-hour long execution, Arizona’s attorney general temporarily halted all other executions in the state, and a court order keeps the temporary ban in place until the order is lifted. While the two-hour long execution was successful, the inmate struggled, grasped for air, and moaned in pain during the process, which evidenced that the anesthetic, midazolam, was not working properly....

“Real Housewives of Orange County” creator Scott Dunlop and Bravo are being sued over allegations that the long-running series was actually the brainchild of two people who were cut from the production. Patrick Moses, a TV producer, and Kevin Kaufman, a personal friend of Dunlop, claim that Bravo and Dunlop conspired to cut the pair out of “Housewives,” and they want $5 million in damages. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the two filed suit in New York state court last Wednesday, claiming that Dunlop had agreed to split the “Housewives” money with them three ways....

Being released from prison can be a struggle. Former inmates can find themselves far from support systems and have a difficult time landing a job, which can increase the rate of recidivism. One factor that contributes to recently released people returning to crime is often overlooked: access to health care. People convicted of felonies often find their rights restricted upon release – states may limit anything from gun rights to voting rights....