Archive for the ‘Courts’ Category

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Orleans Parish Juries Reluctant to Convict

July 18th, 2011 | Posted in Courts, Local Issues, NOPD by bloom | No Comments »

A recent report from NOLA.com has indicated that Orleans Parish DA, Leon Cannizzaro’s, office has been having difficulty winning a large percentage of its cases in the last 3 months.

Photo Courtesy of NOLA.com

According to the report, cases across the board including violent, non-violent, drugs and sex crimes have seen a steep decrease in convictions despite efforts on Cannizzaro’s part to increase the number of cases that get pushed through to trial. Since March, the number of guilty verdicts won by the DA’s office in front of juries has dropped from 61% to 41%.

Mr. Cannizzaro has issued statements dismissing the importance of this decline, indicating that the percentage of the approximately 3,000 cases his office handles at any time is not primarily composed of jury trials.

Still, amid high profile controversies and pending court cases which involve NOPD officers, there certainly does seem to be widespread distrust of the police department in the city of New Orleans which has been hazarded as a possible reason for the decrease in convictions at trial.

For the full report and statistics about the DA’s success rate, visit NOLA.com .

Jury Selection Complete in Danziger Shooting Trial

June 24th, 2011 | Posted in Courts, Local Issues, NOPD by bloom | No Comments »

Jury Selection was completed Thursday in the Danziger Bridge Shooting Trial of 5 NOPD officers.

The sitting jury is reported to consist of 7 men and 5 women. Of these, 10 are white and 2 are African American.

While all of the jurors hail from across the metropolitan area, only one is actually from the city of New Orleans.

Opening statements in this developing trial are set for Monday morning.

For more on the recent Danziger Bridge Shooting trial developments, visit NOLA.com.

Danziger Bridge Shooting Trial Begins Today

June 22nd, 2011 | Posted in Courts, Local Issues, NOPD by bloom | No Comments »

The trial of 5 current and former NOPD officers accused of police misconduct in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina begins in federal court today.

Photo Courtesy of NOLA.com

The Danziger Bridge shooting, as it has become known, resulted in the deaths of 2 individuals and the injury of an additional 4 and the case against the officers represents one of the largest police misconduct cases ever prosecuted by the Justice Department.

At the heart of the case, which has garnered a large amount of national media attention much along the lines of the recently concluded Henry Glover trial, is whether or not the extenuating circumstances of Katrina’s aftermath can be used as a defense for the conduct of the police officers in this situation.

Jury selection which begins today could last a number of days as members of the defense and prosecution teams attempt to screen out candidates who may have a conflict in sitting for the trial.

For a detailed recap of the Danziger Bridge shooting including a diagram of the location, visit NOLA.com.

Bloom Legal Video Blog Vol. 5: How to Choose the Right DWI Lawyer

June 16th, 2011 | Posted in Courts, DUI/DWI, NOPD, Traffic by bloom | No Comments »

Welcome back to the Bloom Legal Video Blog!

For our fifth installment Attorney Seth Bloom, of Bloom Legal fields a question from internet users about what to look for when choosing to hire an attorney to represent you in a case.

Question answered this session:
“How do I choose the right DUI/DWI lawyer for my case?”

We look forward to reading and answering your questions each week and would like to invite you to submit them to us either via our LawQA profile or via the Contact Form on our website.

While we will not be able to answer all of the questions we receive, we will do our best to answer those which seem of most interest to our readers.

(It is important to note that the content of these videos is not intended to constitute actual legal advice, these are general commentaries on broad topics of law. If you need assistance with a specific legal question, you will need to hire an attorney. Bloom Legal is available 24/7 by phone at 504-599-9997 or online and we always offer a free consultation.)

Mental Health Court to Provide Alternatives to Jail

June 13th, 2011 | Posted in Courts, Katrina, Local Issues by bloom | No Comments »

NOLA.com reported today on the recent renewal of a program which had largely fallen by the wayside after Hurricane Katrina. New Orleans Mental Health Court, which operates out of the Orleans Parish Criminal District Court, is a program designed to provide resources to mentally ill probationers with the intention of keeping them from serving jail time.

Photo Courtesy of karenhermanforjudge.com

Coordination of counseling, transportation, health care, and treatment as well as vigilant oversight by court and probation officers are offered to individuals who agree to plead to specific felonies in return for the ability to participate in the program.

Currently, the newly re-launched program (thanks to a $100,000 federal grant secured by Judge Karen Herman) is serving 6 individuals, a number which is significantly down from its pre-Katrina enrollment of 160.

For more information on New Orleans Mental Health Court and the anticipated development of the program, visit NOLA.com.

Big News for Traffic Camera Tickets in New Orleans

May 19th, 2011 | Posted in Courts, Local Issues by bloom | No Comments »

NOLA.com reported today that Mayor Landrieu’s administration has issued a request that the New Orleans City Council introduce an ordinance to move traffic camera ticket violations to the city’s Traffic Court.

The ordinance, which will be considered at today’s City Council meeting, would be a huge step forward for the city’s contentious traffic camera program because for the first time it would allow for actual legal appeals by individuals against the tickets. Many people have complained about the inaccuracy of the tickets issued but were frustrated by the poorly designed system for contesting violations.

If the ordinance passes, residents will be able to contest the tickets at no cost in Traffic Court (although if they lose their appeal, they will be responsible for a $10 fee). This is also big news because now, for the first time, individuals who receive violations will be able to hire attorneys to fight the tickets for them in court: potentially saving them the hassle of a court visit.

Bloom Legal has been following this issue for the better part of a year and we are pleased to announce the possibly of finally representing clients in these issues.

If you or someone you know have been issued a traffic camera ticket and are interested in fighting it, the time may come very soon when this will be possible. Contact us at 504-599-9997 for a free case evaluation.

State Rep From Metairie to File Anti-Abortion Legislation

April 20th, 2011 | Posted in Courts, Local Issues, National Issues by bloom | No Comments »

John LaBruzzo, a Republican state legislator from Metairie (who last made headlines in ’08 when he announced that he was studying a plan to pay poor women $1000 to get their tubes tied), has filed a bill which would ban all abortions in the state of Louisiana and also subject any doctors performing abortions to criminal charges.

According to reports, LaBruzzo’s original draft includes criminal charges against women receiving abortions but the lawmaker elected to amend them out for fear that their inclusion would make the bill too difficult to pass. (Although it would appear that if this were not the case, then the provisions would have remained).

LaBruzzo has indicated that he decided to file House Bill 587 after being approached by an unnamed conservative religious organization. It would appear that the intent is to head directly into lawsuits designed to take a case to the Supreme Court.

It is unclear at this point what has inspired LaBruzzo to deem himself a worthy challenger of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision which has stood since 1973 and effectively legalizes abortion in the United States although it is easy to speculate that this is a bid for publicity and the currying of favor from politically-connected conservative religious organizations.

Legislation Proposes Increased Fees at Traffic Court

April 1st, 2011 | Posted in Courts, Local Issues by bloom | No Comments »

Rep. Reed Henderson D-Violet, has introduced a bill in the Louisiana state legislature which proposes an increase of $30 to the court costs already added to fines imposed in Orleans Traffic Court.

Photo Courtesy of NOLA.gov

The proposed bill is reported to originate from concerns on the part of Traffic Court judges over the ability to sustain the court’s judicial expense fund which is responsible for paying the city’s Public Defenders.

For more on this story, visit NOLA.com

While the importance of universal access to competent legal defense is a fundamental American right, this news serves as a reminder of the potential costliness of a traffic conviction in this day and age.

If you or someone you know are facing traffic or criminal violations and are interested in avoiding hefty fines and points against your license, contact Bloom Legal today at 504-599-9997 for a free case evaluation to determine whether or not we would be able to assist you.

Date Set for Oral Arguments in William Jefferson Appeal

February 21st, 2011 | Posted in Courts, Legislation, Local Issues, National Issues by bloom | No Comments »

NOLA.com reported today that the week of May 10 has been set as the tentative date for a federal appeals court to hear oral arguments in William Jefferson’s appeal of his federal corruption conviction.

Photo Courtesy of nndb.com

Mr. Jefferson who is a former long-time congressman from New Orleans was convicted of 11 out of 16 charges of corruption in 2009. Among other things, Jefferson was found guilty of accepting bribes for favorable treatment of government contracts in West Africa.

William Jefferson is facing 13 years in prison (the longest prison sentence ever faced by a congressman convicted of corruption) if ultimately found guilty.

For the full details of the story, visit NOLA.com.

DA’s Office Pushing for Reform in New Orleans Courts

February 14th, 2011 | Posted in Courts, Local Issues by bloom | No Comments »

Photo Courtesy of Nola.com


The Times-Picayune reported today that District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro’s office has been working recently to improve procedures at New Orleans Criminal District Court.

Among other things, Mr. Cannizzaro has urged the 12 judges at the CDC to more than double the number of jury trials they intend to hear this year (up to 600). Mr. Cannizzaro’s office and the public defender’s office both agree that the new goals and procedures will improve the court’s operations.

Furthermore, Mr. Cannizzaro’s office is now taking issue with certain rulings issued by Criminal Court Judge Benedict Willard. According to the Times-Picayune, Judge Willard has either delayed cases (prompting intervention by the state Supreme Court) or repeatedly issued rulings which have had to be overturned by an appellate court.

This apparent new activism on the part of the DA’s office represents a level of public dissatisfaction with the local court system which has not been voiced in a number of years.

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