LEGAL NEWSLINE

Attorney General Gentner Drummond is urging the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to deny an application from the Southeast Oklahoma Power Corporation (SEOPC) to build a hydroelectric power plant on the Kiamichi River in Pushmataha County.

HARRISBURG – Attorney General Michelle Henry announced the arrest of a McKeesport detective and former Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) financial officer on charges related to the theft of more than $1 million from his union lodge.

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall has led a 23-state brief in support of Florida’s appeal to the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Doe v. Surgeon General, State of Florida. Marshall urged the Eleventh Circuit to reverse the district court’s injunction on Florida’s law that places restrictions on sex-change procedures and prohibits administering puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgeries to minors for gender transition purposes. This action follows Marshall's leadership of a 22-state coalition two months prior, asking the Court of Appeals to allow Florida to...

The Supreme Court of Ohio has ruled that in civil lawsuits, only jurors who find a person acted negligently can vote to determine if that person is at fault for causing the plaintiff’s injuries. This decision applies specifically to negligence cases, requiring three-fourths of the jury members to agree on a verdict.

A Pennsylvania man was sentenced today to 24 months in prison for evading his personal and employment taxes.

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost has filed a lawsuit against the Columbus City Schools Board of Education, alleging that the district has failed to fulfill its legal obligation to transport students to charter and private schools. The suit, a petition for a writ of mandamus in the Ohio Supreme Court, seeks immediate compliance from the district.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta has joined a coalition of 20 attorneys general in filing an amicus brief in the case of Food and Drug Administration v. Wages and White Lion Investments, LLC., dba Triton Distribution, et al. The brief supports the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) decision to deny marketing authorization for certain candy- and fruit-flavored vape products, arguing that these products are not appropriate for public health protection. This action follows a ruling by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in January 2024 that favored manufacturers...

A federal grand jury indicted Dun Terrius Bradford, 53, of Sale City, Georgia, on charges of illegally possessing 67 dogs for fighting purposes, manufacturing and possessing with intent to distribute cocaine base, and possessing five firearms in furtherance of those offenses. The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia unsealed the indictment in conjunction with Bradford’s arrest today.

LITTLE ROCK – Attorney General Tim Griffin issued a statement after the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia granted a temporary restraining order against the U.S. Department of Education’s recent attempt to cancel student loans.

Attorney General Peter F. Neronha announced today that a Westerly man has been sentenced in Washington County Superior Court to serve 10 years at the Adult Correctional Institutions (ACI) for sexually assaulting a victim under the age of 14 in 2021 and 2022.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey announced today that his office has secured a temporary restraining order against the Biden-Harris Administration’s new student loan scheme. The court order follows just two days after the suit was filed to challenge the unpublished rule.

The Justice Department announced today that Samuel Ogoshi, 24, and Samson Ogoshi, 21, both of Lagos, Nigeria, were each sentenced to 210 months in prison and five years of supervised release for conspiracy to sexually exploit minors. On March 25, 2022, 17-year-old high school student Jordan DeMay of Marquette, Michigan died as a result of this sextortion scheme, which targeted over 100 other victims.

South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced the arrest of John Eric Gibbs, 61, of North Charleston, S.C., on nine charges connected to the sexual exploitation of a minor. Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force investigators with the South Carolina Attorney General's Office made the arrest. Investigators with the Dorchester County Sheriff's Office, Berkeley County Sheriff's Office, Charleston County Sheriff's Office, and Homeland Security Investigations, all members of the state's ICAC Task Force, assisted with this investigation.

The Kansas Attorney General’s Office has secured guilty pleas from former Neosho County Attorney Linus Thuston on charges of misuse of public funds and a sales tax violation. The conviction for misuse of public funds necessitates forfeiture of office, leading to Thuston's resignation on August 13, 2024.

The Department of Justice today unsealed two indictments charging Dimitri Simes, 76, and Anastasia Simes, 55, both of Huntly, Virginia, and Russia with two separate schemes to violate U.S. sanctions.

In an indictment unsealed today, a grand jury in Maryland charged six computer hackers, all residents and nationals of the Russian Federation, with conspiracy to commit computer intrusion and wire fraud conspiracy. Five of the defendants were officers in Unit 29155 of the Russian Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU), a military intelligence agency. The sixth individual was a civilian already under indictment for conspiracy to commit computer intrusion and is now also charged with wire fraud conspiracy.

America First Legal (AFL) has filed a lawsuit against the Ethics Commission for the New York State Unified Court System and Judge Juan Merchan. The legal action, initiated today, concerns the refusal to produce Judge Merchan’s financial disclosures from 2018-2024, as mandated by law.

Attorney General Moody announces arrest of caregiving company owner for Medicaid fraud

Six computer hackers, all residents and nationals of the Russian Federation, have been charged in an indictment with conspiracy to commit computer intrusion and wire fraud conspiracy. Five of the defendants were officers in Unit 29155 of the Russian Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU), a military intelligence agency of the General Staff of the Armed Forces. The sixth individual was a civilian already under indictment for conspiracy to commit computer intrusion and is now also charged with wire fraud conspiracy. The defendants are alleged to have committed cyber attacks in...

South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson has announced the sentencing of Gabriel Hostetler, an Upstate man, to prison for the sexual exploitation of minors. On September 3, 2024, Hostetler pleaded guilty to two counts of Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, Third Degree, in Pickens County before Judge William C. McMaster III.