Rockford District Court closes, Judge Steven Servaas and staff move to new courthouse

“By any objective standard, the new facilities awaiting the users and staff of the soon-to-be-closed Rockford District Court will be superior,” The Grand Rapids Press is reporting.

“But it is not the improved physical amenities of the new 63rd District Court that are first in the minds of those leaving the little white building that has been on Maple Street for 40 years.”

Bay County attorney hopes to test homeless defense for man accused of failing to register as a sex offender

The Bay City Times is reporting, “How does a convicted sex offender comply with the state Sex Offender Registration Act if he’s homeless?

“‘The legislature has us in a quandary,’ Bay City attorney Mark E. Janer said.

“Janer is representing Patrick J. Maher Jr., a 29-year-old man jailed in April for failing to comply with the act that compels sex offenders to register their addresses with state police.

“Offenders charged with misdemeanors must register annually. Felons must register every three months.”

Judge weighing re-trial for teen convicted in ‘thrill kill’

“A judge should decide this month whether to grant a new trial to a Plymouth Township teen convicted of stabbing and beheading an acquaintance,” according to a story in The Detroit News.

“Wayne County Circuit Judge Bruce U. Morrow said today he will decide by Thanksgiving whether Jean Pierre Orlewicz deserves a new trial because psychiatric testimony about his past was excluded during the first trial.

“No matter the ruling, the prosecutor and defense attorney have said they expect more appeals.”

 

MSC appoints new chief judges

Judge William B. Murphy has been named as the new chief judge of the Michigan Court of Appeals.

The Michigan Supreme Court approved the appointment last week with votes for Murphy from Chief Justice Marilyn Kelly and Justices Michael Cavanagh, Stephen Markman and Diane Hathaway.

Murphy was appointed to the court in 1988. Previously, he was a member of the East Grand Rapids City Commission, a law clerk for the Michigan Court of Appeals, and he worked as an attorney in private practice. Judge Murphy received his bachelor’s degree from Michigan State University and his law degree from Wayne State University.

The MSC also approved a slew of chief judges for the state’s circuit and district court.

The court released three appointment lists: chief judges of multiple-judge courts, chief judges of single-judge courts and appointments discussed individually at the public conference.

Purple Sportcoat Award Dinner to honor late Hon. Kaye Tertzag

On the bench, it was a black robe and a simple motto for all to live by: Be Prompt. Be Prepared. Be Polite.

Off the bench, it was one of several jazzy sportcoats and an appreciation for life.

Friends of the late Hon. Kaye Tertzag are looking to preserve and honor the jurist’s professional life and personal attributes with The First Annual Kaye Tertzag Tribute Dinner and Inaugural Purple Sportcoat Award Presentation on Feb. 25, 2010.

From our good friend, attorney-blogger Mike Butler:

Judge Tertzag was well known for his collection of sportcoats, of which the purple exhibit, pictured below, is the most famous. The award will be presented to a recipient who best exemplifies Judge Tertzag’s simple motto: Be Prompt. Be Prepared. Be Polite. And his signature parting wish: Be Well.

The event was planned with an eye to what was important to Kaye, and so, the social aspect of this evening will be extremely important. People enjoying each other’s company was important to the Judge, and the committee believes that he would want any event held in his memory to be one where people would have a good time. People are encouraged to bring spouses and significant others. …

Any questions at this time can be directed to Mike Butler at 734-776-0231.

Be Well and Be There on February 25.

Judge mulls sentence for Laingsburg man charged with causing $90,000 damage to Crawford County factories

 ”A 26-year-old Laingsburg man said he was just blowing off steam on Aug. 9 when, police claim, he caused about $90,000 worth of damage to two Crawford County industrial facilities,” according to The Bay City Times.

“Shaun Simmons now faces sentencing on a charge of malicious destruction of property over $20,000. Simmons on Tuesday pleaded no contest and, in exchange, prosecutors agreed to dismiss a charge of malicious destruction of a building over $20,000.

“Investigators claimed Simmons did about $1,500 damage doing donuts in the driveway at Lake City Redi-Mix.”

Belin wants to withdraw guilty plea in homeless veteran murder

“A Lansing-area man who pleaded guilty last month in the stabbing and slashing murder of a homeless veteran wants to withdraw his plea,” reports the Lansing State Journal.

“James Belin, 49, told Ingham County Circuit Court Judge James Giddings on Wednesday he also wants a new lawyer.

“Belin made his request to Giddings at an appearance that was supposed to serve as his sentencing.

“In October, Belin pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the death of David Melvin, 55. Melvin was homeless and was found dead May 12, 2008, in a secluded are behind the Lansing Volunteers of America complex. He had been slashed and stabbed 96 times, according to court testimony.”

 

Lawsuit claims Wayne County foreclosures were illegal

The Detroit News is reporting, “Tens of thousands of Wayne County foreclosures — and potentially hundreds of thousands across the state — are unlawful because sheriffs did not follow state law when they conducted foreclosure auctions, an attorney said Wednesday.

“On Tuesday, Bloomfield Hills attorney Paul Nicoletti filed a proposed class-action suit in federal court seeking to set aside the Wayne County foreclosures of 46 plaintiffs and potentially hundreds of thousands of others in similar circumstances.”

 

State court of appeals orders man’s name removed from Public Sex Offender Registry

“The Michigan Court of Appeals has ordered the removal of a Muskegon man’s name from the state’s Public Sex Offender Registry, calling his listing “cruel and unusual punishment” for having consensual sex in 2004 with his then-under-age girlfriend, now his wife, reports the Muskegon Chronicle.

“Robert Lee Dipiazza, the defendant, then 18, has no conviction on his record. The appeals court says he ‘never posed a danger to the public or a danger of reoffending,’ the supposed reason for the public registry’s existence. Both the appeals court and the trial judge called it a ‘Romeo and Juliet offense.’”

 

Report: Murder suspect not competent

“An Ypsilanti man charged with killing his wife in Marshall has been determined mentally incompetent to stand trial,” according to a story in the Battle Creek Enquirer.

“In a report to the Calhoun County District Court, psychologists said Kentish St Ange, 27, was not able to understand the proceedings and could not assist in his defense.

“The evaluation was prepared by the Center for Forensic Psychiatry in Ann Arbor and received Tuesday by District Judge Frank Line.”