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Suspect's lawyer describes Minn. courthouse attack
Industry News |
2011/12/16 09:36
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In the moments after authorities say a man just convicted in a criminal trial opened fire at a small northern Minnesota courthouse, it was his defense attorney who rushed to the aid of two shooting victims.
John Lillie III described a chaotic scene Thursday just minutes after his client, Daniel Schlienz, was convicted of third-degree criminal sexual conduct. Authorities have identified Schlienz, 42, as the man who shot the prosecutor who handled his case and another man.
In an interview with the Star Tribune of Minneapolis, Lillie said he was speaking to Schlienz's mother when he heard a shot ring out inside the Cook County courthouse.
Lillie said he followed a man's pleas for help and found Gregory Thompson, of Grand Marais, wounded. He dragged Thompson outside, then re-entered the courthouse to warn workers. Lillie said he heard two more shots on the second floor and ran up to find Tim Scannell, the county prosecutor, bleeding from three gunshot wounds. |
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Wisconsin court accepts wind farm challenge
Industry News |
2011/12/15 11:36
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The state Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether Wisconsin regulators properly approved a huge wind farm in southern Minnesota.
Regulators in Wisconsin and Minnesota gave Wisconsin Power amp; Light permission in 2009 to build the $450 million farm just north of Albert Lea.
Two Wisconsin groups representing energy consumers contend the Wisconsin Public Service Commission should have applied stiffer approval criteria to the project. The commission has countered that such standards don't apply to out-of-state facilities.
The 4th District Court of Appeals asked the Supreme Court to take the case directly. Online court records indicate the high court has accepted the case, with the first briefs due in mid-January. |
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Next ICC prosecutor warns against sex crimes
Industry News |
2011/12/14 13:03
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The next chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court pledged Tuesday to strengthen efforts to bring to justice the perpetrators of sexual and gender crimes.
A day after her election by the 119 countries that support the tribunal, Gambian lawyer Fatou Bensouda said too often gender crimes go unreported and unpunished and the victims are trivialized, denigrated, threatened and silenced, which enables the abuses to continue unimpeded.
In its first cases, she said, the ICC has sent the message that this is no longer acceptable and must stop.
The International Criminal Court, which began operating in 2002, is the world's first permanent war crimes tribunal. It is a court of last resort, stepping in only when countries are unwilling or unable to prosecute alleged war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.
At the moment, the ICC is dealing with cases from Congo, the Central African Republic, Uganda involving the Lord's Resistance Army, the Darfur conflict in Sudan, the recent Libyan uprising, and post-election violence in Kenya and Ivory Coast.
At present, crimes such as rape, sexual slavery, and forced prostitution and pregnancy are alleged in some cases before the court in all of these situations except Libya, where an investigation of alleged gender-based crimes is still under way. |
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Alleged White House shooter due in court Friday
Industry News |
2011/12/12 13:03
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A federal judge has set a new court date to hear more evidence about the mental health of a man accused of firing shots at the White House in November.
Oscar Ramiro Ortega-Hernandez of Idaho appeared Wednesday in federal court in Washington, where a judge set another hearing for Friday. Ortega is accused of using an assault rifle to fire at the White House on Nov. 11, when President Barack Obama was out of town. He is charged with attempting to assassinate the president.
Acquaintances have said Ortega acted strangely in recent months, suggesting he believed he was Jesus and calling Obama the devil. A preliminary psychiatric screening found him competent to stand trial, but federal prosecutors are asking for more extensive tests. |
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