National Roundup

Idaho Judge appoints special master in prison lawsuit BOISE, Idaho (AP) -- A federal judge has appointed a special master to see if the state is complying with court orders in a decades-old lawsuit over conditions at the Idaho State Correctional Institution. Marc Stern, a doctor and correctional health care consultant from Tumwater, Wash., was hired by the court to investigate one of the rulings in the Walter Balla case. The class-action lawsuit was named after the inmate who first brought the federal court case, contending that overcrowding, poor access to medical care and other problems at the prison south of Boise were creating cruel and inhumane conditions for prisoners. U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill has ordered Stern to determine if the state is in compliance with the Balla ruling designed to improve medical and mental health care for inmates. New Jersey Sentenced scrapped for NJ woman who killed husband TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- New Jersey's Supreme Court has tossed out a 30-year prison sentence for a woman who admitted killing her police officer husband while he slept. The court says Marie Hess' attorney did not adequately represent her. Under a plea agreement, Hess pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter in 2001. The court on Thursday found the agreement restricted Hess' attorney from arguing for a lesser sentence. Her husband, Jimmy, was a Burlington Township police officer. The 35-year-old was gunned down while he slept in 1999. The Courier-Post of Cherry Hill reports the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office plans to take Hess to trial. Idaho Parents enter plea in daughter's malnutrition GRANGEVILLE, Idaho (AP) -- A Harpster couple charged with endangering their daughter's life have entered Alford pleas to felony injury to a child. Duane and Debra Wadsworth were charged after their daughter was brought to the hospital on Dec. 21 suffering from severe dehydration and malnutrition. Court records say her body was covered with bedsores and her toes and a finger were gangrenous. Under an Alford plea, a defendant does not admit guilt, but acknowledges prosecutors have enough evidence to gain a conviction at trial. District Judge Jeff Brudie scheduled sentencing for Oct. 4 and told the Wadsworths they would be sentenced as if they had been found guilty by a jury. Idaho County Deputy Prosecutor Adam Green said Thursday he did not have any current information on the girl's current health. Texas Man with 8 DWIs gets 55 years in prison CONROE, Texas (AP) -- A Houston-area man will be 100 years old before he's eligible for parole after his eighth drunken-driving conviction. A Montgomery County jury convicted 73-year-old Gliddon William Davis of Conroe, then sentenced him to 55 years in prison over the 2009 incident. Witnesses contacted law officers after noticing Davis was driving erratically through New Caney. His blood alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit for driving. District Attorney Brett Ligon says jurors determined that Davis, who was convicted and sentenced late Wednesday, had used his vehicle as a deadly weapon. Court records indicate Davis had seven previous DWI convictions, plus convictions for two counts of attempted rape, one assault with intent to commit rape and other felonies. Indiana Man gets 120-year term for killing 2 in drug deal JEFFERSONVILLE, Ind. (AP) -- A judge has sentenced a man to 120 years in prison for killing two people during a botched drug deal in southern Indiana. A Clark County jury last month convicted 24-year-old Ryan Sheckles on murder charges for the August 2009 deaths in Jeffersonville of 38-year-old Larry Morrow and his ex-wife, 30-year-old Shannon Howard Morrow. The judge on Thursday rejected defense arguments that Sheckles has a low IQ, saying he was able to support himself despite not working, hid a weapon and evaded police for nearly a year. The News and Tribune reports Judge Dan Moore said Sheckles had shown a lack of remorse. Sheckles' attorney says an appeal is planned. Prosecutors say Sheckles killed the two because he was angry that Larry Morrow wanted to spend only $20 on drugs. California Supremacist views blamed for gay student killing LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A prosecution expert says a California teenager's white supremacist ideology is the primary reason the murder defendant shot to death a 15-year-old gay classmate. Simi Valley police Detective Dan Swanson, a white supremacy expert, testified Thursday that now-17-year-old Brandon McInerney embraces white supremacy and that led him to hate Larry King and kill the gay student in 2008. McInerney is being tried as an adult for murder and hate crime allegations. King was shot in the head at E.O. Green School in Oxnard. The trial was moved to Los Angeles County because of pretrial publicity. The Ventura County Star reports Swanson testified that McInerney is a violent member of a criminal street gang and his white supremacist ideology is the primary motivating influence for shooting King. California $1.75M settlement in Calif. penis enlargement case SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) -- A California diet supplement maker that promises its ExtenZe pills increase penis size is paying $1.75 million in penalties to settle consumer protection law violations. The Orange County district attorney's office says Monrovia-based Biotab Nutraceuticals Inc. misled consumers with unsubstantiated advertising claims for some of its supplements, including ExtenZe. Biotab has not acknowledged fault or liability but has agreed to terms of an injunction to prevent any future unfair business practices. Besides the $1.75 million in civil penalties, Biotab must pay restitution to consumers who have not received refunds after filing complaints between from 2006 to 2011. Advertising for ExtenZe claims the pills that cost more than $1 each are the strongest, most advanced formula available to increase size and enhance sexual desire, pleasure and performance. Published: Mon, Jul 25, 2011