Verdict . News

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court

Massachusetts SJC Hears Plea Withdrawal Case on Immigration Advice

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court is reviewing Commonwealth v. Santana, a case examining whether a defendant can withdraw his guilty plea after claiming his attorney failed to inform him of deportation consequences. Jorge Santana, a lawful U.S. resident, pleaded guilty to drug charges in 2018 that triggered automatic deportation proceedings.

•Jorge Santana seeks to withdraw 2018 guilty plea claiming attorney failed to advise about deportation consequences

•Case centers on Padilla v. Kentucky standards requiring immigration advice for noncitizen defendants

•Ohio Supreme Court imposed identical six-month stayed suspension mirroring Colorado discipline

Ohio Supreme Court

Ohio Supreme Court Imposes Reciprocal Discipline on Colorado Attorney

The Ohio Supreme Court has suspended attorney Michael Edward Edminister for six months, with the entire suspension stayed on probation conditions, following identical discipline imposed by Colorado's Supreme Court. The case demonstrates interstate coordination in attorney discipline through reciprocal enforcement provisions.

•No objections filed to reciprocal discipline proceedings under Gov.Bar R. V(20)

•Indiana Supreme Court unanimously affirmed murder conviction and life without parole sentence for Anthony Wayne Carter

Indiana Supreme Court

Indiana Supreme Court Upholds Murder Conviction and Life Sentence

The Indiana Supreme Court unanimously affirmed Anthony Wayne Carter's murder conviction and life imprisonment without parole sentence on Feb. 4, 2026. Carter had challenged the trial court's refusal to instruct the jury on lesser charges and the sufficiency of evidence supporting a statutory torture aggravator that enhanced his sentence.

•Carter challenged trial court's refusal to instruct jury on lesser charge of reckless homicide and sufficiency of torture aggravator evidence

•California appeals court ruled cities don't need site-specific environmental reviews for housing sites without proposed projects

California appeals court

California Appeals Court Eases Environmental Review Rules for Housing Plans

The California First Appellate District ruled that local governments don't need to conduct site-specific environmental reviews for housing sites in their general plans when no actual housing projects are proposed. The unanimous decision in a case involving the town of Tiburon will affect how cities statewide handle their housing obligations under the California Environmental Quality Act.

•Decision overturned lower court ruling in Tiburon case and will affect CEQA obligations statewide

•Supreme Court of Georgia unanimously denied certiorari petition in medical malpractice case

Georgia Supreme Court Denies Cert in Medical Malpractice Case

The Supreme Court of Georgia unanimously denied a petition for certiorari in Georgia Bone & Joint Surgeons, P.C. v. Keel, effectively ending the medical malpractice case's appeals process. The denial leaves standing a Court of Appeals ruling that rejected the medical practice's challenge to jury instruction procedures.

•Case involved dispute over jury instruction standards for evaluating medical expert testimony

•Georgia Supreme Court denied Jeffrey Flakes Jr.'s appeal of murder conviction in 2018 shooting death

Georgia Supreme Court Splits on Murder Convictions in 2018 Shooting Case

The Georgia Supreme Court issued split decisions Feb. 3 in appeals stemming from the 2018 murder of Stanford Duane Jones, denying Jeffrey Flakes Jr.'s appeal while reviewing the State's challenge to Curtis Williams III's granted new trial motion.

•Curtis Williams III received new trial from lower court due to prosecutorial conflict of interest concerns

•Montana Supreme Court affirmed Lorenzo Harris's deliberate homicide conviction in the shooting death of James Williams

Montana Supreme Court

Montana Supreme Court Affirms Harris Murder Conviction in Bench Trial

The Montana Supreme Court affirmed Lorenzo James Harris's deliberate homicide conviction, rejecting his argument that the trial court violated due process by failing to consider a lesser charge of mitigated deliberate homicide. The court ruled Harris failed to preserve his claims and did not demonstrate plain error.

•Harris argued the trial court violated due process by not considering mitigated deliberate homicide as a lesser charge

•Georgia Supreme Court reversed Jalen Shakur Biggs's life sentence for malice murder in 2021 shooting death of Keith Basham

Georgia Supreme Court Reverses Murder Conviction Over Excluded Evidence

The Georgia Supreme Court has reversed the malice murder conviction of Jalen Shakur Biggs, ruling that the trial court abused its discretion by excluding evidence of the victim's prior violent acts. Biggs was serving life without parole for the 2021 shooting death of Keith Basham.

•Trial court abused discretion by excluding evidence that victim had previously assaulted the mother of defendant's fiancée

•Georgia Supreme Court affirmed denial of Jeremy Wade Gibson's motion to withdraw guilty but mentally ill plea for wife's murder

Georgia Supreme Court Denies Murder Defendant's Plea Withdrawal Appeal

The Georgia Supreme Court affirmed a Dawson County court's denial of Jeremy Wade Gibson's motion to withdraw his guilty but mentally ill plea for murdering his wife Amy Gibson. Gibson claimed his attorney was ineffective due to conflicts of interest, but the court found no demonstrable error.

•Gibson claimed his attorney was ineffective due to conflict of interest, but court found no demonstrable error