Law

On Dec. 10, 2014, prison artwork created by Adnan Syed sits near family photos in the Baltimore home of his mother, Shamim Syed. Syed, convicted in 2000 of murdering his girlfriend, is appearing at a hearing Wednesday to request a new trial, based on evid

New Witness Testifies At Hearing For Adnan Syed Of 'Serial' Fame

7:23pm February 03, 2016

by Camila Domonoske

At Wednesday's hearing, lawyers for the convicted murderer presented an alibi witness, Asia McLean, and attacked inconsistencies in the state's case in the hopes the judge will order a new trial.

New Pardon Chief In Obama Justice Department Inherits A Huge Backlog

6:45pm February 03, 2016

by Carrie Johnson

Veteran Philadelphia prosecutor Robert Zauzmer is heading up a key priority in the final year of Obama's presidency. He tells NPR he has seen too many unfair sentences levied for low-level offenders.

Queue Listen Now

Art World Captivated By 'Fake Rothko' Trial

6:30pm February 03, 2016

The chairman of Sotheby's is suing a gallery that sold him a fake Mark Rothko painting. That trial is underway in Manhattan. Mary Louise Kelly talks to Noah Charney, author of The Art of Forgery.

Queue Listen Now

National

Judge To Decide Whether Bill Cosby Criminal Case Proceeds To Trial

5:56pm February 03, 2016

by Laura Benshoff

Bill Cosby's first hearing in a criminal case resumed Wednesday with a decision expected on whether the sexual assault charges will be thrown out or proceed to trial.

Robert Durst sits in a police vehicle following a court appearance in New Orleans on March 17, 2015.

National

Robert Durst Pleads Guilty To Gun Charge, Accepts 7-Year Sentence

3:52pm February 03, 2016

by Laura Wagner

The fugitive New York real estate heir, featured in HBO's six-part documentary called The Jinx, is expected to go on trial on murder charges this summer in California.

On Jan. 16, Tera Lecuona, resident of the Porter Ranch area of Los Angeles, holds a protest sign during a hearing over a gas leak at Southern California Gas Co.'s Aliso Canyon Storage Facility. The company faces misdemeanor charges as well as numerous civ

National

California Utility Faces Criminal Charges Over Ongoing Gas Leak

11:12am February 03, 2016

by Camila Domonoske

The leaking well near Porter Ranch, Calif., has been spewing methane gas into the air for months now. The company already faces civil suits; now, prosecutors are filing misdemeanor criminal charges.

National

Robert Durst's Attorney: Heir's Latest Legal Troubles Are 'Tough'

8:25am February 03, 2016

by Tom Michael

Dick DeGuerin has handled a range of difficult, high-profile cases, from Tom DeLay to David Koresh. Now his longtime client, Durst — subject of HBO's The Jinx — is accused of murder ... again.

Queue Listen Now

Residents Grant and Gaye Gunderson, part of the group of town residents who were waiting for the anti-federal, anti-FBI protesters at the courthouse in Harney County.

National

To Protesters Flocking To Oregon Town, Locals Say 'Go Home'

10:05pm February 02, 2016

by Martin Kaste

Anger erupted in front of the county courthouse in Burns, Ore., Monday as anti-government protesters in town for a rally met a wall of locals sick of outsiders trying to start a movement there.

Queue Listen Now

National

Florida Delays Execution Until Supreme Court Ruling Is Applied

8:26pm February 02, 2016

by Laura Wagner

The state's highest court has delayed next week's planned execution of an inmate until until it determines how to apply a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that the state's death penalty system is flawed.

Courtney B. Vance — pictured above in his role as Johnnie Cochran in The People v. O.J. Simpson — says the miniseries is a "perfect opportunity for us to begin the process" of talking about the nation's deep racial divide. "It's not going to happen ov

Arts

Cochran Would Be 'Leading The Charge' In Ferguson, Says Actor Courtney Vance

6:38pm February 02, 2016

by NPR Staff

Actor Courtney B. Vance plays lawyer Johnnie Cochran in the FX miniseries The People v. O.J. Simpson. "Finally, on the biggest stage, a black man worked the system," Vance says.

Queue Listen Now