The Supreme Court delivered two interesting decisions today.  In a 6-3 split decision, life sentences without the possibility of parole cannot be handed to criminal juveniles where no one is killed, reversing current law in 37 states, including Florida and California.  This decision stems from Terrance Graham, who, in 2003 at age 16, robbed a Jacksonville, Florida restaurant and was sentenced to a year in jail with three years probation.  A year later, Graham robbed a home with two accomplices; he was sentenced to life in prison for violating his probation.  Justice Kennedy opined that Graham would “die in prison without any meaningful opportunity to obtain release, no matter what he might do to demonstrate that the bad acts he committed as a teenager are not representative of his true character, even if he spends the next half century attempting to atone for his crimes and learn from his mistakes.” The other High Court decision (7-2 split) upheld the federal government’s authority to detain prisoners deemed “sexually dangerous” beyond the date of their original sentence.  This law effectively reiterated a provision in the 2006 Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act, and allows confinement in a federal facility until either: Read More …

This week Larry Birkhead announced that he will auction off the possessions of the late star Anna Nicole Smith in an attempt to better provide for his daughter. Today Birkhead has been making the media rounds with Dannielynn in an attempt to publicize the auction and plead his case. This morning the duo appeared on the TODAY show and MSNBC. The auction’s announcement comes just days after the 9th Circuit rejected an appeal over Anna Nicole Smith’s estate. In March, the 9th Circuit ruled that Marshall provided for Smith during his life and Smith had no claims to her late husband’s estate, thus granting the contested fortune to J. Howard Marshall II’s heirs. After over 15 years of litigation, this case has done little more than rack up legal fees for Dannielynn. As the sole heir of her mother’s estate, further appeals merely make Dannielynn liable for a battle that should not even involve her. Dannielynn inherited her only connection to the Marshall family in a legal battle she never chose to fight. Birkhead insists he just wants a normal life for his little girl yet he continues to flaunt her to the press. The best thing for Dannielynn’s future Read More …