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Legal news and true-crime analysis from a practicing trial lawyer.

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Booking photo of Chevazz Campbell
True Crime

By Crime Talk Network Staff Writer

Chicago police charged Chevazz Campbell in the stabbing death of CTA janitor Julian Mobley.

A detention hearing is the first court date. It is not a finding that Campbell stabbed anyone. The department's Sunday release says he robbed and fatally stabbed a 41-year-old man in the 2000 block of West Lake Street. ABC7 and CBS Chicago name that man as Julian Mobley and describe a fare dispute that turned into a stabbing. The department's charge list and CBS Chicago's shorter summary do not match count for count.

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Reporting noted by Chicago Police Department, ABC7 Chicago, and CBS Chicago.

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Booking photo of Gustavo Soto
True Crime

By Crime Talk Network Staff Writer

Chicago police charged Gustavo Soto with first-degree murder in a Chicago Lawn stabbing.

The department's release is the charging document. It is not a finding that Soto stabbed his girlfriend, which is what the Chicago Sun-Times reported and what the release does not say. FOX 32, citing that release, puts the arrest at 1:19 a.m. Friday, Oct. 9, three hours after the stabbing. That clock is Thursday night. The Sun-Times' Sunday story calls it Friday night. WGN says Thursday night and describes an argument. The department said no additional information was available.

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Reporting noted by Chicago Police Department, FOX 32 Chicago, WGN, and Chicago Sun-Times.

Booking photo of Roderick Kelvin Watson Jr.
Trials

By Crime Talk Network Staff Writer

A Marion County jury convicted Roderick Watson Jr., and the judge sentenced him to life.

A life term after a guilty verdict is the judgment on that count. It is not a second look at the self-defense claim the jury rejected. The State Attorney's Office says deputies found four gunshot wounds. Law & Crime, citing the arrest affidavit, says six. The office's release places the school "in Citrus." WFTV places it in Citra. The name on the office's release is Jaurez. Three other outlets spell it Juarez.

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Reporting noted by Fifth Judicial Circuit State Attorney's Office, WFTV, WCJB, and Law & Crime.

True Crime

By Crime Talk Network Staff Writer

Alvaro Pulido, Alex Saab's longtime business partner, is in U.S. custody in the Venezuela bribery case.

Custody is the start of a federal court case, not the end of one. Prosecutors allege Pulido and Alex Saab built a network of offshore shell companies to move bribes to allies of Nicolás Maduro in exchange for food, medicine and housing contracts. Saab has already pleaded guilty in a related case and agreed to cooperate. Saab's plea is his own admission, and the government still has to prove its case against Pulido.

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Reporting noted by ABC News, The Associated Press, and U.S. Department of Justice.

True Crime

By Crime Talk Network Staff Writer

A Katy couple is charged in what Houston investigators call a $3 million luxury-car theft ring.

The accusation is a modern twist on car theft: no broken windows, just changed drop-off addresses. Investigators put the value of the cars at more than $3 million. Those are allegations in newly filed court records, and Abd's attorney says he is still reviewing the charges.

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Reporting noted by ABC13 Houston and Harris County District Clerk.

Nelson Blanco in a Providence courtroom
True Crime

By Crime Talk Network Staff Writer

Nelson Blanco is charged with assault with intent to murder after a 2-year-old and her mother were stabbed at a Providence bus stop.

This case is about two questions at once: what police say Blanco did on Wednesday, and whether he can be tried at all. Rhode Island courts have found him incompetent to stand trial before, including in a 2003 case over the stabbing of two 7-year-old boys that ended without a trial. A competency order is not a verdict, and the new charges are accusations that still have to be proved.

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Reporting noted by NBC Boston, Daily Mail, The Boston Globe, Boston 25 News, WJAR, and The Providence Journal.

True Crime

By Crime Talk Network Staff Writer

Fresno police arrested an off-duty ICE agent after a 72-year-old man shot him during an alleged attack on a front lawn.

The arrest is an accusation against the agent, and the decision not to charge the homeowner is a police call on the facts they have so far. Police say the father feared for himself and his daughter and legally owned the gun. They also say they still do not know why an off-duty federal agent from Texas was asleep on a Fresno lawn at 3 a.m., and that question matters as much as anything the hospital chart says.

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Reporting noted by ABC30 Fresno, ABC News, and KMPH.

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Pop Culture

The culture desk
Actor Ryan Reynolds at a 2018 premiere in Tokyo
Pop Culture

By Crime Talk Network Staff Writer

Page Six says unsealed records from the Lively-Baldoni fight include Ryan Reynolds texts calling Baldoni a "predator and sociopath."

A text message in a court file is proof that someone wrote something. It is not a finding that what he wrote is true. Reynolds was angry in August 2024, and the records Page Six obtained show it. Baldoni has denied Lively's allegations from the start, and no jury ever ruled on them. Page Six reported the case settled in May. What is left now is the paper trail.

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Reporting noted by Page Six, Yahoo Entertainment, and Just Jared.

Portrait of Christina Lynn Downer
Pop Culture

By Crime Talk Network Staff Writer

LAPD homicide detectives searched Joshua Tree on Friday for evidence in Christina Downer's disappearance.

A search by homicide detectives is a step in an investigation. It is not an arrest, and it is not a finding that anyone killed Christina Downer. Fox News reported the LAPD would not say what evidence detectives hoped to find in Joshua Tree, or whether they were looking for remains or a suspect. NBC Los Angeles reported that dogs were part of the search. Fox News reported a department spokesperson could not confirm the dogs. No one has been named or charged.

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Reporting noted by Fox News, NBC Los Angeles, New York Post, and FOX 11 Los Angeles.

Pop Culture

By Crime Talk Network Staff Writer

LAPD booked Gregory Walker on a felony assault count in the February shooting of 49ers lineman Keion White.

A booking described to a newspaper is the police account of who is in custody and on what count. It is not a criminal complaint the public has seen, and it is not a conviction. The New York Post reported that LAPD officials named Gregory Walker as the suspected gunman in the February shooting of Keion White. The Post did not report a charge against Lil Baby, who was described as the person White argued with before the shots. What a witness told police about two gunshots is an allegation. A jury has not heard it.

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Reporting noted by New York Post and Yahoo Sports.

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