An Illinois church organist who claimed he was fired as part of a hostile work environment has split the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals over the interpretation of recent U.S. Supreme Court precedent as to how far the ministerial exception protects religious organizations.
A man convicted of “horrific” sexual and other abuse against his son failed to convince the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals that a federal judge erred in imposing a de facto life sentence.
A convicted murderer who during sentencing received “literally no assistance from his lawyer” won resentencing after a majority of a 7th Circuit Court of Appeals panel reversed the denial of his habeas petition. A dissenting judge, however, opined that the majority’s holding improperly expands U.S. Supreme Court precedent.
A northwestern Indiana woman who operated three massage spas and was convicted of sex trafficking in a case a federal court called “a modern form of slavery” lost an appeal of her conviction and 30-year sentence Thursday.