GENTRIFICATION IMMUNIZATION 
In news that could aid more tenants appealing the rising rental cost of gentrification, a Housing Court judge ruled yesterday that a company could not evict renters who stayed on while the building was converted into luxury condos. Judge David B. Cohen decided that 23 previous tenants who hung on during the rebuilding process in the 845-unit Sheffield building could stay in their homes, The New York Law Journal reports. Their leases had expired while the Attorney General approved the building's conversion plans, but the judge ruled that they were protected by the Martin Act, the state law that governs such real estate conversions. Kevin McConnell, one of the tenants' lawyers, added that "owners have a financial incentive to remove tenants because vacant apartments can command far higher prices." The rental company worried that the decision would bolster the rights of “a squatter or trespasser.”

 
VENUE BATTLE
Mayor Michael Bloomberg touched off a legal debate yesterday when he argued that the explosive trial of the police officers accused of homicide in the death of Sean Bell should be held in Queens. In a Newsday article about possible venues for the trial, legal experts were mixed. Some felt the case deserved a location far from the protestors and the highly charged atmosphere of Queens where the story gets daily media coverage. Others, including the Reverend Al Sharpton, want to keep the trial in Queens. They remember the police officers acquitted in the Amadou Diallo trial in 1999, arguing that the change of venue from (ethnically diverse) Brooklyn to (a bit paler) Albany ultimately would hurt the case. Professor Abe Abramovsky of Fordham University School of Law said the case was too close to call: “It is probably on the border. . . . I would say it is not quite as prejudicial as [Amadou] Diallo, but it is a little too early to call because they [the cops] were just indicted.”

DEATH OF A 'CELEBRITY' JUDGE KILLER
The father of actor Woody Harrelson died of a heart attack in prison this week, closing one of the most famous judicial murder cases of the last century. In 1979, Charles Harrelson was convicted of killing federal judge John Wood, Jr., outside his home, allegedly following the orders of a drug dealer worried about a case in front of the judge. He earned two life sentences for the murder. The Daily News puts the whole case in historical context: “Wood, known as 'Maximum John' for the sentences he gave in drug cases, was the first federal judge to be killed in the 20th century.”

 
DEFENDER DECEIT DEBATE
A powerful lawyer in Wisconsin, famous for defending former football players and governors, was caught tricking a boy into giving him evidence that he felt would exonerate his client. Stephen Hurley hired a private detective to access the hard drive of a boy who accused a business leader of sexually abusing him, explains The New York Times. The detective sent a fake note claiming that the boy had won a free computer. They ransacked the boy's old machine, finding child pornography on the hard drive. While the evidence was never used, Hurley had hoped to prove that the boy had discovered child pornography before he ever met his alleged molester. Hurley’s client was convicted, and now the state court must decide if they will punish Hurley for his private detective shenanigans. Jack King, a spokesperson from the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers defended his colleague: ''I certainly wouldn't be proud of taking advantage of a teenager. . . . But I don't feel the guy did anything unethical as far as the professional responsibilities rules go.''

BAR SHOOTER SENTENCED
The deranged attacker who took an entire East Village bar hostage and splashed kerosene on his victims was sentenced to 240 years in prison by a Supreme Court justice yesterday. According to the New York Post, Steven Johnson charged into the bar carrying handguns, a Samurai sword, and a bottle of kerosene which he intended to use to burn his victims as part of a vendetta against white people. In addition to threatening his victims, he also shot three people around the bar — all three survived. New York Supreme Court Justice Maxwell Wiley handled the jury trial and sentencing — the man’s first criminal case had ended in mistrial — and he was resolute in his decision. "By your actions," he wrote, "you forfeit the right to live in a free society."