Federal prosecutors moved Tuesday to dismiss a 1994 racketeering indictment against mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger to focus on a later indictment that charged the newly captured fugitive of participating in 19 murders.

But U.S. District Judge Mark Wolf told prosecutors during a court hearing that dismissal of the indictment is "not automatic" and that he would give Bulger's provisional attorney, Peter Krupp, a day to consult with Bulger to see whether he objects to the dismissal.

The earlier indictment, which charged Bulger with extortion, loan sharking, witness tampering and conspiracy, prompted Bulger to flee Boston just before it was handed up in early 1995. He remained a fugitive until last week, when he was apprehended in Santa Monica, Calif., with his longtime girlfriend, Catherine Greig.

Krupp told Wolf the decision to drop the first indictment appears to be "forum shopping" on the part of prosecutors, an apparent reference to the fact that Wolf — who has presided in that case since 1995 — would no longer be the judge overseeing the Bulger prosecution. U.S. District Judge Richard Stearns is assigned to the 1999 indictment, which includes the murder charges.

Prosecutors declined to comment on allegations of "forum shopping." Spokeswoman Christina DiIorio-Sterling said, "Our submission speaks for itself."

Wolf is the judge who in the 1990s held hearings that exposed the Boston FBI's corrupt relationship with Bulger and his cohort, Stephen "The Rifleman" Flemmi.

A man convicted of attempting to burglarize Paris Hilton's home has been sentenced to two years in state prison.

City News Service reported that Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Kellogg also recommended during Wednesday's hearing that Nathan Lee Parada undergo mental health counseling.

A jury took less than an hour in April to convict the 32-year-old of felony attempted residential burglary for trying to break into Hilton's house in August.

The socialite testified during Parada's trial about being awoken early Aug. 24 to the sound of Parada banging on Hilton's window with a knife. Parada told a detective he planned to steal as much as he could carry and move to a deserted island.

His defense attorney argued that Parada had not taken antidepressant medication for days before his arrest.

A Pennsylvania man was found guilty Saturday in the 2009 killings of three Pittsburgh police officers who responded to his mother's 911 call about an escalating argument.

The jury deliberated for just over three hours before returning the verdict against 24-year-old Richard Poplawski. He was found guilty of all 28 counts he faced. He was found guilty of first-degree murder in all three killings, the three most serious charges he faced.

About 50 Pittsburgh police officers lined the hallway outside Allegheny County Judge Jeffrey Manning's courtroom and burst into applause when Deputy District Attorney Mark Tranquilli emerged.

Poplawski did not comment as he was taken from the courtroom, and the judge ordered his mother, Margaret, removed as well after she stood up. Manning said he was concerned she was about to create an outburst and had sheriff's deputies remove her as a precaution.

As a result, Margaret Poplawski was not immediately available for comment after the verdict.

The trial now enters a penalty phase in which the jury will hear evidence about his mental state, background and other factors before determining if Poplawski gets the death penalty or life in prison without parole.

A Navy subcontractor pleaded guilty Friday in Rhode Island for his part in what federal prosecutors say was a kickback scheme that cost the Navy millions of dollars.

Russell Spencer's plea was part of an agreement with prosecutors in which he promised to cooperate with authorities as he has been since investigators approached him in June 2010.

Spencer, 56, pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit bribery in helping funnel money, through his businesses, from a Navy contractor to a civilian Navy employee who prosecutors say then bumped up funding to the contractor. Prosecutors say the scheme cost the Navy between $7 million and $20 million.

The case prompted an internal Navy investigation that resulted in military officials in Washington suspending the contracting authority of Newport's Naval Undersea Warfare Center. The Navy said a host of contracting problems at the facility enabled the scheme.

According to the government, Ralph M. Mariano of Arlington, Va., who worked at the warfare center, initiated the scheme by threatening to use his position to reduce funding for contracts held by Advanced Solutions for Tomorrow if company owner Anjan Dutta-Gupta didn't kick back money to Mariano.

Dutta-Gupta, of Roswell, Ga., has pleaded guilty to paying $8 million in bribes over more than a decade. Mariano has been charged, but not indicted. He has declined to comment on the allegations, and remains free on bond.

A California woman who initially claimed ignorance about the contents of multiple suitcases she was bringing to Ohio faces up to 10 years in prison Friday when she is sentenced in a $3 million marijuana shipping scheme.

After her arrest in in June 2010, Lisette Lee told investigators she planned to visit a boyfriend and transport equipment to a horse farm. She also said a friend paid her $60,000 to take suitcases from Los Angeles to an unattended hotel room in Columbus, stay for a few days and return with fewer pieces of luggage, the government said.

Lee later told investigators that she and her entourage knew the horse story was phony and that they were likely involved with "weapons and money laundering or something," authorities wrote in court papers.

Lee, 29, pleaded guilty in February to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute more than 2,000 pounds of marijuana.

In a letter to U.S. District Court Judge Algenon Marbley earlier this week, Lee said she deeply regretted getting involved in drugs.