BOSTON (AP) - The criminal cases against two friends of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev could be affected by a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in an unrelated case involving a Florida fisherman.
In November, a federal judge postponed sentencing for Azamat Tazhayakov and Dias Kadyrbayev, saying the case before the high court could define what is considered "tangible" evidence under an obstruction of justice law that was passed in the wake of the Enron scandal.
In a 5-4 ruling on Wednesday, the justices threw out the conviction of a commercial fishing boat captain who was convicted of getting rid of fish he caught that were under the minimum legal size. Tazhayakov was found guilty and Kadyrbayev pleaded guilty to an obstruction charge for removing a backpack from Tsarnaev's dorm room and then disposing of it.
