Tomorrow, Jan. 17, I’ll be at Boswell Books in Milwaukee at 7:00 p.m. for an event to mark the release of my new book, Wisconsin Sentencing in the Tough-on-Crime Era: How Judges Retained Power and Why Mass Incarceration Happened Anyway. All are welcome. More information is here. Thanks to the American Constitution Society for cosponsoring the event.
Book Release Tomorrow!
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Possible Brief Outages This Week
C&C's host is moving us to a new server, which should result in better performance. They have advised us to expect periods of downtime of 15-20 minutes this week as they make the transition. These outages should occur after 4:00 p.m. EST.
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"How the states can show the way: Participating in criminal justice reform, the states have saved over a billion dollars"
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After reviewing tens of thousands of requests, Obama Administration reportedly finds a few hundred more prisoners worthy of clemency
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New Year, Similar Priorities: SEC Announces 2017 OCIE Areas of Focus
On January 12, 2017 the SEC announced its Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) priorities for the year, including areas of focus for Retail Investors, Senior Investors and Retirement Investments, Market-wide risks, FINRA oversight, and cybersecurity. These priorities reflect an extension of previous years’ commitments, in particular with regard to focus on the retirement industry and cybersecurity. The “Regulation Systems Compliance and Integrity” (Regulation SCI) adopted by the SEC in November 2014 will also be a continued focus. Once again, protection of retail investors is of primary concern for the OCIE. Among the detailed areas of focus are examining risks related to electronic investment advice, “wrap fee” programs where investors are charged a single fee for bundled advisory and brokerage services, and “Never-before examined” Investment advisers, an initiative that was started in 2014 to engage…
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Wisconsin Supreme Court Finds Warrantless Entry and Evidence of Marijuana Constitutional Under Hot Pursuit Doctrine
Under the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution, criminal defendants are protected from unconstitutional searches and seizures. This means that police cannot enter the home of an individual or search a place like a vehicle without probable cause to do so and a warrant, unless certain circumstances apply. A recent case before the Wisconsin Supreme Court considers whether exigent circumstances justifying entering an individual’s home exist when a police officers claims to be in “hot pursuit” of an individual who is believed to have committed crimes. In State of Wisconsin v. Weber, Mr. Weber was driving in Arpin, Wisconsin, when a police officer noticed that a tail light in his car was out and that he appeared to be weaving in and out of traffic. The officer attempted to pull him over to let him know about the tail light, but Mr. Weber did not pull over. Instead, he continued onwards before pulling into a driveway and a garage. The police…
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Announcing C-CAT 2.0
Several years ago the School obtained a grant from the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation to create an online, searchable database of the collateral consequences of a criminal conviction in North Carolina. In 2012, after two years of legal and IT work, we launched the Collateral Consequences Assessment Tool, or C-CAT for short, to assist attorneys, reentry professionals, affected individuals, and policymakers in understanding the impact of a criminal conviction. We’re happy to announce we have given C-CAT a new look. It is available, still at no charge, at http://ccat.sog.unc.edu/. Before explaining the new features, I want to tout the two people who spearheaded the creation of C-CAT—Whitney Fairbanks, formerly with the School and now Assistant Director and General Counsel for the Office of Indigent Defense Services (IDS); and Daryl Atkinson, previously at IDS and currently the Second Chance Fellow for the U.S. Department of Justice. Both devoted extensive time to…
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Court Software is Blamed for Wrongful Arrests
Many factors lead to wrongful arrests. Forensic evidence could be flawed, a witness may have identified the wrong suspect or sometimes pressure from interrogators leads to a false confession. In Alameda County, California, a new and alarming problem has arisen. Case management software that was installed last year is being blamed on scores of wrongful arrests. The issue was highlighted in a report in Slate. Alameda County invested in the new system in August 2016. It replaced a system that was more than 40-years old with Tyler Technologies’ Odyssey Case Manager, the report stated. Local authorities and criminal justice agencies are doing the same thing across the country as case management systems become obsolete or unable to cope with the demands of the 21st Century. These systems play an important part in the criminal justice system. If a judge issues an arrest warrant or recalls it, or a defendant posts bail, police rely upon the system to decide who to arrest, hold or…
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Treason? Not a Problem!
Among the most astonishing and damaging security breaches in decades took place when then-Sergeant Manning (who now calls himself/herself "Chelsea") released massive amounts of classified national security information to Wikileaks. But, hey, we gotta have second chances! Thus, the Hill reports:President Obama on Tuesday commuted the prison sentence of former Army soldier Chelsea Manning, according to the White House. Manning was convicted in 2013 of leaking classified information about U.S. national security activities that were later disclosed by WikiLeaks. The 35-year sentence Manning received was the longest ever imposed for a leak conviction. Manning has already served seven years of her sentence and will now be released on May 17, 2017. She was originally set to be released be released in 2045. Yup, getting your sentence chopped by 80% for grossly compromising national security while you're serving in the armed forces is just…
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NY Times editorial rightly notes Prez Obama's clemency failings, especially with respect to pardons
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Robinson on Strict Liability's Criminogenic Effect
Paul H. Robinson (University of Pennsylvania Law School) has posted Strict Liability's Criminogenic Effect (Georgetown Law Journal, Forthcoming) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: It is easy to understand the apparent appeal of strict liability to policymakers and legal reformers...
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Prez Obama issues clemency to 273 more individuals (209 commutation and 64 pardons) and Chelsea Manning among those getting a commuted sentence
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Second Degree Aggravated Harassment: Is Threatening to Hurt Someone Always a Threat to Cause Physical Harm
While I certainly do not condone violence, if you punch someone two or three times in the face with a clenched fist, bloody up their mouth and cause them to go to the hospital for a stitch or two, an allegation of Third Degree Assault would likely survive a criminal defense attorney’s motion to dismiss the charge of New York Penal Law 120.00(1). No, it doesn’t mean you will not or cannot have defense at trial (self defense for example), but from a legal perspective your conduct satisfies the elements of the crime almost on its face. Again, you may still try, but seeking a dismissal for legal sufficiency will likely be quite difficult. Despite this, not all crimes or criminal conduct is so clear. When a court has to examine words used, the intent of those words and the reasonable implications of your speech, the court has much more to juggle than determining your intent when you balled up your fist. This more difficult type of review happens with a greater degree of…
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Extended dissent laments First Circuit panel's rejection of Eighth Amendment attack on 160-year sentence for stash house participant
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The Forgotten Face of Student Lending
Mention student loans and the face that comes immediately to mind is probably someone in their early twenties. A recent report from the CFPB sheds light on an overlooked segment of the student loan population – consumers 60 years old and older. The number of older student loan borrowers has skyrocketed in recent years. The ranks of older student loan borrowers has quadrupled in the last decade and their amount of debt has grown exponentially. The CFPB’s report considers the effect student loans have on older borrowers and examines complaints filed by older borrowers. So who are these borrowers? Baby boomers seeking a degree for a second or even third career? No. The majority of older student loan borrowers (around 73%) are financing their children’s or grandchildren’s educations. There were an estimated 2.8 million such older borrowers in 2015, up from an estimated 700,000 just ten years earlier. During the same period, the average debt load of student…
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Bush-era National Security Entry-Exit Registration System (NSEERS) Ends Effective December 23, 2016
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is removing regulations relating to an obsolete special registration program created after 9/11 to track noncitizen men from predominantly Muslim countries. NSEERS, which DHS has not used since 2011, has for many years been deemed redundant, used to capture data manually that was already captured through automated systems, nonetheless the structure has remained intact until now. The program has been discontinued, for these reasons and for reasons pertaining to NSEERS’ inability to provide a discernible public benefit, as the program no longer provides an increase in security in light of DHS’s evolving assessment of the threat posed to the United States by international terrorism. In August 2002, less than a year after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, the former Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) finalized the proposed program to require designated nonimmigrants to be fingerprinted and…
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Roth on Machine Testimony
Andrea L. Roth (University of California, Berkeley - School of Law) has posted Machine Testimony (Yale Law Journal, Forthcoming) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: Machines play increasingly crucial roles in establishing facts in legal disputes. Some machines convey information...
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Medical Marijuana Dispensary - Florida Complete Text of Proposed Rules
Florida Medical Marijuana RegulationsNotice of Development of RulemakingDEPARTMENT OF HEALTHRULE NO.: RULE TITLE:64-4.012 Medical Marijuana for Debilitating Medical ConditionsPURPOSE AND EFFECT: The purpose and effect of this rule is to implement provisions of Article X, Section 29 of the Florida Constitution, to set out clear guidance on use of terms and implementation of the amendment which went into effect on January 3, 2017.SUBJECT AREA TO BE ADDRESSED: The use of medical marijuana for debilitating medical conditions.RULEMAKING AUTHORITY: Art. X, § 29(d), Fla. Const.LAW IMPLEMENTED: Art. X, § 29, Fla. Const., 381.986 FS.A RULE DEVELOPMENT WORKSHOP WILL BE HELD AT THE DATES, TIMES AND PLACES SHOWN BELOW:February 6, 2017, 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.Duval County Health Department 900 University Blvd.…
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Obama Commutes Chelsea Manning Sentence (And 200 Plus More)
President Obama has commuted the sentence of Chelsea Manning. Manning will only have to serve four more months --She will be freed May 17. Manning was one of 273 people granted clemency or pardons today, according to the White House. His... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
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Are You Under Investigation in New Jersey?
For people who believe they are being investigated, but are not sure, there is never a downside to talking to a Monmouth County Criminal Lawyer about the possible exposure.Sometimes, people don’t even know whether they committed a crime in NJ, but someone threatened to call the police on them for whatever reason. Having the assistance of a lawyer, serves as a barrier between them and other individuals such as police or witnesses who can make your life difficult.This is always helpful and Ian Goldman of IMG Legal Group gives his client peace of mind.At IMG Legal Group we provide a free and confidential initial consultation either on the phone or in the office. Put our experience to work for you as we fight your charges to help you obtain the best possible result.Hire Expert DWI NJ Lawyer.Ian Goldman is an experienced criminal attorney at www.IMGLegalGroup.com afree DWI/DUI consultation lawyer in NJ. Put your trust in Monmouth County NJ Lawyer Ian Goldman.Ian Goldman has…
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