While President Trump’s opponent are having a large-scale melt-down over his recent appointments, perhaps the most consequential of these appointments is his nomination of Justice Neil Grosuch to replace the late Justice Scalia on the United States Supreme Court. But lest you think that Canada’s judicial appointments lack the intensity and angst of our American friends, you need only refer back to Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s appointment of Federal Court of Appeal Justice Marc Nadon to the Supreme Court of Canada in 2013. You may also recall that Ontario lawyer, Rocco Galati, challenged Mr. Harper’s appointment by filing a lawsuit against Mr. Harper, the Governor-General, Justice Nadon, the Attorney-General, and the Minister of Justice, which undoubtedly prompted the government’s prompt action to have the Supreme Court of Canada issue a ruling on Justice Nadon’s eligibility for our highest court, this after he had already been…
Supreme Court of Canada Refuses to Hear Lawyers Who Argue “Gonzo Logic”
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Top-Ten Recent SSRN Downloads in Criminal Procedure eJournal
are here. The usual disclaimers apply. 1 372 Judge Gorsuch and Johnson Resentencing (This is Not a Joke) Leah M. Litman University of California, Irvine School of Law Date posted to database: 24 Jan 2017 Last Revised: 3 Feb 201...
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CHINCHEROS ¿EL NEGOCIO DE LA MUERTE?
http://elcomercio.pe/opinion/columnistas/negocio-esta-adenda-fernando-rospigliosi-noticia-1965781?ref=portada_home El señor Fernando Rospigliosi hoy -04-02-2017- en El Comercio bajo el título “El negocio está en la adenda” opina sobre la construcción del Aeropuerto de Chincheros. Resulta espeluznante hablar de “negocios” si el concretarlo, más temprano que tarde originará que cientos de personas mueran o pueda permanentemente existir la posibilidad de morir, desgracia que de suceder sepultaría para siempre “el negocio” y la reclusión de por vida de quienes influyeron, facilitaron e intervinieron directa o indirectamente en su concresión que sería francamente lo de menos, en la medida que es el resultado y tal pareciera que a nadie le importa la vida humana sino el “negocio” ¡¡esa plata debió ser para mí o,…
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"A.T.F. Plans to Send More Agents to Chicago to Curb Violence"
From The New York Times: The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives plans to send more agents to Chicago to help curb a surge in violence that claimed more than 750 lives there last year, a spokesman for...
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Injury Crash SB US95@317.7, Lewiston
IDAHO STATE POLICE NEWS RELEASE - generated by our News Release ListServer DO NOT REPLY --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Idaho State Police Regional Communication Center - North 615 W Wilbur Ave Suite A Coeur d'Alene, Idaho 83815 Please direct questions to the appropriate District Offices District 1 (208) 209-8620 Fax (208) 209- 8618 District 2 (208) 799-5150 PRESS RELEASE FOR DISTRICT TWO CASE # L17000181 --------------------- PRESS RELEASE ----------------------------- DATE: February 4, 2016 TIME: 3:37 PM LOCATION: NB US95@317.7, Lewiston ASSISTING AGENCY : NEZ PERCE COUNTY SHERIFF VEHICLE #1 ------------- DRIVER- ANASTASIA M. ETZWILER AGE 54 ADDRESS- LEWISTON , ID INJURIES- YES HOSPITAL TAKEN- ST JOSEPHS VEHICLE YEAR- 2007 VEHICLE MAKE- DODGE VEHICLE MODEL- CALIBER WRECKER- FOREST WRECKING SEATBELTS- YES INCIDENT NARRATIVE: Etzwiler…
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NO STAY FOR YOU!!
The 9th Circuit to the rescue! (lots of escalation points today!!). The Trump Justice Department (Motto "your papers please..." (said in an ominous German accent)) appealed District Court Judge James Robart's order which blocked nationwide 45's immigration ban/order/birthday party invite.Robart- a Bush 43 appointee unanimously confirmed in a voice vote in 2000, was first attacked on Twitter by the so-called leader of the free world who tweeted"The opinion of this so-called judge...is ridiculous and will be overturned!" (exclamation point original!).Justice lawyers worked over-time on Saturday, pausing only to watch SNL skewer 45, and filed a stay request with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (Mission Statement "Dude! Bringing justice to the coast when we're not snowboarding and goroving")This morning, in language peppered with west coast legalese, the Ninth Circuit said "no way Dude President man...no stay for you.…
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CA4: No QI for arrest w/o PC and pft held for 80 days; lack of PC was obvious
Plaintiff was held for 80 days on an arrest utterly without probable cause, and the officer has no qualified immunity. Smith v. Munday, 2017 U.S. App. LEXIS 1975 (4th Cir. Feb. 3, 2017): When applying for an arrest warrant, Munday … Continue reading →
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MD: A stop and a frisk have separate constitutional justifications; courts must confine Terry to its 4A mooring
This Terry stop failed reasonable suspicion and all tenets of Terry. [Subtext: Police are abusing Terry, and the courts have to control them.] Ames v. State, 2017 Md. App. LEXIS 121 (Feb. 3, 2017) (Moylan, J.) (caution: The Lexis version … Continue reading →
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CA10: Handcuffing and jailing an inebriated man as “incapacitated” violated the 4A and no QI
Plaintiff showed up at a concert at the Xfinity Center in Boston inebriated, but not so drunk he didn’t know what he was doing. Security separated him from the incoming line into the hands of the defendant, an off-duty officer … Continue reading →
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When Does the Hot Pursuit Doctrine Apply in Florida?
In most cases, if the police want to search your residence for drugs, guns or other evidence of criminal activity, they need consent from the owner or someone with authorization or a search warrant. However, there are some exceptions. One such exception is the hot pursuit doctrine. The hot pursuit doctrine involves cases that fall into a subset of exigent circumstances cases. Exigent circumstances generally include emergency situations where the police have a right to conduct a search or seizure and do not have time to get consent or a search warrant. For example, if the police were patrolling an area and heard gunshots and screaming inside a house, they would likely have the right to enter the home immediately without having to take the time to try to get consent or a search warrant. The hot pursuit doctrine involves a situation where the police are chasing a suspect who they have reason to believe committed a crime and the suspect runs into an…
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Studie zur Steuerbelastung natürlicher Personen
Der Beitrag vom 31. Januar 2017 der NZZ widmet sich der Frage, ob die Schweiz ihrem Ruf als Steuerparadies für natürliche Personen entspricht. Untersucht werden dabei die Spitzensteuerbelastungen für Grossverdiener in der Schweiz. Als Grundlage diente die (jährlich erscheinende) Studie „Steuerrecht 2017“ von Prof. Dr. Pascal Hinny (Hrsg.). Im NZZ-Artikel werden die folgenden Key-Findings festgehalten: (i) Je nach Ort der Besteuerung beträgt der Spitzensteuersatz in der Schweiz bis zu 46%. Im Durchschnitt der Kantonshauptorte beläuft er sich auf rund 34%. (ii) Zusätzlich sind Sozialversicherungsbeiträge ab einem bestimmten Jahreseinkommen (aktuell CHF 84‘600) nicht mehr rentenbildend. Sie haben daher faktisch den Charakter einer Steuer. Die AHV- und IV-Beiträge von Arbeitgeber und Arbeitnehmer betragen immerhin rund 10%. (iii) In der Schweiz gibt es grössere kantonale Unterschiede. Der Spitzensteuersatz…
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Top-Ten Recent SSRN Downloads in Criminal Law eJournal
are here. The usual disclaimers apply. Rank Downloads Paper Title 1 238 Bail Nullification Jocelyn Simonson Brooklyn Law School Date posted to database: 5 Dec 2016 2 224 Law and Moral Dilemmas Bert I. Huang Columbia Law School Date posted...
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Maryland Court Throws Out Drug Convictions When State Asserted Multiple Charges Based on One Conspiracy
One of the things about which people on trial must concern themselves is being overcharged by the prosecution. That’s what happened to one inmate charged with multiple crimes for his part in bringing marijuana into a jail. Since the state only had proof of one agreement to move the drugs, the man could be guilty of only one conspiracy. The man’s conviction on two drug conspiracy charges led the Court of Special Appeals to vacate one of those convictions. Allegedly, there was a marijuana pipeline at a correctional center in Prince George’s County. The state claimed that the activity took place in the following order. First, an inmate sent his ex-girlfriend to pick up some marijuana from an acquaintance. Then, the acquaintance gave the woman the drugs, and she gave the weed to another man. Next, that man took the drugs to the jail and gave them to a corrections officer. After that, the officer delivered the marijuana to the inmate. From this chain of alleged…
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State v. Legette – Important Clarification of the Ability of Police to Seize Evidence During an Investigatory Stop
While investigating a noise complaint at an apartment complex, an officer observed James Legette standing on a common porch. The officer approached and Legette partially opened a door leading into his area. The officer then smelled burnt marijuana, entered the porch area, and identified himself as an officer. As Legette began to walk away, the officer requested identification. Legette responded that he had to retrieve his identification from the apartment, and the officer replied that he would have to accompany him. Legette entered the apartment and the officer followed. The officer noticed a bulge in Legette’s sweatshirt. After entering the apartment, Legette presented his identification and the officer radioed a request to check for outstanding arrest warrants. Legette them removed his sweatshirt and asked a woman who was in the apartment to place it in the bedroom. The officer then seized the sweatshirt from the bedroom…
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Superbowl Sunday and Open Thread
I don't watch the Superbowl (or even know who is playing in it.) But since I do love music, some years I watch the half-time show. Also, I have seen some of the commercials for this years Superbowl, like the Budweiser immigrant commercial, which... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
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Case o' The Week: Why Ask Why; Dodge Delicti? - Niebla and Corpus Delicti Rule in Drug Conspiracies
“Why hike Pozo Redondo Mountain?” (Maybe “Why! Hike Pozo Redondo Mountain!”)United States v. Niebla-Torres, 2017 U.S. App. LEXIS 1699 (9thCir. Jan. 31, 2017), decision available here. Players:Decision by Judge Christen, joined by Judges W. Fletcher and Friedland. Facts: Niebla was arrested on Pozo Redondo mountain (see map below, showing mountain and town of "Why"). This mountain is near the Arizona-Mexico border: a purported smuggling corridor. Id. at *2. According to the government’s expert witness at trial, drug trafficking organizations control that route: individuals can only cross if they pay, backpack-in drugs, or act as a scout. Id. at *3. Scouts watch for law enforcement from mountaintops, as backpacking smugglers cross the easier flatlands. Id. Agents had seen men acting furtively on this mountain for two days. Id. When a helicopter then detected possible scouts, agents hiked up and found Niebla and another…
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Judge Gorsuch and White Collar Crime
It is always difficult to predict how someone will opine if they are on the Supreme Court. This is especially true if the prior judicial opinions do not cover a wide span on issues. In the case of the nominee,...
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Cost of Money Bail System in US, Harris County, Obscene
On January 12, 2017, the Pretrial Justice Institute (PJI)published a money bail study that revealed it is costing American taxpayers roughly $38 million a day, or nearly 14 billion a year, to keep approximately 450,000 low risk, pretrial detainees housed in the nation’s jail system on any given day because they do not have the money needed to post bail. Low Risk Defendants Detained Because Cannot Afford Bail PJI reports that the average costs to provide food, medical care and security for each pretrial detainees conservatively costs taxpayers $85 a day. The 450,000 pretrial detainees cited by PJI represent 63 percent of the nation’s jail population on any given day. They are the “low risk” people who could safely be released back into the community pending final disposition of their cases. Just how bad in this cost problem for taxpayers? New York’s Rikers Island Cost More than Princeton University Let’s take…
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Court Affirms Admission of "Prior Bad Acts" Against Sexual Assault Defendant.
In my blogs, I frequently try to write a humorous quip about the defendant, defense counsel, or the courts. I can find nothing, however, humorous in the facts found in United States v. LaVictor. In this case, the defendant, LaVictor, and his girlfriend, returned to LaVictor's mother's house on the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians Reservation after a night of heavy drinking. Early the following morning, LaVictor contacted emergency services and told them his girlfriend was bleeding from her vagina. Subsequent medical examinations revealed evidence of sexual assault, which the girlfriend confirmed in her statements to the authorities. The girlfriend subsequently repeated her allegations before a federal grand jury, which returned a five-count indictment charging LaVictor with: (1) attempted sexual abuse in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2242(2)(B); (2) aggravated sexual abuse in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2241(a)(1); (3) assault…
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When a Lawyer’s Lousy Representation Can Result in a Windfall to the Defendant in a Criminal Case
Recently a client charged with serious federal narcotics crimes came to me with a tale of woe: his prior counsel who had been representing him during the investigation phase of the case had incredibly been simultaneously representing a witness who was cooperating against him in. When my new client was indicted he came to me, terrified, because a) his former lawyer knew all about his criminal background including the client’s culpability in the case for which he had just been indicted; and b) he was not an American citizen despite living in America since he was two years old; therefore, a conviction to any of the narcotics charges against him would result in his deportation back to a country he had not visited since he left as a child. The client was desperate and without hope: his former lawyer had advised him to either cooperate with the government or, if deported, to attempt to illegally sneak back into America – two choices the client was unwilling to…
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