When the framers of the Constitution wrote the Fourth Amendment protecting Americans from unreasonable searches and seizures, there was no doubt that those protections applied to a person’s home. Indeed, courts have long held that the home is where individuals can most expect protection from unreasonable searches and seizures. The automobile, however, is more of a gray area. Recently, the U.S. Supreme Court announced that it will hear arguments in a drug crimes case in which a defendant’s Fourth Amendment rights may have been violated. As always, the Court’s decision in this matter will likely have substantial implications nationwide. In March 2012, two men were pulled over on a Nebraska highway because an officer had noticed the driver momentarily swerve onto the shoulder of the road. The officer initially smelled air fresheners and noted that the passenger looked nervous. He asked some questions of the two men but became suspicious when they did not give…
U.S. Supreme Court agrees to hear important drug crimes case
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About That Judge Edith Jones Complaint...
Last year, the Usual Whiners were in good form, trying to intimidate speech not in keeping with their views. Indeed, they marched beyond the typical snarling reception given conservative speakers at law schools, and filed a formal complaint against Judge Edith Jones of the Fifth Circuit for her talk at a Federalist Society function at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.The complaint was widely reported, see, e.g., this NYT story and this one from CBS. It was also reported on legal blogs, see, e.g., this entry.The complaint was referred by Chief Justice Roberts to the DC Circuit. After a lengthy and thorough investigation, the Court rejected the complaint in its entirety, with no dissent. Its order is here. Hat tip to Judge Richard Kopf on his blog Hercules and the Umpire.I have been writing recently about left wing attempts to silence dissenting conservatives, basically by false and disgusting accusations. The Jones…
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Website Sued Over Teen Sex "Slaves"
Good article by the Boston Herald concerning efforts being made to stop the controversial website backpage.com from publishing advertisements that have connections to the underground teenage sex trade.
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Amendment 2 asks whether child sex defendants' past acts can be used against them at trial
The real question here is, treating sex crimes differently than other crimes, when there is no proof or research that any specific crime type, has a higher rate of unprosecuted crimes than any other crime type? A BELIEF is not proof of the truth of the statement! 10-19-2014 Missouri: In August, the Missouri Supreme Court swept away one of the last vestiges of a centuries-old legal doctrine that
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Florida Judge: Red Light Camera Ticket Violated State Law
Our traffic ticket defense attorneys at the Law Offices of Leifert & Leifert know that Florida's unpopular, so-called red light cameras are regarded both as a nuisance and an intrusion, and the programs allowing them have had their troubles in the court system. Despite court rulings that red light camera tickets had illegally ticketed drivers before the law allowed such ticketing, by last year more than 900 red light cameras had generated over $119 million in tickets. But what if you knew the tickets are being issued by some out-of-state company? Wouldn't that be a violation of Florida state law? We think so, and apparently, so does Judge Mark Klingensmith of Florida's Fourth District Court of Appeals.
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Keeping your record clean after an arrest for retail theft
Getting arrested for retail theft can have serious consequences on someone’s future. If someone is caught committing retail theft, they will typically be approached by a loss prevention specialist or an agent of the store after they have completed a purchase of any other items, or walked by the registers without paying. Store agents will wait until the suspect has walked past the registers because they are the “last point of sale,” and the suspect’s last chance to pay for the stolen merchandise. After being approached the defendant will be asked to accompany the store agents to a back room and empty out their pockets or purse. Once an item of the store is discovered, the police will be contacted. It is best not to say anything or make any unnecessary admissions, as those could be damaging in the criminal case. The retail theft statute is 720 ILCS 5/16-25. It provides that retail theft is a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to 364 days in jail and a…
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Voter Fraud Being Looked at More Closely in Nevada
Nevada Joins other States in Cracking down on Voter Fraud With the election right around the corner, Nevada’s Secretary of State is ramping up efforts to prevent voter fraud. One of the newest ways the state is doing this is by teaming with other states to compare voter registration records in an effort to catch people who vote in more than one state. In all, half the states in the union currently participate in the Voter Registration Crosscheck Program, which is designed to find multi-state voters. The program is a relatively new one, having begun in 2005 with Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska coming together to share records. Those four states initially shared approximately 9 million records, but the coalition now will collectively share more than 90 million records. Thus far, the program has been extremely successful at catching multi-state voters. In 2012, more than 35,750 voters in North Carolina alone had exact matches for first name, last name, and date of…
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"Good Conduct Time for Prisoners: Why (and How) Wisconsin Should Provide Credits Toward Early Release"
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"Good Conduct Time for Prisoners: Why (and How) Wisconsin Should Provide Credits Toward Early Release"
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Judicial misconduct complained against Fifth Circuit Judge Jones based on provocative death penalty speech dismissed
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"Resurgence" : Al Qaeda's New English Magazine
Seven months in the making, al-Qaeda’s as-Sahab Media Foundation has released the premiere edition of its new English magazine, "Resurgence." It has 117 pages and is filled with glossy graphics and articles about jihad and the war against... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
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he 4th Amendment to the United States Constitution
Defendant is charged with two counts of violating Penal Law § 160.10(1), Robbery in the Second Degree as a class C felony; one count of violating Penal Law § 160.05, Robbery in the Third Degree as a class D felony; and three counts of violating Penal Law § 155.30(1), Grand larceny in the Fourth Degree as a class E felony. Codefendant Dwight Washington is charged with two counts of violating Penal Law § 160.10(1), Robbery in the Second Degree as a class C felony; one count of violating Penal Law § 160.05, Robbery in the Third Degree as a class D felony; two counts of violating Penal Law § 155.30(1), Grand larceny in the Fourth Degree as a class E felony; and one count of violating Penal Law § 155.25, Petit Larceny as a class A misdemeanor. A Nassau County Criminal lawyer said that on January 13, 17, 18, 19, and 23, 2012, upon stipulation by the attorneys, this Court conducted a Huntley, Mapp, and Wade hearing.. The Huntley hearing pertained…
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The People argue that the Police had a basis to stop the Escalade
Defendant and co-defendants were charged with three counts of violating Penal Law § 160.15(4), Robbery in the First Degree as a class B felony; three counts of violating Penal Law § 160.15(2), Robbery in the First Degree as a class B felony; three counts of violating Penal Law § 160.10(1), Robbery in the Second Degree as a class C felony; one count of violating Penal Law § 265.03(1)(b), Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree as a class C felony; one count of violating Penal Law § 265.03(3), Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree as a class C felony; one count of violating Penal Law § 155.40(1), Grand larceny in the Second Degree as a class C felony; one count of violating Penal Law § 145.10, Criminal Mischief in the Second Degree as a class D felony and one count of violating Penal Law § 140.35, Possession of Burglar's Tool as a class A misdemeanor. A Nassau County Criminal lawyer said that on March 1, 5,…
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Case o' The Week: Ninth Finds No Value in "No Value" argument - Renzi and loss calculations
Rep. Rick Renzi $200,000 for Arizona wine?United States v. Renzi, 2014 WL 5032356 (9thCir. Oct. 9, 2014), decision available here.Players:Decision by Judge Tallman, joined by Judges Callahan and Ikuta.Facts: Before he was an Arizona Congressman, Renzi was friends and business partners with Sandlin. Id.at *3. After Renzi was elected, he sold Sandlin his share in a real estate company for a $800k promissory note. Id. Sandlin also owned a tract of land near federal property in Arizona. Id. After Renzi became a Congressman, he got involved in a deal to trade federal land (something that requires Congressional action). Id. at *5. Renzi pushed the interested property group to buy Sandlin’s tract as part of this exchange – in exchange, Renzi promised to use his “free pass” to get a land trade through Congress. Id. at *5. The property group accordingly bought Sandlin’s tract: Sandlin then promptly wrote a $200,000 check…
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"Rob Cary's Book on Senator Ted Stevens"
Ellen Podgor has this post at White Collar Crime Prof Blog praising the book. In part: Discovery in a criminal case is incredibly important, and this book emphasizes its importance in the criminal justice system and to society. In white...
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UN Calls for Moratorium on Death Penalty in Iraq
A new U.N. report on the death penalty in Iraq says it is fueling the violence and a moratorium should be imposed. The report says executions in Iraq have been increasing at an alarming pace and that is applied unfairly: Judges often pass... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
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Fl Supreme Court Says Warrant Needed for Cell Tower Data
Courts continue to be divided on whether a search warrant is needed for cops to obtain cell site locator data. This week the Florida Supreme Court ruled a warrant is necessary. It is the first state to decide the issue based on the 4th Amendment. ... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
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Jared Polis: The Most Internet Friendly Congressman
Jared Polis is one of my favorite Congresspersons. (Unfortunately, I don't get to vote for him because he's not in my district.) Kevin Collier of the Kernel and The Daily Dot writes about Jared today: Jared Polis (D-Colo.) may be the... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
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Por qué un abogado para las reducciones federales de oraciones?
Varias personas me han preguntado por qué deben usar un abogado para reducir sus sentencias federales de narcoticas. Si la ley va a entrar en vigor, ¿por qué tengo que tener una sentencia reducida a un abogado? En primer lugar, la reducción de la sentencia no es automática. El tribunal decidirá si se concede la moción para reducir la pena por dos niveles. En segundo lugar, los tribunales no parecen estar nombrando abogados para representar a los reclusos que deseen presentar una petición federal para reducir su tiempo para servir. En tercer lugar, una persona sólo tiene una oportunidad de traer a una petición. Si no se hace bien, podrían innecesariamente pasar varios años adicionales en la cárcel. Por último, la redacción de estas peticiones son difícil. Sólo un abogado con mucha experiencia en la ley federal sabrá cómo comprobar si una persona es…
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Top-Ten Recent SSRN Downloads
in criminal law and procedure ejournals are here. The usual disclaimers apply. RankDownloadsPaper Title 1 356 A 'Holocaust in Slow Motion?' America's Mass Incarceration and the Role of Discretion Mark William Osler and Mark W. Bennett University of St. Thomas...
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