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Feds Announce Massive Baltimore Cocaine Bust

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Law enforcement officers make dozens of drug distribution busts each day in Maryland. State and local police handle most, as only a select few of these busts are carried out by federal law enforcement. Federal agencies such as the DEA could investigate and prosecute any would be drug offender under federal law, but they often defer to state level cops unless the case is large and involves multiple states. Even when these busts are juicy enough for the feds, the media rarely picks up on them, and most go unnoticed by the public. Therefore when the United States Attorney's Office issues a press release about a drug bust that is picked up by almost every local news agency, you know the facts must be particularly scandalous. This past week's Baltimore drug bust definitely fit the bill, as assistant US attorney Rosenstein announced indictments in a multi-state cocaine trafficking operation, which involved tons of drugs, millions of dollars, fancy cars, and money…

"New York state to settle landmark suit over public defenders"

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From Reuters: New York state has agreed to settle a lawsuit claiming its public defense system is underfunded and violates poor people's rights to counsel a day before the case was set to go to trial. The state will establish...

New Prosecution Over Non-Existent Oregon Training Camp

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The U.S. just can't let the terrorist training camp in Bly, Oregon die, even though it never existed. Since 2002, the U.S. has been charging and imprisoning people for acts related to the Bly camp that were committed in 1999. (New York... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

So Far, So Good: Green Line Hasn’t Increased Crime

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Despite concerns the new Green Line light rail may bring more crime to the area, University officials and Metro police say that hasn’t been the case in the five months since the transit system opened. Metro Transit police Capt. Jim Franklin said crime rates have remained steady on campus and in the area along the Green Line. “I don’t see an uptick in crime on the University campus that directly correlates with the light rail,” said Franklin. Franklin noted that while many along the Green Line were excited about its mid-June opening, some feared the rail would attract a few seedy characters. A study conducted by the University of Minnesota did little to quell their concern, as a survey of community members near the Blue Line found that they too associated the light rail with an uptick in crime, even if the data doesn’t support their sentiment. University police Deputy Chief Chuck Miner did note a particular instance in late August in which two…

Domestic Violence Injunction Violation: Don't Be A Sucker For Love

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Domestic violence injunctions are serious business. Having an injunction issued against you limits your rights in certain areas. It limits the freedom to go certain places, it limits the freedom to possess firearms, and it creates criminal liability for violating the injunction. Florida Statute 741.30 governs the circuit court's injunction powers in regard to Domestic Violence. The statute is designed to make seeking a protective order an easy endeavor. As a Jacksonville criminal defense and family law attorney, I've defended people in proceedings to have injunctions put in place, and I've also represented people seeking the protection of a domestic violence injunction. A common occurrence is that people are [understandably] highly emotional immediately after whatever incident led her [or him] to seek a domestic violence injunction, and he or she is adamant about having the protection in place. However, time has a way of healing wounds. The anger slips…

What is a ‘Summons to Appear’?

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A summons to appear is a legal document issued by a court requesting the presence of an individual who is being sued or cited. The summons to appear will inform the person of the time and date to arrive in court, and if the person fails to show up, a bench warrant can be issued for their arrest. Types of Summons Citation – This type of summons is typically served at the scene of an incident by police officers for occurrences like traffic violations. If the individual fails to appear, they are issued a separate violation for failure to appear in addition to their original citation. Civil Summons – A written notification provided to a party who is being sued. Failure to answer to a civil summons means the non-responsive party will automatically lose the case against the plaintiff. Administrative Summons – This is usually associated with the United States Tax Laws, which gives the I.R.S. authorization to issue a summons to unlawful taxpayers if necessary. Failure…

How Family Law Court Costs Escalate…

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One of the main reasons the middle class is abandoning family courts in droves is because of the bank-draining costs of litigation. While it may appear straight forward to bring a claim for parenting or child support, there are a myriad of legal skirmishes that accompany these claims, that are difficult to predict, and hence, make it impossible to estimate the amount of legal fees for any particular court case. Typical preliminary court applications that may unpredictably drive up court costs include a challenge to a court’s jurisdiction to even hear and adjudicate a particular case, or a motion to remove a party’s lawyer based on an alleged conflict of interest, before a case gets started. A wealthy Malaysian couple provide an excellent example of jurisdictional litigation. Dr. Khoo Kay Penn, the multi-millionaire majority shareholder of Welsh textile and fashion company, Laura Ashley, and owner of ten upscale hotels, married former beauty queen Pauline Chai in…

Shootings at Parliament in Ottowa

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There were three shooting incidents today in Ottowa. One was inside Parliament, one at the War Memorial where a soldier was shot, and one near the Rideau Centre Mall. At least one shooter, the one at Parliament, is dead. Prime Minister Harper was... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Skewed Justice

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The report, Skewed Justice: Citizens United, Television Advertising and State Supreme Court Justices’ Decisions in Criminal Cases, is available at the link. "Study: Campaign Spending Skews Justice Against Defendants," is by Marcia Coyle at the National Law Journal. Skyrocketing spending...

Death Penalty Referenced in the Final Florida Gubernatorial Debate

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"Final Florida gubernatorial debate heated and personal," is by Dara Kam of the News Service of Florida, via the Tallahassee Democrat. In another pointed exchange, the two candidates wrestled over the death penalty. Scott, who has signed a record number...

Seattle Municipal Court judicial candidate returns money from DUI Lawyers PAC

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Tis the judicial election season here in King County, WA.  In case you haven’t followed my blog there are several prominent judicial races in our County.  One of the most highly publicized is in Seattle Municipal Court.  Between incumbent Judge Fred Bonner and the challenger former defense attorney Damon Shadid.  Recently I saw an article […]

Persaud on Parallel Investigations between Administrative and Law Enforcement Agencies

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S. Persaud (Florida A&M University - College of Law) has posted Parallel Investigations between Administrative and Law Enforcement Agencies: A Question of Civil Liberties (University of Daytona Law Review, Vol. 39, 2013) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: The article...

"Blade Runner" Oscar Pistorius Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison

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Oscar Pistorius, renowned Paralympic sprinter was sentenced yesterday to five years in a South African prison for the shooting and killing of his then girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp. Mr. Pistorius was found not guilty of a more serious murder charge he stood trial for earlier this year but was convicted of culpable homicide for shooting Ms. Steenkamp several times in the middle of the night in what Mr. Pistorius claims was self defense out of fear that one had intruded into his home. South African prosecutors argued for a minimum of 10 years as a prison sentence for Mr. Pistorius but were unsuccessful in their bid for the heavy handed punishment. Conversely, Mr. Pistorius' defense team argued for community service hours and house arrest. Judge Thokozile Masipa seemingly split the difference the two sides were arguing for by imposing a five-year prison sentence of which only 10 months are expected to be served in the Kgosi Mampuru prison with the balance of his time to be…

“How Do You Win Those Criminal Jury Trials?”

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As I sat in the federal prosecutor’s office for our first meeting concerning my client accused of Federal Aggravated Identity Theft and Conspiracy to Commit Access Device Fraud, he pretty much assured me that he had overwhelming evidence of guilt and that his case was a slam dunk. He, along with the lead investigator, a Secret Service Agent, were doing all they could to persuade me that my client was guilty. This was so early on in the case that I had yet to even receive the Government’s discovery response (the evidence). They wanted my client to plead guilty, just like the other approximately 95% of criminal defendants who choose not to go to trial, opting instead for a plea deal. The prosecutor made clear that the prison time that he would recommend if she pled guilty was significantly less than what she would receive after her conviction. Candidly, with the limited pieces of evidence that he showed me, coupled with his passionate explanation as to why my…

Smoking Alcohol? What Impact Will this Have?

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“Smoking” Alcohol a Growing Trend Among Young People It seems that teens are always looking for new ways to abuse alcohol. One of the latest involves using a bicycle pump to “smoke” it rather than drinking it. It’s a practice that has a lot of doctors concerned due to the potential for some severe health consequences. The way it works is that alcohol is poured into a bottle and then corked shut. The needle of a bicycle pump is then inserted through the cork, and then the pump is used to push air through the bottle. This results in the alcohol turning into a vapor, which is then inhaled by the user. The practice is popular for a number of reasons, one of which involves weight loss. Teens who are worried about the empty calories alcohol contains prefer this practice, as it allows them to enjoy the effects of liquor, while keeping their caloric intake relatively low. Those who are not concerned with weight loss may smoke alcohol to prevent the smell…

Spotlight on Eyewitness ID Reform

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It has been only a few weeks since the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) released its landmark report on eyewitness identification reform (Identifying the Culprit), and already there has been a significant amount of media attention paid to it. Over a dozen stories have appeared in national and local publications about the importance of the report's findings and, in several states, the need for policy changes that reflect the best practices that the NAS recommends for law enforcement and courts, all of which comport with the Innocence Project's reform agenda. A TIME article described the significance of the report as such: "[T]he National Academy of Sciences ... released the first comprehensive report to review decades of literature on lineups while offering sweeping recommendations on how they should be conducted." And referring to the NAS' best-practices recommendations for law enforcement and courts, an article in The Washington Post notes that…

10-year-old Boy Killed in Suspected DUI Crash in Anaheim

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Recently, a 10-year-old boy lost his life in a crash in which the driver of one of the vehicles involved was believed to be under the influence. A multi-vehicle crash occurred in Anaheim after a pickup truck plowed into the back of a Toyota Camry that was stopped at a red light. The impact of the crash caused the Camry to strike a third vehicle. 10-year-old Rafael Ramirez lost his life in the crash, while four of his family members were reportedly in critical condition. The crash, which happened on Saturday evening just before midnight, left five people injured and one dead all total, including the driver of the third vehicle. Gary S. Hunt, driver of the pickup truck that crashed into the back of the Camry, was arrested on suspicion of DUI. Hunt was apparently not injured in the crash, as he was transported away in a police cruiser after officers placed him in handcuffs. Michigan DUI defense attorneys know that many people operate their vehicles while under the influence of…

Missouri Couple Charged with Possession of Drugs

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On Saturday, October 18, Scott County Sheriff’s Department deputies went to the Benton, Missouri residence of a couple for a follow-up investigation on a domestic disturbance, according to a news article at the Southeast Missourian. What they found at the home of Russell and Connie Turner were drugs and drug paraphernalia, which resulted in both of the Turners’ arrest for possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. Connie Turner, 40, signed a consent-to-search form presented by the deputies; Russell Turner, who is 50, was asked to give consent to search the residence and did so. In the search of the home, deputies discovered drug paraphernalia. Methamphetamine residue was also detected when a field test was performed on the items. Connie Turner admitted to using meth, although her husband denied it. A urine test that Russell Turner later submitted to indicated the presence of methamphetamine in his system. Both of the Turners were…

It’s been a Big Year for Uganda, For All the Wrong Reasons

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By Emily McGranachan, Member of Amnesty International USA’s LGBT Human Rights Coordinating Group While pundits in the U.S. lament the political stalemate on Capitol Hill, legislatures elsewhere have had a banner year. Take Uganda, for example, where no fewer than three major pieces of controversial and internationally scrutinized legislation were signed into law between August 2013 and February 2014: the Public Order Management Act (POMA), the Anti-Pornography Act (APA), and the now-nullified Anti-Homosexuality Act (AHA). This flurry of activity in the lead-up to Uganda’s 2016 elections legalized repressive and discriminatory policies. Thanks to these three laws, restrictions on the rights to free expression, association and assembly for all Ugandans have intensified. Though multi-party politics was reintroduced in Uganda in 2005, the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party has consistently restricted free expression and peaceful assembly in an attempt…

Buskey & Korobkin on The Retroactivity of Miller v. Alabama

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Brandon Buskey and Daniel Korobkin (ACLU and ACLU of Michigan) have posted Elevating Substance Over Procedure: The Retroactivity of Miller v. Alabama Under Teague v. Lane (The City University of New York Law Review, Vol. 18.1, 2015, Forthcoming) on SSRN....
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