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Vets making a push for VA to consider allowing marijuana use for PTSD

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This new lengthy Washington Post article, headlined "More veterans press VA to recognize medical marijuana as treatment option," highlights a notable constituency eager to have more support for considering use of medical marijuana. Here are excerpts: At a time when the legalized use of marijuana is gaining greater acceptance across...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/MarijuanaLaw/~4/2NmMyeI0O1k" height="1" width="1"/>

Top-Ten Recent SSRN Downloads

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in criminal law and procedure ejournals are here. The usual disclaimers apply. RankDownloadsPaper Title 1 389 Brady's Blind Spot: Impeachment Evidence in Police Personnel Files and the Battle Splitting the Prosecution Team Jonathan Abel Stanford Law School - Constitutional Law...

UNDERCOVER INVESTIGATIONS

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Feds Going Undercover The New York Times ( NYT) is reporting that federal agencies have expanded the use of undercover investigations to help detect and deter a growing list of criminal activity such as drug trafficking, online solicitation (of minors), identity theft, human trafficking, money laundering, and even the sale of alcohol to minors. Photo by JeffShuler per Creative Commons License 2.0. As the name implies, undercover operations involve law enforcement officials misrepresenting or camouflaging their identities in order to infiltrate suspected criminal conspiracies.  These investigations provide law enforcement and prosecutors with powerful evidence to be used in a criminal trial against the accused. The type of evidence collected and offered at trial include:  (1) co-conspirator statements (which are not hearsay); (2) text and phone messages between co-conspirators and undercover agents; and (3) video and audio surveillance obtained during the…

Does latest FBI report of crime's decline provide still more support for lead-exposure-crime link?

Case o' The Week: Raya Hope for (d) Challenges - Raya-Vaca and Due Process Rights in Expedited Removal Proceedings

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The Hon. Judge Mary Murguia “A nation’s greatness is measured by how it treats its weakest members,” opined Ghandi.  The Ninth measures up well, in a new due process decision (with teeth!) for an alien facing illegal reentry charges.  United States v. Victor Raya-Vaca, 2014 WL 5802287 (9thCir. Nov. 10, 2014), decision available here.Players:Decision by Judge Murguia, joined by Judges Reinhardt and Fisher. Big win for Ass’t Federal Defender Chloe Dillon, Federal Defenders of San Diego, Inc.Facts: Raya-Vaca went through expedited removal proceedings under 8 USC § 1225 and removed, was later found in the U.S., and was charged with illegal reentry under 8 USC § 1326. Id.at *1. Section 1225 was originally used for the expedited arrival of aliens “arriving” in the US, but the Dept. of Homeland Security has expanded the procedure for aliens discovered within 100 miles of the US border. Id. at *2. A Border Patrol agent had…

Can I get financial assistance for the Ignition Interlock Device (IID)?

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Yes. In Washington State you can get financial assistance for the IID. If you have been appointed a public defender or receive some sort of public assistance you should be approved. You will need to provide the approval letter from...

"The Quiet Army: Felon Firearms Rights Restoration in the Fourth Circuit"

CPL 440.10 (subd. 3, par. [a])

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The question raised on this appeal is whether the trial court properly denied defendant's motion to vacate a judgment of conviction, grounded on claims of prosecutional misconduct, juror misconduct and misrepresentation by a prosecution witness, without initially conducting an evidentiary hearing. We hold that the facts of this case do not demonstrate that the trial court abused its discretion as a matter of law and, therefore, affirm the denial of the motion to vacate. Defendant was arrested and charged with the murder of his wife, SF. He was also charged with grand larceny for stealing more than $450,000 worth of securities, jewelry and currency from his wife's estate following her death. During defendant's 11-week jury trial, the criminal prosecution sought to prove that defendant had killed his wife by injecting her with multiple doses of Demerol over the course of two days, June 17 and June 18, 1975. On December 15, 1976, the trial concluded and defendant…

Latest Filing in Roca Labs Case Against Pissed Consumer

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I would like to direct your attention away from the trainwreck that is the Roca Labs attempt to silence consumers, critics, and journalists, and turn it back toward the case Roca Labs filed against  Consumer Opinion Corp. (who operates PissedConsumer.com). Marc Randazza (the attorney who has also been sued by Roca Labs with a complaint […]

GBL §§ 349, 350 and 350-a

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Plaintiff MF Inc.. seeks leave to file a third amended complaint. Defendants RG Inc., PG Corp. and MR oppose the motion. On October 1, 2004, Plaintiff and Defendants entered into an agreement, under which Defendants would sell to Plaintiff semi-precious gems, including blue topaz, citrine, peridot and green amethyst, the stones. Plaintiff paid Defendants for the Stones under the belief that the Stones were semi-precious gems. Plaintiff sold the Stones to its customers under the belief that the Stones were semi-precious gems and not synthetic stones. Plaintiff contends that Defendants breached the Agreement and delivered imitation stones, synthetic stones and simulated stones which were of inferior quality, thus a defective product. Plaintiff commenced this action, asserting causes of action sounding in breach of contract (first), of the implied warranty of merchantability (second) and of the implied warranty of fitness for particular purpose (third); violation of General…

People v. Winfrey...cont

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Both the aforesaid contentions were considered by this Criminal Court in People v. Winfrey, wherein it was held that incarceration in a foreign state prison does not, per se, constitute 'good cause' for a delay in prosecution. In that case, after reviewing precedent decisional law, this Court pointed out that the burden of bringing an accused to trial is upon the prosecution, and that statutes enabling persons incarcerated in prisons within New York State or other states, which are signatories to the Agreement on Detainers, to request a disposition of criminal charges against them in no way alleviate the prosecution's burden. In that connection, then, it is irrelevant for present purposes whether or not the accused, himself made efforts to bring the instant indictment of trial, as he has asserted in his unsupported allegations. Moreover, in Winfrey, this Court expressed the opinion that the holding in People v. Brandfon, must be viewed as erroneous in light of…

LiarsCheatersRUS.com

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If your boyfriend or girlfriend is a liar or worse, a cheater, you can “out” him or her, just like Stacey Blitsch and Amanda Ryncarz did when they posted their complaints about their former lover, lawyer Matthew Couloute, on LiarsCheatersRUS.com. The website is designed to provide a forum for women and men whose wives, husbands or significant others have “done them wrong”, usually by engaging in one or more affairs during what they believed to be a monogamous relationship. In the case of Matthew Couloute, a former prosecutor and Court TV analyst, when he learned that the LiarsCheaters comments were the first hits for him when anyone googled him, he sued both women for compensation for inflicting harm to his reputation and causing mental anguish and economic loss. Ms. Blitsch was a professional roller derby skater and the mother of Mr. Couloute’s son, while Ms. Ryncarz reported that Mr. Coulote dumped her and married someone else twelve days later.…

"Examining Crawford after a decade"

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Doug Berman at Sentencing Laww & Policy links to this new on-line symposium titled "Crawford v. Washington: A Ten Year Retrospective," at First Impressions, the online companion to the Michigan Law Review.

Shoplifting is a Serious Larceny

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Nevada Views Shoplifting as Serious Larceny  Shoplifting may sound like a trivial crime involving someone stealing items in a retail store, and is often referred to as a “five finger discount.” The legal definition of shoplifting in Las Vegas describes a person who intentionally steals store property, and it is taken seriously in Nevada. Larceny is the legal name, and there are two statutes used in the Nevada legal system. • NRS 205.220 is the statute for “grand larceny,” which means that the thief was arrested with $650 worth or more of property. • NRS 205.240 is used if the value is under $650 and is called “petty larceny.” If someone has been charged with a shoplifting offense, in a Nevada store, it is not a light offense. Las Vegas Police prosecute according to the value of the stolen merchandise. If you or someone you know has been arrested for shoplifting, you need to obtain an experienced criminal defense lawyer like…

A Conversation Among Conservatives About Sentencing Reform

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At its National Convention just concluded, the Federalist Society sponsored a panel discussion among conservatives on sentencing reform.  It was an excellent group featuring John Malcolm of the Heritage Foundation and Marc Levin from Right on Crime, and  --  expressing a more skeptical view  --  Judge and former Attorney General Michael Mukasey, and yours truly.  The moderator was Judge Bill Pryor of the Eleventh Circuit.It was pretty much a packed room.  Among the audience members was none other than C&C's leading light, Kent Scheidegger.I'm grateful to the Federalist Society for sponsoring this important give-and-take and for being included among such experts.A tape of the event is here.  (For those interested, I start at about the 35:00 minute mark).

STOP DEBT COLLECTORS WITH THESE TWO SIMPLE WORDS……..GOT PROOF?

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If you are being hounded by a debt collector, it is your right to demand proof of the debt.  In the collection world, they call that “verification of the debt.”  The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”) is a very pro consumer law that works in your favor, but only if you invoke your rights.  Doing so is really easy.  After you demand verification of the debt, the debt collector must cease all collection activity until he or she provides verification of the debt to you.  There just two rules you need to know to stop a debt collector, at least temporarily:  You must make your demand for verification of the debt in writing.  Calling the collection agency will not stop them from calling you; You must send that demand for verification within 30 days of the date that you receive the first demand letter from the collection agency. Tip 1:  Don’t wait to receive the demand letter to demand verification. Many…

When the local police target your teenager

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I have a lot of 17-19 year old clients who feel targeted by small town police departments. These young adults are usually in my office for a pot case, or maybe even a DWI or DUI (DUI is only for those under 21 in Texas) and they tell a similar story; that the police pull them and/or their friends over consistently and they don’t know how to stop the harassment. First, advice for parents. For Parents If your child is being pulled over frequently, or if he has friends who are targets or have been arrested recently then it’s important that you have him (it’s almost alway a male) meet with a lawyer and get him either on retainer, or establish a relationship so your he can lawyer up when he is pulled over. Why does this happen? Teenage boys are targeted because a) they are politically powerless, no one cares if teeangers complain about the cops b) they do dumb shit often and c) drug arrests are the low hanging fruit for cops, it looks like real police work, except…

GBL §§ 349, 350 and 350-a...cont

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Defendants argue that Plaintiff fails to allege that Defendants' conduct was consumer-oriented. Defendants urge that the term consumer-oriented refers only to those who purchase goods and services for personal, family or household use. Injury Disputes that are unique to the parties do not fall within GBL § 349. However, the focus of GBL § 349 on consumer orientation does not preclude its application to disputes between businesses per se, but it does severely limit it. Although the statute is, at its core, a consumer protection device, corporate competitors now have standing to bring a claim under this statute so long as some harm to the public at large is at issue. Here, Defendants fail to demonstrate that from the allegations in the proposed amended complaint, it cannot be inferred that Defendants' practice has a broader impact on the consumer at large. Additionally, Defendants maintain that Plaintiffs claims fail under GBL §§ 350 and 350-a…

New 'Ban the Box' law tripping up Minnesota employers

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11-17-2014 Minnesota: “Ban the box” sounded like a simple concept. Companies can no longer ask about a job seeker’s criminal history on initial employment applications. But some of the state’s marquee employers fumbled the new law, which took effect Jan. 1. The Minnesota Department of Human Rights has investigated complaints involving the job applications of more than 50 companies and in the

Felon in Possession and Felony Murder

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Thirteen-year-old Nathan Clark and his teammates traveled from Winston-Salem to Raleigh last Friday night to play in a weekend soccer tournament.  The team never took the field.  As Clark slept in his hotel room Friday evening, a gun discharged in an adjacent room, sending a bullet through the wall and into the back of Clark’s […]
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