No, Missouri is not legalizing marijuana. The state is decriminalizing it. Yes, there is a distinction!! First of all, the possession of marijuana is still (and will continue to be) illegal in Missouri. But recently the state legislature revamped the criminal code to lessen the penalties for some crimes. And possession of marijuana is an example of this trend. ONLY $375 TO HANDLE MOST ST LOUIS MARIJUANA POSSESSION CHARGES So for example, the crime of marijuana possession is currently described as a Class A Misdemeanor if you are caught with less than 35 grams of the substance, or a Class C Felony if you have 35 grams or more. But starting January 1, 2017, if you are caught with less than 10 grams of marijuana, then you can be charged with a Class D Misdemeanor. This lessening of the criminal penalties that you may be charged with for smaller amount of marijuana in St. Louis is an attempt by the state of Missouri to “decriminalize” the offense. In other words,…
Is the State of Missouri Legalizing Marijuana Possession?
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Ninth Circuit finds procedural error in teen's 30-month federal sentence for laser beam prank
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News Scan
Hillary Calls for Overhaul Of Husband's Crime Policies: Hillary Rodham Clinton announced in a speech Wednesday that tough-on-crime policies put in place while her husband was in office have failed. Anne Gearan of the Washington Post reports that after the speech, a campaign spokesperson for Clinton "tamped down on the notion that she was refuting her husband's policies." Clinton is advocating for sentencing reform to end the "era of mass incarceration." Baltimore Gun Violence On the Rise: Gun violence in Baltimore, away from the rioting and protesting, is on the rise with a total of nine people shot on Tuesday and Wednesday, two fatally. Justin Fenton of the Baltimore Sun reports that homicides are up 25 percent in the city this year, with 13 incidents occurring since April 12, the day Freddie Gray was arrested. "It's just another day in the neighborhood," explains a Baltimore resident. Half…
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Distracted Driving Statistics [Infographic]
Texting and driving is one of the most common causes of vehicle accidents in the US. Don’t become a statistic — be safe on the roads! If you have been injured in a car accident as a result of a distracted drive, call the expert attorneys at Laird Hammons Laird. We’ll make sure you receive just compensation. The post Distracted Driving Statistics [Infographic] appeared first on .
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“Smiley Face” Driver Faces Extended Jail Time
Getting pulled over for a DUI in Los Angeles is nothing to smile about. Neither is causing an accident in which someone is killed. Twenty-five-year-old Michael J. Vanwanger of Coons Rapid, Minnesota, who posted a smiley face on Facebook after his involvement in a fatal accident, may spend some of his time behind bars regretting his lighthearted comment. Vanwanger had already sideswiped another car when he plowed into a vehicle driven by 16-year-old Jason McCarthy of Brooklyn Center last summer. Cross-country runner and guitarist McCarthy was waiting in a left turn lane when Vanwanger’s car, speeding at 62 miles per hour, smashed into him from behind. The teen lingered a week in the hospital before succumbing to his injuries. Police at the scene said that Vanwanger, who was slightly injured in the accident, smelled of alcohol. They conducted a blood alcohol content test after taking him to the hospital. According to the Star Tribune, Vanwanger made a very bad situation…
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Legislative odds and ends
Here are a few odds and ends from the Texas Legislature to occupy readers' attention while your correspondent is focused elsewhere:The Senate passed legislation ending municipal red-light programs. Here's a good overview of legislation, litigation and activism on the topic.Legislation sitting in Calendars waiting for a House floor vote would require county jails using video visitation to also offer in-person visitation, as they did for generations prior.As far as I can tell, nearly all medical marijuana testimony qualifies as "tearful."See an editorial from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in support of Rep. Ruth McLendon's Innocence Commission legislation, which is scheduled for a House floor this afternoon.The Dallas Morning News runs down efforts to improve police transparency during the 84th Texas Legislature.Another new crime involving drones is sitting in the Calendars Committee, where one hopes it will die. To my knowledge, nobody has been prosecuted…
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Weapons Probationers Can’t Have
Probationers generally cannot have guns. What other weapons can they not have? It is a regular condition of probation that a probationer may not possess a “firearm, explosive device or other deadly weapon listed in G.S. 14-269 without the written permission of the court.” G.S. 15A-1343(b)(5). Like all regular conditions, it applies by default unless […]
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The Hernan Law Firm to open second office in Lawrenceville in Summer 2015
In order to expand its service offerings and accessibility to clients throughout Metro Atlanta, the Hernan Law Firm will be opening a second office in Lawrenceville in Summer 2015. Please call our office at (678) 275-4000 for more information, and please check back at our website for announcements of the official opening date. The Roswell
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Get Your Motorcycle Ready for Summer Months
If your motorcycle’s been in storage all winter long, the warm weather may have you itching to hop on it once again for the spring and summer seasons. Before you rev that engine, though, make sure you take the time to get your ride in tiptop shape for ultimate fun and safety. Even while it is still too cold and windy to ride, you can learn about motorcycle recalls or defects. Once the sun comes out, practice these tips on how to get motorcycle ready for summer.Put Some Air in the TiresIf your bike was resting on its tires all winter, there’s a good chance that the tires have lost air, or even gone flat on one side.Replace the tires if you notice any of these situations.Uneven tread wearBaldingFlat spots If the tires look like they’re in good shape, add air until they’re at the ideal PSI (which is posted on the tires). Replace Important Fluids It’s very important that you check your fluids before heading out for the first ride of the…
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New proposal for National Criminal Justice Commission garnering notable support
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Mental Hygiene Law section 81.07...cont
The court evaluator stated that when he met with the person, the person was not able to state why he wanted a guardian or what the guardianship proceedings were about. The court evaluator pointed out that the medical records did not indicate what the cause of his medical problems was. In one report, a medical expert states that he is unsure if the person's memory problems are due to the depression he suffers from or if they are the result of the brain injury he sustained in the accident. The court evaluator stated that even though the person indicated that he was having difficulty managing his finances, he admitted that he has not had any problems paying his bills. The court evaluator further indicated that there may be a conflict with having R.K. appointed as the guardian since the person is claiming to be a vulnerable person who needs help and his personal injury attorney is the one who introduced him to the potential guardian. The court evaluator further stated that…
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Should We Reduce Sentences to "Keep the Father at Home"?
Paul Mirengoff has an insightful post discussing President Obama's view that long prison sentences are partly to blame for problems in the inner city because they are depriving young African Americans of a father in the home. Paul argues:Is it valid to argue, in effect, that a criminal shouldn't be incarcerated because he's the father of five or six (or any) kids? Not unless criminal law is to be stood on its head.Criminal law is founded on the concepts of individual justice and personal responsibility. The criminal's guilt and sentence are based on his behavior and his individual history, not on social concerns (or "social justice" to use the popular oxymoron). Social considerations enter the equation at the level of determining what behavior is criminal. But this determination has never to my knowledge been based on the ability of a particular segment of society to avoid committing a type of crime. Moreover, social concerns don't…
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Semerad on Cumulative Error Claims
Ryan Semerad has posted What's the Matter with Cumulative Error?: Killing a Federal Claim in Order to Save It (Ohio State Law Journal, 2015 Forthcoming) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: This note investigates the inefficacy of cumulative error claims...
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The Fifth Amendment’s Due Process Clause, Descendant of the Magna Carta
“No freemen shall be taken or imprisoned or disseised or exiled or in any way destroyed, nor will we go upon him nor send upon him, except by the lawful judgment of his peers or by the law of the land.” Magna Carta, Chapter 39, June 15, 1215 June 15, 2015 marks the 800th Anniversary […]
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Single-Vehicle Rollover Crash On Interstate 84 Near Karcher Road Interchange
IDAHO STATE POLICE NEWS RELEASE - generated by our News Release ListServer DO NOT REPLY --------------------------------------------------------------------------- IDAHO STATE POLICE NEWS RELEASE District 3 Patrol 700 S. Stratford Dr., Meridian 83642 (208) 846-7550 Fax (208) 846-7520 For Immediate Release: 4/30/2015 at 6:58 p.m. Please direct questions to the District Office On Thursday, April 30, 2015, at approximately 4:45 p.m., Idaho State Police investigated a single-vehicle rollover crash eastbound Interstate 84 at milepost 34, near the Karcher Road interchange. Julyssa Grammer, age 15, of Nampa, was traveling eastbound in a 2003 Hyundai Sonata. For unknown reasons, Grammer's vehicle left the roadway, entered the median, and overturned. Julyssa and her passenger, Josauna Grammer, age 41, of Nampa, were transported by ground ambulance to St. Alphonsus in Boise. The left westbound and left eastbound lanes of travel were blocked for approximately one and a half…
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Hessick on Booker in the Circuits
Carissa Byrne Hessick (University of Utah - S.J. Quinney College of Law) has posted Booker in the Circuits: Backlash or Balancing Act? on SSRN. Here is the abstract: In her essay, Rebellion: The Courts of Appeals’ Latest Anti-Booker Backlash, Alison...
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Journalists Silenced in Myanmar: Free the Unity Five
By Laura Haigh, Amnesty International Myanmar team Journalists critical of the authorities in Myanmar pay dearly for their stories. Five journalists at the Unity newspaper paid with their freedom. On World Press Freedom Day we remind the government of their promises to foster a free press and demand freedom for the ‘Unity Five’. “What I want is more media freedom.” These are the words of Tint San, Chief Executive Officer at the Unity newspaper in Myanmar during his trial. His crime? Doing his job. In January 2014, weekly newspaper Unity published an article about an alleged secret chemical weapons factory in Magwe Region, central Myanmar. Reporting that the factory was built in 2009 on land that was confiscated from farmers. The government was quick to deny the story and responded by seizing copies of the newspaper. But worse was to come. Within days, Tint San and four journalists Lu Maw Naing, Yarzar Oo, Paing Thet Kyaw and Sithu Soe,…
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MacLean, Berles & Lamparello on Wrongful Convictions
Charles E. MacLean , James Berles and Adam Lamparello (Indiana Tech Law School , Indiana Tech - Law School and Indiana Tech - Law School) have posted Stop Blaming the Prosecutors: The Real Causes of Wrongful Convictions and Rightful Exonerations,...
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BUI - Is "arraignment" a mandatory appearance?
No. Most of the time. In Washington State, District and Municipal Courts require the Defendant's mandatory appearance at DUI or Physical Control Arraignment's. Fortunately, Boating under the Influence (BUI) cases are not included. So if you have timely obtained counsel,...
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What is “Depraved Heart” Murder?
One of the Baltimore City Police Officers involved in the death of Freddie Gray was charged today with second degree “depraved heart” murder. Under Maryland law, the penalty for this… read more → The post What is “Depraved Heart” Murder? appeared first on .
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