A report released Wednesday by the Warren Institute on Law and Social Policy at University of California Berkeley and the Quattrone Center for the Fair Administration of Justice at the University of Pennsylvania reveals that wrongful convictions cost California taxpayers at least $221 million from 1989 through 2012. The study found that the cost of incarceration for wrongfully convicted individuals in the state was $80 million, while lawsuit settlements in wrongful conviction cases cost the state $68 million with an additional $68 million spent on trials and appeals. In 2008, the California Commission on the Fair Administration of Justice issued recommendations for law enforcement which sought to reduce wrongful convictions, but few of the recommendations have since been adopted. An op-ed in the Sacramento Bee Wednesday called for lawmakers to do their part to prevent wrongful convictions, if not for the sake of the wrongfully convicted, then for that of the California…
Report Says Wrongful Convictions Cost California $221 Million
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Will I Lose My Privacy if I File a Personal Injury Lawsuit?
If you’ve tried and failed to settle your personal injury claim, you may now take the next step and proceed with a proper lawsuit. Still, worries about your privacy might be giving you second thoughts. How much of it, if any, will you have to sacrifice? Is your intimate personal life in danger of going public? A good personal injury attorney on your side can help. What Attorneys Want to Know The truth is that filing any kind of lawsuit can result in loss of privacy to a certain extent. Defense may ask questions that seem intrusive. They can legally insist that you turn over your financial, medical and employment records. Your opponent’s lawyers have one objective, and that’s to get their client off the hook. To achieve that end, they will do whatever they feel they must. All the digging may seem to you like privacy invasion, but it’s all just part of the process. Instead of getting your dander up, it’s best to expect the onslaught and get…
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Note To Hillary: Stop Alienating The Left
As I've written before, my admiration for Bernie Sanders and what he stands for goes back decades, but I fear that in a general election the well-honed, well-financed right wing attack machine will launch a shock and awe red baiting campaign against this socialist Jew that would drown out his ideas and undermine his candidacy. Given the stakes in this election -- particularly, the Supreme Court -- electability trumps (pun intended) everything. And so, I've have made my peace with Hillary Clinton because, despite her many flaws, I believe she best appeals to the diverse core constituencies that will ensure a Democratic victory in November. But her flaws, unfortunately, continue to frustrate and, unless she changes her approach, are likely to alienate one key constituency -- progressives. While Hillary has thankfully (and credibly) adopted many progressive positions, in no small…
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Trump Cancels Chicago Rally Due to Protesters
The cable news coverage of the cancellation of the Trump rally in Chicago today highlights why no one should be watching cable news for news anymore. It's all opinion. CNN just went from extended interviews with a former Romney campaign... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
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Trump Interview on Rally Cancellation
Trump was just interviewed on CNN. I missed the beginning because I had the TV on mute to block the last pundit I had listened to and didn't look up until he had already started talking. Here's the part I did hear. Trump says he has no... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
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Summer Schedule Notice Requirements in Parenting Plans
For many families the spring is an exciting time. During spring, the weather gets warmer, the flowers bloom, the baseball season begins, and families plan for their summer vacations. For families whose children’s residential time is split between two unmarried parents, it is also often a time that the parenting plan requires parents to swap summer schedules. In many plans both parents submit their desired summer schedules and one parent has the prevailing preference for each year. Here are a few ideas that some families have found helpful when addressing notice for summer vacation schedules: Comply with the notice requirements. In many parenting plans there is an alternating opportunity to provide notice of your preferred dates for the summer vacation and to have those preferred dates set the summer residential schedule for the children. Be sure that you do not miss the deadline for providing your preferred schedule. If you do…
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Bush Brother Neil Joins Ted Cruz Campaign
Neil Bush has joined Ted Cruz' campaign and will serve on his national finance team. That seems to be a fancy name for a money bundler. Was Ted Cruz in Canada in the 80's? Did he miss Neil Bush's role in the Silverado Savings and... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
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I Just Got a Letter in the Mail Telling Me There’s a Warrant Out for My Arrest in New Canaan, Greenwich, Stamford, or Darien Connecticut. What Do I Do?
The best New Canaan, Darien and Greenwich Connecticut criminal law firms frequently get calls from people who have received letters in the mail from the New Canaan, Darien and Greenwich Connecticut Police Departments informing them that there is a warrant out for their arrest. Top Greenwich, Darien and New Canaan criminal lawyers and attorneys know that a letter like this indicates an arrest warrant in Stamford, Greenwich, New Canaan, Darien or anywhere else in Connecticut is “active.” This means that if you are stopped for the even the most routine traffic stop, the police in Connecticut or any other state will likely have to arrest you on the spot, in front of your family or friends, and bring you directly to jail. So what do you do if you get a letter in the mail telling you there’s a warrant out for your arrest in Greenwich, New Canaan or anywhere else in Connecticut? Keep reading to find out… How Does the Connecticut Arrest Warrant Process Work?…
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Dudley, Mass Bus Driver Accused of Drunk Driving on Cold Medicine
According to a recent news feature from WCVB Boston, police have just arrested a school bus driver who allegedly crashed into a utility pole when his bus was loaded with students. Police have said driver allegedly admitted to being under the influence of Nyquil and Dayquil, which he had consumed earlier in the day than when he was behind the wheel of his school bus. Prosecutors said that driver allegedly had a blood alcohol content of more than four times the legal limit for someone driving a commercial motor vehicle. It should be noted that while blood alcohol limit for driving a private vehicle is .08 grams of ethanol per 100 milliliters of blood, a driver with a commercial driver’s license (CDL) operating a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) must maintain a BAC of .04. The reasons for the stricter standard in a commercial motor vehicle are that a large vehicle with air brakes takes a lot longer to come to a complete stop, as they are many times heavier than personal…
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Confronting junk science and judicial activism at the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
The vicissitudes of judicial activism and politics continue to cloud the future of Texas' new junk science writ, with the Court of Criminal Appeals engaging in extremist political gamesmanship, hoping to keep from interpreting the 2015 amendments to the law until they get new allies on the court willing to issue a judicial veto and enforce their own political preferences over the Legislature's. In the meantime, history marches forward as do cases in which the court will be asked, with increasing frequency, to interpret the new law. A number of related, recent stories caught Grits' eye and merit readers' attention:Lurching toward precedentThe indefatigable Brandi Grissom reported in the Dallas News this week (March 10) that the CCA agreed to let a case go forward which challenges "shaken baby syndrome" type evidence and may be the one that gets the Court of Criminal Appeals to finally interpret CCP 11.073, Texas new "junk science writ,"…
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What Constitutes A Waiver Of The Sixth Amendment Right To Counsel?
In the fall of 2009, Steven Pittman was under surveillance by the Nashville Metro Police Department for trafficking cocaine when he failed to use a turn signal. He was traffic stopped at an apartment complex and confessed that cocaine was located in the center console. The cocaine, digital scales, and a sum of currency were seized. Following a consensual search of his residence, the officers seized two firearms. He was federally indicted for being a felon in possession of a firearm and for distributing cocaine. He filed motions to suppress the evidence recovered from his car and home, claiming that the officers lacked probable cause to conduct the stop and coercion regarding the signed consent form. The suppression motions were denied on the district court level. After eighteen months with his first appointed attorney, Pittman decided he needed a new attorney because the lawyer “raised his voice” during a meeting…
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Shooting John Whitmire: A compendium of motives
Hearing news that someone fired at least four shots into Senate Criminal Justice Committee Chairman John Whitmire's Houston offices, Grits couldn't help wonder why anyone would want to shoot the Houston Democrat, who's served that district with distinction for four decades. Here are the top ten reasons I could envision.State Sen. John WhitmireA witness he dressed down at a committee hearing wants payback.Democrats in Houston "waiting their turn" to run for his seat are turning grey and having grandkids, getting impatient.If the Lt. Governor won't give Joan Huffman chairmanship of the Senate Criminal Justice Committee, she'll just have to find another way. House members proposing new crimes and "enhancements" (increased penalties) are sick of passing bills in the House that the chairman pocket vetoes in the Senate.Someone blames him for reforms in the aughts that slightly reduced the size of Texas' prison system.Someone blames…
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Saturday Politics Open Thread
Big Tent Democrat will be going to a Trump rally in Florida tomorrow, to "observe." Follow him on Twitter. Ben Cohen of Ben and Jerry's ice cream isn't sure who he will vote for if Bernie Sanders is not the nominee. (link is to full... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
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Saturday Open Thread: Non-Politics
If you'd rather watch happy stuff than the politics race, check out James Corden (host of the Late Late Show) and One Direction doing carpool karaoke. I've watched it six or seven times and still laugh. Also fun to watch: James and One... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
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Notable example of "prison industrial complex" using "phony-baloney numbers” to grow or protect its budget
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Donald Trump's Fire
Hillary Clinton today said Donald Trump may start a fire he can't control. Clinton is also using Trump’s slogan Make America Great Again as a vehicle for her message, which aims to take the high road by preaching political unity. ... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]
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Top-Ten Recent SSRN Downloads in Criminal Law eJournal
are here. The usual disclaimers apply. Rank Downloads Paper Title 1 301 The Insanity Defense: Nine Myths that Will Not Go Away Michael L. Perlin New York Law School Date posted to database: 16 Jan 2016 2 140 The Opposite...
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Vagle on Police Militarization, Race, and Algorithmic Surveillance
Jeffrey L. Vagle (University of Pennsylvania Law School) has posted Tightening the OODA Loop: Police Militarization, Race, and Algorithmic Surveillance on SSRN. Here is the abstract: This Article examines the role military automated surveillance and intelligence systems and techniques have...
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Fourth Circuit: New Trial Required When Defense Lawyer Sleeps Through “Substantial Portion” of a Trial
On Friday, the Fourth Circuit, deciding “an issue of first impression,” ruled that a new trial is required when a defense lawyer sleeps through a substantial portion of a trial. The opinion in United States v. Ragin is available here. This post summarizes and discusses the case. Background. In 2004, Nicholas Ragin was charged with federal crimes as a result of his alleged participation in a prostitution right and a drug distribution operation. Though not discussed in the appellate opinion, the Government’s evidence tended to show that Ragin was an “enforcer” who would beat up women who were noncompliant or would shoot at rival drug dealers in defense of his group’s territory. Ragin v. United States, 2014 WL 4105898 (W.D.N.C. Aug. 19, 2014) (unpublished). A Charlotte attorney named Nikita Mackey was appointed to represent Ragin. The case went to trial, Ragin was convicted, and he received a lengthy sentence. He appealed the sentence, but it…
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Presumption of Innocence? Not For OVI
The History of The Presumption of Innocence The presumption of innocence, Ei incumbit probatio qui dicit, non qui negat, is the principle that one is considered innocent unless proven guilty. It dates back to the very foundations of western jurisprudence. The sixth century Digest of Justinian provides, as a general rule of evidence:"Proof lies on him who asserts, not on him who denies." The presumption requires that the prosecution has the obligation to prove each element of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt and that the accused bears no burden of proof. This is often expressed in the phrase innocent until proven guilty, coined by the English lawyer Sir William Garrow (1760–1840). Garrow insisted that accusers be robustly tested in court. An objective observer in the position of the juror must reasonably conclude that the defendant almost certainly committed the crime. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, article 11, states:…
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