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SCOTUS’ Unanimous Death-Penalty Jury Verdict Decision Affecting Florida Cases
by Derek Gilna
The effects of the January 2016 United States Supreme Court decision in Hurst v. Florida, 136 S. Ct. 6161 (2016), which overturned Florida’s prior law permitting non-unanimous jury verdicts in death penalty cases, continues to reverberate through the Broward County, Florida, criminal justice system. The …
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More from this issue:
- How Coercive Interrogations Can Lead to a False Confession, by Brian Leslie
- $9 Million Settlement in Baltimore Wrongful Conviction Case, by Christopher Zoukis
- Fifth Circuit Affirms Habeas Relief Granted to Louisiana Prisoner Who Overcame SOL by ‘Credible Showing of Actual Innocence’, by Christopher Zoukis
- Minneapolis Police Used EMS Staff to Drug Certain Suspects, Report Says, by Betty Nelander
- U.S. Supreme Court: Drivers of Rental Cars Not on Rental Agreement Have Expectation of Privacy, by Dale Chappell
- Seventh Circuit: ‘Force’ for Aggravated Sexual Abuse Requires ‘Physical Force,’ Not Psychological Coercion, by Christopher Zoukis
- U.S. Supreme Court’s Carpenter Decision a Warning to Police on Warrantless Data Searches, by Derek Gilna
- Washington Supreme Court Clarifies Process by Which Insanity Acquittees May Petition for Release, by Christopher Zoukis
- SCOTUS’ Unanimous Death-Penalty Jury Verdict Decision Affecting Florida Cases, by Derek Gilna
- New Kansas Law Compensates Those Wrongfully Convicted, by Dale Chappell
- Georgia Defense Attorney Wins Another ‘Jury-Nullification’ Case, by Derek Gilna
- New Jersey Appellate Division Extends Urbina Self-Defense Rule to Defense of Others in Plea Allocution, by David Reutter
- Virginia Supreme Court Holds Convictions for Common Law and Statutory Involuntary Manslaughter Violate Double Jeopardy Clause, by Dale Chappell
- Cato Institute: Require Cops to Carry Liability Insurance, by Christopher Zoukis
- SCOTUS Issues Landmark Fourth Amendment and Digital Privacy Opinion in Carpenter
- Eighth Circuit Rules Officer’s Inability to Read Temporary Vehicle Tag Does Not Justify Traffic Stop, Evidence Obtained Must be Suppressed, by Christopher Zoukis
- First Circuit Holds Appeal Not Barred by Plea Agreement Waiver Provision When Sentence Exceeds Agreement, by David Reutter
- New York City Decriminalizes Some Public Smoking of Marijuana in Policy Shift, by Derek Gilna
- Can Cops Shoot a Fleeing Suspect in the Back?, by Dale Chappell
- Texas Courts Rubber Stamp Post-Conviction Fact Findings in Death Penalty Cases, Study Says, by Matthew Clarke
- New Jersey AG Intervenes in Possible Wrongful Conviction Case, Considers Reforms, by Christopher Zoukis
- Hawaii Supreme Court Vacates Conviction Due to Prosecutor’s Bogus Argument Attacking Defense Counsel, by Matthew Clarke
- Drug Detection Using Fingerprints in the Works, by Matthew Clarke
- Sixth Circuit Reverses Relevant Conduct Firearm Enhancement Because No Connection Between Possession Charges Based on Two Separate Shootouts, by Christopher Zoukis
- Kansas Supreme Court: Deadly Weapon-Use Finding Prerequisite to Imposing Violent Offender Registration Requirement, by Matthew Clarke
- Third Circuit Grants Habeas Relief to Prisoner Convicted of First-Degree Murder Without Evidence of Specific Intent to Kill, by Christopher Zoukis
- Why Sex Offender Registries Keep Growing Even as Sexual Violence Rates Fall, by Steven Yoder
- NYPD’s Lack of Disciplinary Record Transparency Frustrates Prosecutors, by Betty Nelander
- Maryland’s Top Court Rules Actual Notice by Trial Judge Unnecessary to Trigger Hearing Requirement On Defendant’s Request to Replace Defense Counsel, by Christopher Zoukis
- Immigration Authorities Seize Wrongfully Convicted Man After Release, by Matthew Clarke
- Chicago Tries to Reduce Deficit at its Poorer Citizens’ Expense, by Edward Lyon
- Kansas (Finally) Outlaws Sex Between Cops and Detained Citizens
- California Property Owners Billed for Their Own Prosecution, by Christopher Zoukis
- What Some Prison Sentence Lengths Actually Reflect, by Edward Lyon
- Trial Lawyer Advocates ‘Jury Nullification’ To Acquit the Unjustly Accused, by Derek Gilna
- Academic Paper Highlights Need to Tighten Rules for Fingerprint Evidence in Light of False-Positive Error Rate, by Steve Horn
- New York City Gang Database Increases 70 Percent Since 2014, by Derek Gilna
- South Dakota Supreme Court Rules that Trial Court Cannot Reject a Plea Agreement It Already Implicitly Accepted, by Christopher Zoukis
- New Mexico Supreme Court: Seriousness of Charged Crime Itself Not Sufficient to Deny Defendant Pretrial Release, by Dale Chappell
- Iowa Supreme Court: Relief from Conviction Not Required When Suing for Legal Malpractice Based on Wrongful Sentence, by Dale Chappell
- South Dakota Supreme Court Announces Search Incident to Arrest Exception to Warrant Requirement Does Not Apply to Collection of Urine Sample Upon Arrest, by Dale Chappell
- Armed and Dangerous: If Police Don’t Have to Protect the Public, What Good Are They?, by John W. Whitehead
- There’s No Rational Way to Justify America’s Drug Laws, by Maia Szalavitz
- News in Brief
- Secondary DNA Transfer: The Rarely Discussed Phenomenon That Can Place the Innocent (and the Dead) at a Crime Scene They’ve Never Been To, by Christopher Zoukis
More from Derek Gilna:
- Federal Judge in Louisiana Issues Sweeping Opinion Finding Numerous Eighth Amendment, ADA and RA Violations at Angola, April 1, 2022
- Human Rights Defense Center Prevails in Censorship Lawsuit Against Napa County Jail, California, Sept. 1, 2021
- California State Auditor’s Report Faults Counties for Waste and Poor Oversight of State Funds Used in “Public Safety Realignment”, Sept. 1, 2021
- The Fight Over Cellphones in Prisons Rages On, Sept. 1, 2021
- District Court Extends Armstrong Order to Five Additional California Prisons, Sept. 1, 2021
- HRDC Settles Censorship Lawsuit with Johnson County, Kansas Jail for $50,000 and Policy Changes, Aug. 1, 2021
- Virginia Prosecutors to Dismiss 400 Drug Convictions Tied to Disgraced Cop, July 15, 2021
- Discredited New York Police Detective’s False Testimony Causes the Dismissal of Close to 100 Drug Convictions, June 15, 2021
- D.C. Department of Forensic Sciences Firearms Examination Unit Under Fire, April 15, 2021
- Mississippi Joins Illinois and Few Other States Prioritizing Vaccination of State Prisoners to Slow Spread of COVID-19, April 1, 2021
More from these topics:
- Dissenter Excoriates SCOTUS for Denying Certiorari in Challenge to Constitutionality of Nitrogen Hypoxia Execution, Feb. 1, 2026. Death Penalty, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Capital Punishment, Cruel and Unusual Punishment, Method of Execution.
- 2025 Was a Deadly Year for Veterans Behind Bars, Jan. 1, 2026. Brain Injury, Death Penalty, Mental Health, Veterans, Mental Health Experts.
- Exonerated Former Prisoner Wins Election for Chief Record Keeper in New Orleans, Jan. 1, 2026. Prisoner Legal Assistance, Juries, Public Records, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment.
- Oklahoma Prisoner Found Unconscious in Cell Hours After Avoiding Execution, Dec. 1, 2025. Public Defenders, Pardons/Clemency, Life without Parole (LWOP), Death Penalty, Effective Assistance of Counsel.
- Missouri Blocks Spiritual Advisors from Prison Pastor’s Execution, Nov. 1, 2025. Pardons/Clemency, Death Penalty, Lethal Injection Method of Execution, Religious Freedom/Worship, Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA).
- Eleventh Circuit Overturns 1990 Alabama Death Sentence Over Racially Biased Jury Selection; ACLU Report Shows It Is Still Happening, Nov. 1, 2025. Racial Discrimination, Habeas Corpus, Death Penalty, Batson Claims, Racial Bias Exception.
- In the Killing Chamber, Oct. 1, 2025. Death Penalty, Death Row.
- Oklahoma Prisoner’s Execution Was Expedited by the Trump Administration, Aug. 1, 2025. Death Penalty, Death Row, Lethal Injection.
- On Remand, Eleventh Circuit Clarifies, Affirms Grant of Habeas Relief to Death Row Prisoner, Aug. 1, 2025. Habeas Corpus, Death Penalty, Death Row.
- Georgia Moves to Shield Intellectually Disabled Prisoners from Execution, June 1, 2025. Sentencing, Death Penalty.





