More from this issue:

1. How Defense Lawyers Break Attorney-Client Privilege to Defend Ineffective Assistance of Counsel Claims, by Steve Horn
2. Fee to Plead Guilty Burdens Indigent Defendants in Pennsylvania, by Dale Chappell
3. California Court of Appeal: Youth Offender Parole Statute Trumps Consecutive Prison Term Statute, by Christopher Zoukis
4. Very Few Have Taken Advantage of New York’s Program to Seal Criminal Records, by Edward Lyon
5. Homeland Security One Step Closer to Becoming Big Brother Incarnate, by Christopher Zoukis
6. St. Louis Police Department Fighting Prosecution Exclusion List, by Kevin Bliss
7. Junk Sciences and Scientists Strike Again in Texas, by Edward Lyon
8. Global Voice Recognition Database Alarms Privacy Groups, by Kevin Bliss
9. Philadelphia Pays Out Millions to Settle Police Shootings, by Edward Lyon
10. Scottish Psychologist’s Study Focuses On Why the Innocent May Confess to Crimes, by Derek Gilna
11. U.S. Government Paid Out Over $60 Million to Settle Border Patrol Violence Claims, by Christopher Zoukis
12. New Hampshire’s Secret List of Problematic Cops Gets Worse, by Dale Chappell
13. Crime Labs Falling Short, by Edward Lyon
14. Eleventh Circuit Denies Qualified Immunity to Florida Cop Who Seized iPhone from Accident Bystander, by Christopher Zoukis
15. Fourth Circuit: Federal Conspiracy to Commit Murder in Aid of Racketeering Not a Crime of Violence for Purposes of Sentencing Guidelines Enhancement, by Christopher Zoukis
16. Colorado Leads U.S. in Suppression of Court Cases, by Kevin Bliss
17. Kansas Supreme Court Rules Fourth Amendment Violation Where Purported Inventory Search Was Performed in Absence of Standard Policy, by Richard Resch
18. Massachusetts Supreme Court Shifts Burden on Government to Prove by Clear and Convincing Evidence Sex Offender Poses Continued Risk at Termination of Registry Hearings, by Dale Chappell
19. Report: NYPD Assisted in Creating Facial Recognition Technology, by Kevin Bliss
20. South Carolina Supreme Court Rules Mandatory Electronic Monitoring of Sex Offenders Must Be ‘Reasonableness’ Under Fourth Amendment, by Dale Chappell
21. Minnesota Supreme Court Joins the Chorus by Announcing Birchfield is Retroactive, by Christopher Zoukis
22. $1 Million Settlement by Cleveland to Six Rape, Murder Victims’ Families, by Kevin Bliss
23. Connecticut Supreme Court Finds IAC for Failure to Investigate Key Alibi Witness, Grants New Trial, by Dale Chappell
24. Ninth Circuit Holds Undisclosed Relationship Between Murdered FBI Agent and Presiding Judge in Capital Case Created Intolerable Risk of Judicial Bias, Warranting Habeas Relief, by David Reutter
25. Ninth Circuit Rules California Robbery Not a ‘Crime of Violence’ in Light of Dimaya and Allows Withdrawal of Guilty Plea, by David Reutter
26. Civil Rights Groups Urge Ending Use of Pretrial Bail Risk Assessment Tools, by Steve Horn
27. California’s New Cashless Bail System More Likely to Increase Number of Detainees, by Kevin Bliss
28. Article Calls for Courts to Implement ‘Brady Violation Disclosure Letter’ System, by Steve Horn
29. Georgia Can No Longer Charge for Access to Its Statutes, Thanks to Eleventh Circuit Ruling
30. I once wrote mandatory minimum laws. After ties to Abramoff landed me in prison, I know they must end., by Kevin Ring
31. Seventh Circuit Vacates Conditions of Supervised Release Following Child Pornography Conviction, by Matthew Clarke
32. Illinois: Chicago Police Misconduct Outed in Database 2.0 Version, by Edward Lyon
33. Seventh Circuit: Bureau of Prisons Improperly Prolonged Prisoner’s Sentence, by Christopher Zoukis
34. Oregon Supreme Court: ‘Grooming’ Evidence Requires Scientific Validity Foundation, by Mark Wilson
35. Massachusetts Supreme Court Overturns Conviction Based on Prosecutor’s False Statement During Closing Argument, by Dale Chappell
36. District Court Holds that Some White-Collar Felons May Lawfully Possess Firearms Due to a Little Known Exemption For Crimes ‘Relating to the Regulation of Business Practices’
37. Harris County, Texas Prosecutors Review DWI Cases Impacted by Discredited Expert, by Derek Gilna
38. Massachusetts Supreme Court Tosses Thousands of Drug Cases After Lab Tech Scandal and Government Cover-Up, by Dale Chappell
39. Tenth Circuit Rules Police Seizure of Home Where No Evidence of Criminal Activity Apparent Violates Fourth Amendment Requiring Suppression of Incriminating Evidence, by Richard Resch
40. Seventh Circuit: Procedural Error Occurs When Miscount of Prior Convictions Basis for Sentence, Resentencing Required, by David Reutter
41. Police Misconduct Threatens Over 20,000 New Jersey Drunk Driving Convictions, by Derek Gilna
42. Nevada Court of Appeals Rules Police May Not Conduct Warrantless Search Based on Third-Party Consent Where No Effort Made to Determine Whether Person Has Authority to Do So, by Richard Resch
43. New York City Cops Using Supposedly Sealed Arrest Records, by Edward Lyon
44. Ninth Circuit Grants Habeas for IAC of Resentencing Counsel Who Failed to Challenge Sole Aggravating Factor or Investigate Mitigating Circumstances, by Matthew Clarke
45. News in Brief
46. Kansas Supreme Court Holds Travel Plan Questions Unconstitutionally Extended Traffic Stop, by Matthew Clarke
47. The Fallibility of Forensic Science: Crime-Solving Tool Can Lead to Wrongful Convictions—and Belated Exonerations, by Rick Anderson

More from Christopher Zoukis:

• The Contraband Wars Prison authorities target books and mail, miss the goods coming through the staff door, July 1, 2021
• Trump v. Biden on Criminal Justice, Oct. 1, 2020
• Coronavirus in Prison: The Cruel Reality, Aug. 1, 2020
• With Lives of Immigrant Detainees at Risk to COVID-19, Federal Judge Forces ICE’s Hand, July 1, 2020
• A Nation on the Brink, June 15, 2020
• Federal Court Slams Michigan Jail for Bungling COVID-19 Pandemic, Demands Names of Vulnerable Prisoners for Release, June 1, 2020
• Silence: The Bureau of Prisons’ Pathetic Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic, June 1, 2020
• New York Judge Orders Release of 18 Rikers Island Detainees Due to COVID-19 Risk, June 1, 2020
• Coronavirus: A Nationwide Survey of the Push for Early Release as Pandemic Fears Grow, May 1, 2020
• California Three-Judge Court Denies Emergency Motion to Reduce Prison Population During Pandemic, May 1, 2020

More from these topics:

• Former South Carolina Jailer Spared Prison After Testimony Fails to Convict Former Sheriff, Feb. 15, 2025. Guard Brutality/Beatings, U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Sentences - Adjustments and Departures, Offense of Conviction.
• The Murky Waters of Parole, Feb. 1, 2025. Parole/Probation Searches, U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Parole Liability, Probation, Parole & Supervised Release.
• Oregon Supreme Court: Governor Can’t Revoke Commutation After Sentence Expires, Jan. 15, 2025. Parole/Probation Searches, U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Resentencing, Revocation Proceedings, Overreaching.
• After Florida Appellate Court Holds Crimes of ‘Attempt’ Eligible for Incentive Gain Time, Supreme Court Refuses Review, Jan. 15, 2025. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Conspiracies, Attempts, Solicitations, Attempts/Incomplete Acts, Credits, Sentences - Adjustments and Departures.
• Seventh Circuit Announces Maximum Revocation Sentence for Violation of Supervised Release Based on Classification of Underlying Offense at Time of Conviction, Not at Time of Revocation, Dec. 15, 2024. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Revocation Proceedings.
• California Supreme Court Announces Retroactivity of 2022 Version of Penal Code § 1170 to Upper-Term Sentences Imposed Before Its Enactment, Dec. 15, 2024. Retroactivity, U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.
• First Circuit Holds Government Breached Plea Agreement by Implicitly Arguing for Upward Variant Sentence by Including Pictures and Video of Defendant That Allegedly Depict His Criminal Tendencies in Sentencing Memo, Dec. 15, 2024. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Grounds for Variance, 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2), Plea Agreements/Guilty Pleas, Grounds.
• Fifth Circuit Judges Battle in Louisiana Over-Detention Cases, Dec. 15, 2024. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Overdetention, Credits.
• California Supreme Court Announces Uncharged and Unproven Offense-Specific Enhancements May Not Be Imposed Under § 1172.6(e) Resentencing, Dec. 1, 2024. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Resentencing, Sentence Enhancements/Departures.
• Third Circuit: Despite ‘Expressly and Repeatedly’ Requesting Low-End Sentence, Government Breached Plea Agreement by Emphasizing ‘Heinous’ Nature of Offense and Presenting Victim-Impact Evidence at Sentencing Thereby Undermining Recommendation, Dec. 1, 2024. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Mitigating Role/Circumstances/Evidence, Reduction of Sentence, Proffer Agreements/Statements/Sessions.