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Free at Last! California Modifies Its Felony Murder Law, Helping up to 800 Prisoners Currently Serving Life Sentences
by Ed Lyon
California’s felony murder statute, as originally enacted, is quite draconian in its inclusiveness. A person could be convicted and punished as severely as the primary participant in a felony murder even if the person was not present at the murder scene—they might have been a getaway driver, ...
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More from this issue:
- Dallas County Private Bail Hearings Leave People Languishing Behind Bars, by Kevin Bliss
- New App Makes It Simple for Civilians to Record Police Encounters
- Sex Offender Registration Biased Against Blacks, by Kevin Bliss
- Arizona Supreme Court Strikes Law Categorically Banning Bail for Sexual Assault as Unconstitutional, by Dale Chappell
- $384 Million Paid Out by New York City in Last Five Years for Police Misconduct, by Derek Gilna
- ACLU Report: A Tale of Two NYCs When It Comes to Policing, by Derek Gilna
- Fourth Circuit Affirms District Court Ruling that Man Committed as ‘Sexually Dangerous’ Should be Released, by Christopher Zoukis
- Increase in Crime Registries Nationwide Not a Benefit to Society, by Kevin Bliss
- Ninth Circuit Grants Habeas for Appellate Lawyer’s Failure to Raise Denial of Self-Representation Claim, by Matthew Clarke
- Tenth Circuit Grants Habeas Relief When ACCA Predicate Offense No Longer Qualifies as ‘Violent Felony’, by Christopher Zoukis
- Chicago Judge Grants No-Money Bond in Murder Case, But Cook County Still Has a Long Way to Go, by Dale Chappell
- FBI Admits Vastly Inflating Number of Unsearchable Mobile Devices
- Oklahoma’s Railroading its Citizens into Prison, by Edward Lyon
- Second Circuit Announces Prisoners Have First Amendment Right Not to Snitch or Provide False Information to Prison Officials, by Richard Resch
- Under Fire, Long Beach Police Suspend Use of Self-Deleting Message App, by Betty Nelander
- Michigan Supreme Court Announces New Rule for Appointing Expert Witness for Indigent Defendants, No Longer Left to Trial Judge’s Discretion, by Dale Chappell
- Oregon Enhanced Drug Penalty ‘For Consideration’ Element Requires Proof of Drug Sale or Agreement to Sell, by Mark Wilson
- Orlando Police Continue to Test Amazon’s Facial Recognition Software Despite Privacy Concerns
- Pennsylvania State Senator Sends the Cops to Collect on Overdue Trash Bills Owed to His Company, by Christopher Zoukis
- Colorado Supreme Court Holds Ameliorative Amendments Apply Retroactively to Non-Final Convictions, by Dale Chappell
- First Circuit Orders Resentencing Where Trial Counsel Failed to Secure Three-Level Reduction Under Sentencing Guidelines, by David Reutter
- Federal Death Penalty Prosecutors Accuse One Another of Destroying Evidence and Other Misconduct in Discrimination Lawsuit, by Shawn Musgrave, Brooke Williams
- Ninth Circuit Rules Detective’s Persistent Questioning After Invocation of Right to Counsel Entitles California Prisoner to Habeas Relief, by Richard Resch
- Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Reverses Conviction for Improper Lesser-Included-Offense Determination, by Christopher Zoukis
- Washington Supreme Court Announces State’s Death Penalty Is Unconstitutional, by Richard Resch
- Snarky Facebook Post Not True Threat; Officers Denied Qualified Immunity, by David Reutter
- Sixth Circuit Grants Habeas Relief When Juror Failed to Disclose History of Sexual Abuse in Sexual Assault Case, by Christopher Zoukis
- New York Court of Appeals: Excited Utterance Must Be Based on Personal Observation to Be Admissible as Exception to Hearsay Rule, by Dale Chappell
- Three Reasons Why the Supreme Court Should Eliminate the Doctrine of Qualified Immunity, by Christopher Zoukis
- Seventh Circuit: Habeas Petition Challenging § 841 Recidivism Sentence Enhanced with Vacated State Convictions is Not Time-Barred by § 851(e) Statute of Limitations, by Christopher Zoukis
- California Court of Appeal Rules 17-Year Delay in SVP Trial Violated Right to Speedy Trial, by Kevin Bliss
- Warning: Integrity of Judicial Process at Risk, by Sandy Rozek
- Kentucky Supreme Court Declares Law Defining Intellectual Disability Unconstitutional, Overturns Death Sentence, by Dale Chappell
- Is Blue Privilege at Work in Texas Police Killings?, by Betty Nelander
- Pennsylvania Supreme Court Holds FTA Does Not Affect Independent Speedy Trial Violation by Prosecutor, by Dale Chappell
- Habeas Hints: Evaluating and Initiating IAC Claims, by Kent Russell, Tara Hoveland
- Should the Minimum Age for the Death Penalty be Bumped Up to 21?
- Colorado Supreme Court Announces ‘Preponderance of the Evidence’ Standard for Determining Voluntariness of Consent to Search, by Dale Chappell
- Free at Last! California Modifies Its Felony Murder Law, Helping up to 800 Prisoners Currently Serving Life Sentences, by Edward Lyon
- Arkansas Supreme Court Reverses Negligent Homicide Conviction Where Evidence Obtained Via Warrantless Blood Draw Used, by Christopher Zoukis
- News in Brief
- Eyewitness (Mis)Identification in the Criminal Justice System: Powerful, Persuasive, and Problematic, by Christopher Zoukis
More from Edward Lyon:
- “There you go, Agent Orange!” Former South Carolina Sheriff Federally Indicted for Assaulting Jail Detainee, May 1, 2024
- Texas Prisons are Fire Traps, July 15, 2023
- The World’s Biggest Prison, July 15, 2023
- Civilian Police With Military Equipment, June 15, 2023
- U.S. Prisoner Numbers Slowly Declining, June 15, 2023
- California Easing Housing Hurdles for Released Prisoners, June 1, 2023
- Warden Ousted from Troubled Alabama Prison After DUI Arrest, May 1, 2023
- $20,000 Settlement for Ohio Prisoner’s Slip-and-Fall Injury, May 1, 2023
- $32,500 Medical Malpractice Award to Ohio Prisoner for Ripped-Out Catheter, May 1, 2023
- New York State’s Veterans Treatment Courts, April 15, 2023
More from these topics:
- Examining Pro-Prosecution Bias in the Judiciary: Unconscious Biases of a Prosecutorial Background, Feb. 15, 2025. Criminal Prosecution, Juror Bias, Impartial Jury.
- Executions Rise in 2023, Number on Death Row Falls, June 1, 2024. Criminal Prosecution, Statistics/Trends, Death Penalty, Death Row.
- U.N. Panel Finds Rampant Racism in U.S. Criminal Justice System, June 1, 2024. Racial Discrimination, Commentary/Reviews, Crime/Demographics, Criminal Prosecution, Statistics/Trends.
- Over 5,000 Prisoners Federally Sentenced Every Month, May 1, 2024. Criminal Prosecution, Statistics/Trends, U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Bureau of Prisons (BOP).
- Regarding Death Penalty, Biden’s Actions Don’t Align with His Mouth, May 1, 2024. Commentary/Reviews, Criminal Prosecution, Statistics/Trends, Death Penalty.
- Sentencing Project Proposes Remedies for Racial Disparities Behind Bars, May 1, 2024. Racial Discrimination, Criminal justice system reform, Criminal Prosecution.
- 428 Georgia Prison Employees Criminally Charged in Five Years, April 1, 2024. Guard Misconduct, Criminal Prosecution, Statistics/Trends.
- Kansas Supreme Court Announces State Must Prove Defendant Specifically Intended to Enter Dwelling in Which There Was a Person to Sustain Conviction for Attempted Aggravated Burglary, Overruling State v. Watson, Jan. 15, 2024. State Statutes, Sufficiency of Evidence, Specific Offenses.
- Oregon Supreme Court Announces Overruling of Precedent on ‘Attempted Transfer’ of Drugs, Jan. 15, 2024. State Statutes, Possession in Furtherance of Drug Offense, Conspiracies, Attempts, Solicitations, Attempts/Incomplete Acts, Substantial Step Towards Completion, Completion of All Acts.
- California Court of Appeal: Defendants Who Plead Guilty to Stipulated Sentence Eligible for Resentencing Under Amended § 1170.91, Jan. 15, 2024. State Statutes, Guilty Plea, Resentencing, De Novo Resentencing, Plea Agreements/Guilty Pleas.