More from this issue:

1. One More Reason to Dislike Your State’s DMV, by Edward Lyon
2. Trial Penalty: The Harm in Coercive Prosecutorial Tactics and Plea Bargains, by David Reutter
3. Virginia Supreme Court Reverses Concealed Weapon Offense Because Statutory Exception Applied, by Douglas Ankney
4. The Federal Habeas Corpus: Government’s Response and Your Reply, by Dale Chappell
5. The Many Roads to Relief Under Borden, by Dale Chappell
6. Montana Supreme Court: Court Reporter’s Medical Emergency and Judge’s Distress Don’t Constitute Manifest Necessity for Declaring Mistrial, Retrial Violates Double Jeopardy, by Douglas Ankney
7. Virginia Passes Comprehensive Record Clearance Legislation, by Casey Bastian
8. Arizona Supreme Court: Trial Court’s Failure to Protect Defendant’s Right to Conflict-Free Counsel May Be Raised on Direct Appeal 16 Massachusetts Supreme Court: Error to Exclude Expert Testimony on Significance of Tattoo to Support Claim of Self-Defense, by Douglas Ankney
9. Massachusetts Supreme Court: Error to Exclude Expert Testimony on Significance of Tattoo to Support Claim of Self-Defense, by David Reutter
10. Seventh Circuit: Coworker Cannot Limitlessly Search Defendant’s Office at Direction of FBI, by Anthony Accurso
11. Nebraska Supreme Court Reverses Denial of Pretrial Motion for Absolute Discharge on Speedy Trial Grounds, by Matthew Clarke
12. Fourth Circuit Reverses ‘Abusive Language’ Conviction Where Government Failed to Offer Evidence That Racial Slur Tended to Cause Immediate Acts of Violence, by Douglas Ankney
13. Should Public Defenders Be Tweeting?, by Anthony Accurso
14. California Court of Appeal Vacates Guilty Plea That Resulted in Legal Fiction, by David Reutter
15. California Court of Appeal: When Federal Court Finds Petitioner Satisfies Schlup Standard, Victim Compensation Board Must Recommend Payment of Claim Without Hearing, by Douglas Ankney
16. National Institute of Justice Funds Research to Differentiate Injuries Caused by Child Abuse from Accidental Injuries, by Matthew Clarke
17. Police Funding Reallocated to Community Programs Nationwide, by Casey Bastian
18. Ninth Circuit: Directly Searching Inside Detainee’s Pocket Not a Valid Terry Frisk for Weapons, by Anthony Accurso
19. Atavistic South Carolinians Offer Option of Firing Squad to Condemned Prisoners, by Douglas Ankney
20. Delaware Supreme Court: Substitution Not Allowed for Chain of Custody Witness, by Anthony Accurso
21. Sixth Circuit: District Court May Consider Disparity of Defendant’s Actual Sentence Compared With Sentence Under First Step Act When Additional Factors Present, by Douglas Ankney
22. Eighth Circuit: Plain Error to Impose Destructive-Device Enhancement for .410 Shotgun, by David Reutter
23. Tenth Circuit Reverses Denial of Suppression Motion Because Rationale for Community-Caretaker Exception Unreasonable, by Douglas Ankney
24. Report: NYPD Sold Almost 22,000 of the 55,000 Phones Seized Last Year, by Douglas Ankney
25. SCOTUS: Cady’s ‘Community Caretaking’ Function of Police Doesn’t Create Standalone Doctrine Permitting Warrantless Entry into a Home, by Douglas Ankney
26. Maryland and Montana: First States to Pass Laws Restricting Access to Consumer Genealogy Databases by Law Enforcement, by Casey Bastian
27. It’s No Shock That Tasers Increase Brutality, by Casey Bastian
28. South Carolina Supreme Court: Lifetime SORA Registration Requirement Unconstitutional Absent Opportunity for Judicial Review of Risk of Re-offending, by Anthony Accurso
29. Mississippi Supreme Court: Drug Buy Between Dealer and User Doesn’t Constitute Conspiracy to Distribute, by David Reutter
30. New Mexico Supreme Court: Constitutional Error to Accept Plea Without Assistance of Counsel, by David Reutter
31. California Court of Appeal Reverses Felony-Murder Conviction Where Sentencing Occurred After SB 1437 Enacted, by Matthew Clarke
32. Maryland Enacts Significant Police Reform, Overriding Governor’s Veto, by Jayson Hawkins
33. Decision Not to Prosecute May Reduce Chance of Recidivism, by Kevin Bliss
34. FBI Subpoenas Media Outlets for Information on Readers of Stories Criticizing Government, by Dale Chappell
35. Fourth Circuit Extends Gant’s Automobile Search-Incident-to-Arrest Framework to Searches of Non-Vehicular Containers, by Douglas Ankney
36. Texas Supreme Court: Multiple Misdemeanor Charges Resulting From Single Arrest Divisible for Expunction Purposes, by Douglas Ankney
37. Police Legal Defense Funds Have Millions in Reserve, by Jayson Hawkins
38. Big Brother Is Watching You Through Your Car, by Jayson Hawkins
39. Constitutional Protections No Protection for Colorado Man Killed by Police, by Casey Bastian
40. Warrantless Warrants and Crooked Courts in Chicago, by Jayson Hawkins
41. Details Surface About Firm That Hacked iPhone for the FBI in 2016, by Anthony Accurso
42. Debunking the Myth of ‘Dangerous’ Traffic Stops, by Jayson Hawkins
43. Reports Show Law Enforcement Groups Are Main Force Pushing New Anti-Protest Laws, by Matthew Clarke
44. Prosecutors Call for Humane Sentencing Measures, by Kevin Bliss
45. Jury Refuses to Hold Abusive Cops Accountable for Beating Undercover Cop, by Anthony Accurso
46. Digital Dogs, New Technology Designed to Sniff-Out Crime, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
47. Two T-shirts Cost Louisiana Man 20 Years, by Edward Lyon
48. Police Use of Facial Recognition May Be Broader Than Expected, by Anthony Accurso
49. When Police Ignore Ordered Changes, Is It Really Reform?, by Douglas Ankney
50. The People Have Spoken: Clemency Appointments Should Follow the Will of the People, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
51. The Louisiana Board of Parole Giveth and Taketh Away: The Troubling Case of Bobby Sneed, by Casey Bastian
52. Police Target People of Color for Cannabis Crimes Despite Legalization, by Anthony Accurso
53. Bodycams Do Not Hold Cops Accountable, Communities Do, by Anthony Accurso
54. News in Brief

More from Anthony Accurso:

• D.C. Circuit Holds Compelling Suspect to Unlock Cellphone With Thumbprint Is ‘Testimonial’ Act and Violates Fifth Amendment Privilege Against Self-Incrimination, Feb. 15, 2025
• $220,000 Settlement After Woman Dies in Ohio Jail From Drug Withdrawal, Feb. 15, 2025
• Colorado Supreme Court Holds Defendant Was in ‘Custody’ for Miranda Purposes Because She Had Hands Bagged and Zip Tied, Commanded Not to Remove Them, and Questioned Alone in Interrogation Room With Door Closed, Feb. 15, 2025
• First Circuit Holds No Emergency-Aid Exception to Warrant Requirement Where Police Have Information That Subject Is Already Deceased, Feb. 15, 2025
• Police Departments Are Now Using AI to Write Reports, Feb. 15, 2025
• Illinois Supreme Court Announces Odor of Burnt Cannabis Alone Is Insufficient to Establish Probable Cause for a Warrantless Vehicle Search, Feb. 1, 2025
• Mass Spectrometry Being Studied as Way to Analyze Overlapping or Weak Fingerprints, Feb. 1, 2025
• Georgia Supreme Court Grants Habeas Relief Where Both Trial and Appellate Counsel Provided Ineffective Assistance by Failing to Challenge Indictment for Residential Burglary That Failed to Allege Defendant Illegally Entered a ‘Dwelling’, Jan. 15, 2025
• Childhood Trauma Incidence Higher Among Those Incarcerated, Jan. 15, 2025
• Nevada Supreme Court Announces Incorporated Probable Cause Affidavit Cannot Broaden Scope of Warrant’s Description of Places and Persons to be Searched or Items to Be Seized, Dec. 1, 2024

More from these topics:

• U.S. Navy Exonerates Wrongly Convicted Black WWII Sailors, Feb. 15, 2025. Wrongful Conviction, Military, Racial Profiling, Racial/Ethnic Bias/Profiling.
• Oregon Holds BLM Protestor in Solitary Confinement for 250 Days, Feb. 15, 2025. Protests, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Racial Profiling, Prison Classification.
• Study Reveals Best DNA Recovery Spots on Drug Baggies, Feb. 15, 2025. DNA Testing/Samples, War on Drugs, DNA Evidence/Testing.
• 50 Years After Starting “Scared Straight,” Former N.J. Prison Warden “Would Do It Again”, Nov. 15, 2024. War on Drugs, Juveniles, Education (Juveniles).
• Alabama Guard, Prisoners Among 13 Sentenced in Phone Scam and Drug-Smuggling Ring, Nov. 15, 2024. Guard Misconduct, Cell Searches, War on Drugs, Searches - Cellphones/Computers/Internet.
• Chicago PD Continues Racial Profiling While Underreporting Incidents of Traffic Stops, Nov. 1, 2024. Racial Profiling, Traffic Stops.
• Three Former Rikers Island Guards Among Five Ex-Employees Charged in Massive Smuggling Scheme, Oct. 15, 2024. Guard Misconduct, War on Drugs, Searches - Cellphones/Computers/Internet.
• Alabama Warden and Wife Busted for Making “Magic” Mushrooms, Oct. 15, 2024. Police Misconduct, War on Drugs.
• Study Finds That Black Americans Want Both Police Presence and Reform: Looking Beyond the Headlines, Oct. 1, 2024. Criminal justice system reform, Police, Racial Profiling.
• California Court of Appeal: Statistical Evidence Showing Racial Disparity Combined With Evidence Showing Non-Minority Defendants Charged With Lesser Crimes Establishes Prima Facie Case Under California Racial Justice Act, June 15, 2024. Racial Discrimination, Racial Profiling, Charging Decisions, Disparity in Charging/Sentencing Practices.