More from this issue:

1. How Cops Use Copyright Laws to Prevent the Public from Recording Their Bad Acts, by Dale Chappell
2. “If Everybody’s White, There Can’t Be Any Racial Bias”: The Disappearance of Hispanic Drivers From Traffic Records, by Richard Webster
3. Brooklyn DA Releases List of Untrustworthy Cops, by Anthony Accurso
4. You’d Better Watch Out: The Surveillance State Has a Naughty List, and You’re On It, by Nisha Whitehead, John W. Whitehead
5. Sixth Circuit: Only One Conviction May Result Under § 922(g) for Single Incident of Firearm Possession, by Douglas Ankney
6. Montana Supreme Court: Ineffective Assistance of Counsel for Failing to Object to Incorrect Jury Instruction That Lowered State’s Burden of Proof, by Douglas Ankney
7. The AEDPA: A Forgotten Catalyst in Mass Incarceration, by Dale Chappell
8. New Jersey Supreme Court Announces Arrestees in Police Custody Have Reasonable Expectation of Privacy in Calls Made on Police Station Phone Absent Notice That Call Is Being Monitored or Recorded, by Douglas Ankney
9. Crime Rates Rise and Fall. The Police Mostly Have Nothing to Do With It., by Aya Gruber
10. Pennsylvania Supreme Court Announces Framework for Determining Whether State of Mind Exception to Hearsay Rule Applies to Out-of-Court Statements, Dual-Purpose Statements Generally Inadmissible, by Matthew Clarke
11. Fourth Circuit: Long-Term Aerial Surveillance That Reveals ‘Whole of Individuals’ Movements’ Constitutes Search Without a Warrant, Violates Fourth Amendment, by Douglas Ankney
12. Rethinking the ‘Sex Offender’ Label, by Derek Logue
13. North Carolina Supreme Court Announces Pretrial Notice of Duress Defense Does Not Forfeit Fifth Amendment Right to Silence, Reaffirms Rule Against Preemptive Impeachment, by Anthony Accurso
14. California Court of Appeal: Police Created Atmosphere of Custodial Interrogation Requiring Miranda Warnings Even Though Prearrest Interview Occurred in Teen Suspect’s Home, by Douglas Ankney
15. California Court of Appeal: Superior Courts Must Consider Only Elements of Prior Adjudicated Felony, Not Juvenile’s Conduct for § 1170(d)(2)(B) Purposes, by Douglas Ankney
16. Third Circuit Announces Mere Physical Proximity of Guns and Drugs Insufficient for Automatic Application of U.S.S.G. § 2K2.1(b)(6)(B) Enhancement Under Commentary Note 14(B), Creates Rebuttable Presumption, by Douglas Ankney
17. California Supreme Court Announces Mandatory Supervision Conditions Un-der Realignment Act Evaluated for Reasonableness on Case-by-Case Basis Under Lent Test, by Anthony Accurso
18. Montana Supreme Court: Defendant’s Due Process Rights Violated by Delayed Initial Appearance for Two Years While Jailed in New York on Out-of-State Warrant, by David Reutter
19. U.S. Sentencing Commission Creates New Sentencing Tool for Judges, by Dale Chappell
20. California Supreme Court Announces Not All Subsequent Habeas Petitions Under Death Penalty Reform and Savings Act Are ‘Successive’, by Dale Chappell
21. Who Defends the Public Defenders?, by Jayson Hawkins
22. Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Announces Impacted Third Party Has Right to Appeal Motion Granting Postconviction DNA Testing, by Matthew Clarke
23. The Long-Term Effects of 9/11: Naturally, More Surveillance, by Jayson Hawkins
24. Ninth Circuit: California Law Prohibiting Recovery of Loss of Life Damages Inconsistent With § 1983, by Douglas Ankney
25. Second Circuit Declares Police Firearms Examiners Subject to Brady, Examiner Who Failed to Disclose Exculpatory Ballistics Report Not Entitled to Qualified Immunity, by Douglas Ankney
26. Ninth Circuit: Washington’s Sentencing Guidelines, Not Statutory Maximum, Set Upper Limit for Sentence When Determining Grade of Violation of Supervised Release Under U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, by Douglas Ankney
27. Nevada Supreme Court Reverses Denial of Motion to Withdraw Guilty Plea Because Defendant Had Strong Argument for Speedy Trial Violation and Colorable Claim of IAC, by Douglas Ankney
28. Iowa Supreme Court Calls SCOTUS’ Fourth Amendment Jurisprudence ‘a Mess,’ Announces Departure from Lockstep Adherence, and Rules Warrantless Seizure and Search of Defendant’s Curbside Trash Unlawful, by Anthony Accurso
29. Missouri Supreme Court: Evidence Found in Cell Phone Seized at Sheriff’s Office Instead of Defendant’s Home, Identified as Location to Be Searched in Warrant, Must Be Suppressed, by Anthony Accurso
30. First Circuit: ‘Controlled Substances Offense’ Under § 2K2.1(a)(2) of USSG Refers to Time of Sentencing, Not Time of Prior Conviction, by Anthony Accurso
31. Unchecked Federal Use of Facial Recognition Tech, by Anthony Accurso
32. Is Orange County’s DNA Collection Scheme Really Voluntary?, by Jayson Hawkins
33. Study: Petty Court Fines and Fees Creates ‘Vicious Cycle’ of Debt for Years, by Dale Chappell
34. Hawai’i Supreme Court: Prosecutor’s Cumulative Misconduct Deprived Defendant of a Fair Trial, Vacates Denial of Motion for New Trial, by Douglas Ankney
35. Cop Gets Money for Nothing, Awards for Free, by Edward Lyon
36. Veterans Restorative Justice Act Offers More Than Alternatives to Jail in Minnesota, by Douglas Ankney
37. Microbiome: The Latest in Cutting Edge Forensics, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
38. Secret CBP Teams New DHS Weapon of Mass Surveillance, by Jayson Hawkins
39. Biden’s DOJ Targets Police Misconduct, by Dale Chappell
40. Fifth Circuit: Texas Police Get Qualified Immunity for Knowingly Using Taser to Ignite Gasoline-Soaked, Suicidal Man, Killing Him and Destroying Family’s House, by Matthew Clarke
41. Big Brother’s Eyes and Ears: Understanding and mitigating the impact of high-tech surveillance, by Anthony Accurso
42. Marijuana Arrests Keep Dropping
43. News in Brief

More from Douglas Ankney:

• Community Supervision: America’s Hidden Wellspring to Mass Incarceration, Feb. 15, 2025
• Rikers Island Continues Long Practice of Denying Education to Young Adults, Feb. 15, 2025
• Monterey County Pays $1 Million to Settle Suit Over Detainee Suicide by Toilet Tissue; Wellpath Pays Another Undisclosed Sum, Feb. 15, 2025
• Sixth Circuit Revives Challenge by Kentucky Prisoner Left Three Weeks in “Rancid” Paper Undershorts, Feb. 15, 2025
• California Court of Appeal: Evidence Insufficient to Show Robbery Victim Moved ‘Substantial Distance’ to Support Simple Kidnapping Conviction and Amendments to § 186.22 Require Vacatur of Gang Enhancements, Feb. 15, 2025
• Fourth Circuit Revives Claims Against Virginia Jailers by Detainee They Allegedly Manhandled While Handcuffed, Feb. 15, 2025
• Fourth Circuit Reinstates North Carolina Prisoner’s Failure-to-Protect Claim Against Guard in Stabbing, Feb. 15, 2025
• Minnesota Supreme Court Announces No Duty to Retreat When Using Reasonable Force in Defense of Another and Provides Framework for Analyzing Such Claims, Feb. 1, 2025
• NIJ Partners With Doctor to Develop Better Screening Method to Detect and Identify Drugs Postmortem, Jan. 15, 2025
• Fines and Fees Destroy the Impoverished and Perpetuate Mass Incarceration, Jan. 15, 2025

More from these topics:

• Third Circuit Grants Habeas Relief to Prisoner on Confrontation Clause and Ineffective Assistance Claims Based on Trial Court Reading Entire Criminal Information Into the Record of Co-Conspirator Who Pleaded Guilty, Feb. 15, 2025. Habeas Corpus, Ineffective Assistance of Counsel, Exculpatory No Doctrine, Confrontation Clause/Rights, Witnesses - Prior Statements/Testimony, Plea Agreements/Guilty Pleas.
• Ninth Circuit: Defense Counsel Ineffective for Failing to Move to Suppress Evidence Obtained as a Result of Police Officer Trespassing on Curtilage of Defendant’s Home, Feb. 1, 2025. Ineffective Assistance of Counsel, Motions To Suppress, Searches - Home/Curtilage, Suppression.
• 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. Habeas Corpus, Ineffective Assistance of Counsel, Constitutional Challenges/Law.
• Third Circuit Announces Claim of Innocence Does Not Resolve Whether Defendant Would Have Accepted Plea Offer Absent Counsel’s Error and Holds Counsel Ineffective for Failing to Properly Advise Defendant About Mandatory Sentences If Plea Offer Rejected, Dec. 15, 2024. Actual Innocence/Claim of Innocence, Ineffective Assistance of Counsel, Mandatory Minimum Sentence, Plea Agreements/Guilty Pleas, Rejection.
• Delaware Supreme Court: Counsel Ineffective for Failing to Challenge Search of Cellphone Where Consent Was Ambiguous and Warrant Constituted a General Warrant, Nov. 1, 2024. Ineffective Assistance of Counsel, Searches - Cellphones/Computers/Internet, Warrants - Requirements/Scope/Exceptions.
• Arizona Supreme Court Allows Third PCR Motion Based on IAC for Erroneous Advice About Parole Eligibility Due to ‘Pervasive Confusion’ Regarding Parole Within Legal Community, Nov. 1, 2024. Parole, Ineffective Assistance of Counsel, Remands/Rehearings/Resentencings.
• Georgia Supreme Court Grants Habeas Where Defense Counsel Failed to Understand State Self-Defense Statute Provides Complete Defense to Felony Murder Based on Felon-in-Possession Charge, Oct. 1, 2024. Habeas Corpus, Felon in Possession Statute, Ineffective Assistance of Counsel, Murder/Felony Murder.
• Fourth Circuit Vacates Order Denying § 2254 Motion, Remands for Evidentiary Hearing on Whether Counsel’s Failure to Object to Duplicative Drug Conspiracy Counts in Violation of Double Jeopardy Clause Was Strategic, Oct. 1, 2024. Ineffective Assistance of Counsel, Evidentiary Claims, Drug Trafficking Crimes.
• Virginia Supreme Court Announces Parties Are Free to Renegotiate Plea Agreement Not Already Accepted by Trial Court, Which May Not Enforce Original Plea Against Parties’ Wishes, Oct. 1, 2024. Awareness of Consequences, Plea Agreements/Guilty Pleas, Rejection, Validity of.
• Third Circuit Orders Evidentiary Hearing on State Prisoner’s Petition Seeking Federal Habeas Relief Because Both State and Federal Courts Denied Relief Without Holding Hearing on IAC Claim That, if Proven, Would Entitle Him to Relief, Aug. 1, 2024. Evidentiary Ruling, Habeas Corpus, Ineffective Assistance of Counsel, Counsel - Effective Assistance of.