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 Dale Chappell:

• Federal Habeas Corpus for State Prisoners: Proving Unreasonableness Under AEDPA, Feb. 1, 2025
• Federal Court Rules Michigan’s Sex Offender Registration Laws Violate Constitution, Dec. 1, 2024
• Refuting the Government’s Argument Against Nonretroactive Changes in Law as Grounds for Compassionate Release, Oct. 1, 2024
• Federal Habeas Corpus: Getting Around Procedural Default, July 15, 2024
• The Death of the Savings Clause, May 15, 2024
• Federal Habeas Corpus: Understanding Second or Successive Petitions for State Prisoners, April 15, 2024
• Fourth Circuit Reinstates Relief From Death Penalty, Citing State’s Forfeiture of Argument Against Relief, May 15, 2023
• Federal Habeas Corpus: The Evidentiary Hearing for Federal Prisoners, April 15, 2023
• Federal Habeas Corpus: How to Raise a Fourth Amendment Claim, Feb. 15, 2023
• Will Overturning Roe v. Wade Kill the Right to Abortion Under BOP Policy?, Jan. 1, 2023

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.