More from this issue:

1. Your Car Is Spying on You, by Michael Thompson
2. People of Maine at Forefront of Battle to Keep Government Security Apparatus in Check, by Douglas Ankney
3. A Nation of Snitches: DHS Is Grooming Americans to Report on Each Other, by Nisha Whitehead, John W. Whitehead
4. Montana Supreme Court: Retroactive Application of Montana’s Sex Offender Registration Law, as Amended Since 2007, Violates Ex Post Facto Clause of State Constitution, by Douglas Ankney
5. Checking In With Community Supervision, by Anthony Accurso
6. New Jersey Takes First Steps in Eliminating Public Defender Fees, by Jordan Arizmendi
7. Ninth Circuit: Younger Abstention Doctrine Inapplicable Where Habeas Petitioner Seeks Stay While § 1172.6 Petition in State Court Being Litigated and Petitioner Entitled to Stay of Habeas Proceedings While State Petition Pending, by Douglas Ankney
8. Advent of ‘Green’ Ammunition Prompts Forensic Science to Analyze Organic and Inorganic Gunshot Residue and Establish Benchmarks for CSI, by Jo Ellen Nott
9. Colorado Supreme Court Announces ‘Self-Serving Hearsay’ Statements Introduced Under Rule of Completeness Not Hearsay and Do Not Render Defendant Impeachable, by Richard Resch
10. Michigan Supreme Court Holds Guilty Plea Cannot Be ‘Voluntary and Knowing’ When Induced by Inaccurate Understanding of Minimum and Maximum Prison Sentence, by David Reutter
11. Study Reveals Important Details About iPhone’s Building Level Registration Reliability, by Jo Ellen Nott
12. California Supreme Court Clarifies Harmless-Error Analysis of Alternative-Theory Error, Reverses and Remands Where Court of Appeal Applied Incorrect Standard, by Douglas Ankney
13. Ninth Circuit Explains Martinez ‘Cause’ and ‘Prejudice’ to Excuse Procedural Default in Federal Habeas Proceeding Where Claim of IAC in State Proceedings Was Procedurally Defaulted Due to Postconviction Counsel’s Failure to Timely Raise Claim, by Douglas Ankney
14. 10th Circuit Reverses Guidelines Enhancement Because Possession of Ammo Does Not Facilitate Possession of a Firearm, by Anthony Accurso
15. Study: ‘Inconclusive Finding’ by Examiner of Cartridge Casing Should Be Finding of ‘Excluded’ 85% of the Time, by Douglas Ankney
16. Facial Recognition Software Gives Unreliable Results with Black Individuals and Leads to Unlawful Arrests, by Jo Ellen Nott
17. ICE Employees Caught (Again) Misusing Access to Databases, by Jordan Arizmendi
18. Fourth Circuit: Evidence Suppressed Where Officers Seized Defendant Without Reasonable Suspicion and Forced Him to Prove He Was Not Armed, by Anthony Accurso
19. Electrocution by Taser Is Not Death From Excited Delirium, by Douglas Ankney
20. New Jersey Supreme Court Announces Presumption in Favor of In-Person Interpreter for Criminal Trials and Issues Guidelines for Use of Video Remote Interpreting, by Matthew Clarke
21. Sheep and Sheepdogs: Use and Abuse of Non-Lethal Crowd Control Weapons, by Benjamin Tschirhart
22. Arizona Attorney General Settles Lawsuit, Agrees to Toss Unconstitutional Law Banning the Recording of Cops, by Jo Ellen Nott
23. Fourth Circuit Vacates Denial of First Step Act Relief Where Record Unclear Whether District Court Considered All Nonfrivolous Arguments Raised by Defendant, by Douglas Ankney
24. Sixth Circuit: Plain Error Where District Court Required Defendant at Resentencing to Admit Guilt in Order to Fully Consider Defendant’s Evidence of Rehabilitation, by Douglas Ankney
25. Colorado’s Amendments to Post-Conviction DNA Testing Statute Allows Greater Number of Affected Persons to Seek Testing, by Douglas Ankney
26. Gunshot Detection Technology Continues to Acquire New Business Despite Major Clients Dropping Contracts and Researchers Questioning Its Effectiveness, by Jo Ellen Nott
27. Tenth Circuit Announces District Court Erred in Applying Attempted Murder Cross-Reference Under U.S.S.G. § 2A2.1 Based on Malice Aforethought, Without Finding Intent to Kill, by Douglas Ankney
28. Computing Fear in Black and Brown Communities, by Michael Thompson
29. DOJ Concludes Louisville Police Engaging in Patterns of Unconstitutional Conduct, by Douglas Ankney
30. ICE Tramples Over the Judicial System, by Jordan Arizmendi
31. U.K. Study of Consistency Among Pairs of Child Witnesses Shows Surprising Results, by Matthew Clarke
32. Third Circuit Announces COA Required for Federal Prisoner Appealing District Court’s Choice of Remedy in § 2255 Proceeding, by Douglas Ankney
33. West Virginia Supreme Court Announces in the Absence of a Deadline, Trial Court Must Permit Defendant to Stipule to Prior Conviction During Trial, by Douglas Ankney
34. Geofencing January 6th, by Michael Thompson
35. Three’s a Crowd: Issues of DNA Mixture Analysis and Interpretation, by Eike Blohm, MD
36. New Mexico Supreme Court Announces Trial Courts Retain Common Law Jurisdictional Authority to Correct Illegal Sentences, Allows Defendant to Withdraw Plea After Sentence Correction Involving Additional Parole Time, by Anthony Accurso
37. 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:

• Texas Court of Criminal Appeals: Presumption of Innocence Not Violated by Jail Courtroom, Feb. 15, 2025. Publicity - Prejudicial, Prejudice - Potential for Undue.
• 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.
• Illinois Supreme Court Announces Odor of Burnt Cannabis Alone Is Insufficient to Establish Probable Cause for a Warrantless Vehicle Search, Feb. 1, 2025. Vehicle Searches, Probable/Proximate Cause, Warrantless Searches, Marijuana Laws/Issues.
• 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.
• 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. Probable/Proximate Cause, Warrants - Requirements/Scope/Exceptions.
• 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.