by Anthony W. Accurso
The Supreme Court of North Carolina held that defendants filing a pretrial notice of intent to rely upon the affirmative defense of duress do not waive their Fifth Amendment right to silence.
On March 2, 2017, police approached a Ford Fusion in the …
by Anthony W. Accurso
In a case of first impression, the Supreme Court of California held that conditions of mandatory supervision under the 2011 Realignment Act, Stats. 2011, ch. 15, § 1, are to be assessed on a case-by-case basis using the same standard previously articulated for probation …
by Anthony W. Accurso
The Supreme Court of Iowa ordered the suppression of evidence in a criminal case while announcing that the Iowa Constitution prohibits law enforcement from taking a homeowner’s opaque garbage bags left curbside for collection and searching through the trash contained within without a warrant.
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by Anthony W. Accurso
The Supreme Court of Missouri held that evidence obtained from a cell phone seized from defendant while he was visiting the sheriff’s office was properly suppressed where the search warrant allowing for seizure of the phone identified only the defendant’s home as the location …
by Anthony W. Accurso
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit held that the term “controlled substance offense” in § 2K2.1(a)(2) of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines (“USSG”) refers to substances that are controlled at the time of the defendant’s sentencing, not at the time of their …
by Anthony W. Accurso
A June 29, 2021, report from the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) details the use of facial recognition technology (“FRT”) among federal agencies and documents alarming lack of accountability, transparency, or any meaningful policies governing its use.
The GAO report reviewed 42 …
by Anthony W. Accurso
Americans are being subjected to a rapid proliferation of surveillance in every area of their lives, jeopardizing their privacy interests and rights under the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Law enforcement agencies at all levels are increasing the amount and types of spying …
by Anthony W. Accurso
Reporting from Wired shows how researchers at Johns Hopkins University looked into vulnerabilities in Apple and Android phones and how they can be exploited by groups like law enforcement and other government actors.
Cryptographers at Johns Hopkins analyzed the current state of encryption, …
by Anthony W. Accurso
A bill introduced in mid-April by Ron Wyden (D-OR), Rand Paul (R-KY) and 18 other U.S. Senators would make it illegal for law enforcement and intelligence agencies to purchase Americans’ sensitive information—including geolocation data or the content of communications—from any company that collects such …
by Anthony W. Accurso
The United States Postal Service (“USPS”) has been running a semi-secret program monitoring social media site traffic, raising concerns about the purpose or authority for such a program surveilling American citizens.
First reported in April 2021 by Jenna Winter on Yahoo! News, the …
