by Douglas Ankney
The Supreme Court of Kansas held that Brooke Dinkel’s trial counsel, Roger Strubel, was ineffective because he failed to request a jury instruction on the voluntary act requirement in a prosecution for rape of a child under 14 years of age where the defense argued that the ...
by Douglas Ankney
The Supreme Court of Idaho vacated Patricia Ann Amstutz’s conviction for misdemeanor driving under the influence of alcohol (“DUI”) because her alleged offense was completed outside the arresting officer’s presence.
Officer Kale White was dispatched to the address of Amstutz after someone reported Amstutz for drunk driving. ...
by Douglas Ankney
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit announced that for purposes of the defense of entrapment, the defendant has the burden to produce some “credible evidence” that the government induced him to commit the crime.
John E. Cabrera was charged with two counts each of ...
by Douglas Ankney
The Court of Appeal, Sixth Appellate District, held that a trial court has authority to deny a request for a continuance of a motion to suppress under California Penal Code § 1050(e) even if the decision may foreseeably result in dismissal of the prosecution. (All statutory references ...
by Douglas Ankney
Thermo Fisher Scientific’s Applied Biosystems Rapid HIT ID DNA Booking System was approved by the FBI for use by law enforcement booking stations to automatically process, upload, and search DNA reference samples from qualifying arrestees against the U.S. National DNA Index System (“NDIS”) database.
Joanie Brocato, former ...
by Douglas Ankney
In a case of first impression, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania held that a driver who leaves the scene of an accident involving death or personal injury before being statutorily excused may be punished for only one violation of 75 Pa.C.S. § 3742 (requiring driver of any ...
by Douglas Ankney
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit held that only one conviction may result under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g) for a single incident of firearm possession, even though the defendant may belong to more than one disqualified class.
Joshua Grant shot his ex-girlfriend after a ...
by Douglas Ankney
The Supreme Court of Montana held that Kasey Lee Secrease’s trial attorneys were ineffective under both the U.S. and Montana Constitutions for failing to object to an incorrect jury instruction that lowered the State’s burden of proof.
Trooper Charles Burton arrested Secrease for DUI. Because Secrease refused ...
by Douglas Ankney
The Supreme Court of New Jersey held that the right of privacy under Article 1,Paragraph 7, of the New Jersey Constitution protects recorded calls made on a police stationhouse telephone from warrantless seizure in the absence of fair notice that the conversation is being monitored or recorded, ...
by Douglas Ankney
On rehearing en banc, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit concluded that the Aerial Investigation Research (“AIR”) program—a first of its kind aerial surveillance initiative—enabled police to deduce the whole of individuals’ movements. Therefore, accessing its data is a search, and its warrantless ...
