More from this issue:

1. Study: Unionized Police? Increased Misconduct, by Derek Gilna
2. ‘Serious Bodily Harm’ Does Not Include Animals, Massachusetts Supreme Court Holds, by Dale Chappell
3. Georgia Supreme Court Vacates Convictions and Sentences Due to Merger Errors, by Matthew Clarke
4. Rhode Island High Court Abolishes Shatney in Initial Application for Postconviction Relief by Prisoners Serving Life Without Parole, by Matthew Clarke
5. North Dakota Supreme Court Announces Interpretation of Restitution Statutes, by Christopher Zoukis
6. Fifth Circuit: 96-Day Pretrial Detention Without Appearance Before Judge or Chance to Post Bail Violates Fourteenth Amendment Due Process Rights, by Matthew Clarke
7. Fifth Circuit Holds Prisoner May Sign and Deliver Habeas-Related Motion on Behalf of Fellow Prisoner Under Prison Mailbox Rule, by Dale Chappell
8. Federal Judge Excludes Evidence After FBI Lies on Search Warrant Affidavit, Geek Squad on FBI payroll, by Matthew Clarke
9. ‘Black Identity Extremists’ Added to FBI List of Domestic Terrorists, by Christopher Zoukis
10. The G-Men are Coming: Local Cops Partner with Federal Authorities to Deport Undocumented Immigrants, by Christopher Zoukis
11. U.S. Supreme Court: Death Penalty Case Involving Racist Juror Requires Further Consideration, by Christopher Zoukis
12. Ohio Supreme Court Holds State Cannot Prove ‘Bulk Amount’ of Fentanyl Under Statute, by Dale Chappell
13. Colorado Supreme Court: Conviction of Drunk Motorist for Attempted Reckless Manslaughter and Attempted Second Degree Assault Requires Risk to Discernable Person, Not Merely Public At-Large, by Christopher Zoukis
14. U.S. Supreme Court Resolves Split Among Circuit Courts of Appeals on Tax Code § 7212(a), by Richard Resch
15. Ninth Circuit Reverses Drug Smuggling Conviction for Improper Exclusion of Evidence of Third-Party Culpability, by Christopher Zoukis
16. Arizona Supreme Court: Trial Court Must Tell Jury Defendant Ineligible for Parole in Death Penalty Phase, by Dale Chappell
17. Iowa Supreme Court Rules District Courts Have Authority to Hear Postconviction Relief Actions Involving Deprivation of Liberty or Property Interest, by David Reutter
18. Innocence be Damned: Prosecutors Who Disregard Justice in Push to Win at Any Cost, by Dale Chappell
19. Cautionary Tale: Visible Fingertips in Cellphone Pictures Can Get You Arrested, by Steve Horn
20. D.C. Circuit Vacates Sentence Because Government Breached Plea Agreement by Providing Defendant’s Confidential Statements to Sentencing Court, by Dale Chappell
21. Colorado Supreme Court Limits Bottom End of Aggravated Sentencing Statute for Habitual Sex Offenders, by Christopher Zoukis
22. New Report: 60 Percent of Exonerations Stem from Official Misconduct, by Steve Horn
23. Washington High Court Issues New Rule Making Immigration Status Inadmissible, by Derek Gilna
24. ‘Shaken Baby Syndrome’ Diagnoses Discredited, Convictions Questioned, by Matthew Clarke
25. Captured: ‘Golden State Killer’ Wanted for 12 Murders and 50 Rapes Turns Out To Be Former Sacramento-Area Cop, by Derek Gilna
26. Louisiana: No Charges for Cops Who Shot Alton Sterling, Despite Body-Cam Evidence, by Monte McCoin
27. Coast to Coast, Sex Offender Residency Restrictions Waste Money, Create Havoc, by Sandy Rozek
28. ‘Broken Windows’ Policing Results in Police Lying About Unlawful Stops, by Matthew Clarke
29. Drug-Induced Homicide Laws Hurt Rather Than Help Opioid Overdose Crisis, by Dale Chappell
30. Pennsylvania Supreme Court Rules FBI Admission Microscopic Hair Analysis Wrong 90% of the Time is Newly Discovered Fact Allowing Untimely Post-Conviction Relief Petition, by Christopher Zoukis
31. Habeas Hints: Understanding and Satisfying the Strickland Test for IAC, by Kent A. Russell, Tara Hoveland
32. Book Review: California Habeas Handbook 2.0 by Kent A. Russell, by Christopher Zoukis
33. Victory: Virginia Supreme Court Delivers Blow to Police Use of License Plate Reader Technology to Track Drivers, Surveil Citizens, by The Rutherford Institute
34. U.S. Supreme Court Holds Residual Clause Definition of ‘Crime of Violence’ Unconstitutionally Vague Under Due Process Clause, by Dale Chappell
35. Vague Criminality and Mass Incarceration: Will Dimaya End the Insanity?, by Leah Litman
36. New York Times Investigation Spotlights NYPD Practice of ‘Testilying’, by Derek Gilna
37. News in Brief
38. Sex Offender Registries: Common Sense or Nonsense?, by Christopher Zoukis

More from Christopher Zoukis:

• The Contraband Wars Prison authorities target books and mail, miss the goods coming through the staff door, July 1, 2021
• Trump v. Biden on Criminal Justice, Oct. 1, 2020
• Coronavirus in Prison: The Cruel Reality, Aug. 1, 2020
• With Lives of Immigrant Detainees at Risk to COVID-19, Federal Judge Forces ICE’s Hand, July 1, 2020
• A Nation on the Brink, June 15, 2020
• Federal Court Slams Michigan Jail for Bungling COVID-19 Pandemic, Demands Names of Vulnerable Prisoners for Release, June 1, 2020
• Silence: The Bureau of Prisons’ Pathetic Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic, June 1, 2020
• New York Judge Orders Release of 18 Rikers Island Detainees Due to COVID-19 Risk, June 1, 2020
• Coronavirus: A Nationwide Survey of the Push for Early Release as Pandemic Fears Grow, May 1, 2020
• California Three-Judge Court Denies Emergency Motion to Reduce Prison Population During Pandemic, May 1, 2020

More from these topics:

• California Supreme Court Limits Money Bail for Nonviolent Charges, July 1, 2026. Conditions of Confinement, Sentencing, Due Process, Constitutional Challenges/Law, Pretrial Detention and Detainees.
• Oregon Supreme Court: Jail Credit Statute Focuses Upon Legal Custody Not Physical Custody Location, July 1, 2026. Civil Procedure, Sentencing, Appeals/Appellate Jurisdiction, Criminal Justice, Statutory Construction/Interpretation.
• Louisiana’s Atavistic Approach to Criminal Sentencing and Parole Demonstrates Politicians’ Failure to Learn from Past Mistakes, July 1, 2026. Medical, Conditions of Confinement, Sentencing, Parole, Prisoners' Rights.
• Two More Guards Face Prison Time for Messiah Nantwi Killing, June 1, 2026. Guard Misconduct, Guard Brutality/Beatings, Sentencing, Excessive Force (Wrongful Death), Plea Agreements/Guilty Pleas.
• SCOTUS Announces Sentencing Reform Act Does Not Authorize Automatic Extension of Supervised Release When Defendant Absconds, Resolving Circuit Split, April 1, 2026. Sentencing, Revocation/Modification of Probation, etc., Statutory Construction/Interpretation, Sentences - Corrections or Modifications of, Probation, Parole & Supervised Release.
• Fifth Circuit Upholds Dismissal of Suit by Civilly Committed Texan, Dec. 1, 2025. Sex Offenders (Discrimination), Conditions of Confinement, Complaints, Grievances, Civil Commitment.
• Ex-Wife of Minnesota DOC Commissioner Sentenced for Poisoning Attempt on Son, Dec. 1, 2025. Out of State Transfers, Sentencing, Conspiracies, Attempts, Solicitations, Confessions and Statements of Defendant, Plea Agreements/Guilty Pleas.
• DOJ Finds Unconstitutional Conditions in Texas Juvenile Detention, Aug. 1, 2025. Staff-Prisoner Assault, Retaliation for Filing Grievances, Pepper Spray/Tear Gas, Sentencing, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Failure to Protect (Juveniles), Juvenile Prisons.
• Georgia Moves to Shield Intellectually Disabled Prisoners 
from Execution, June 1, 2025. Sentencing, Death Penalty.
• Fourth Circuit: District Court Failed to Provide Sufficient Explanation for Sentence Imposed and Did Not Address Defendant’s Arguments for Downward Variant Sentence, May 15, 2025. Sentencing, Drug Laws/Offenses.