More from this issue:

1. Washington Supreme Court Strikes Down Pornography Prohibition as Unconstitutionally Vague, by Christopher Zoukis
2. Sixth Circuit Rules Relying on Search Warrant Based on ‘Bare Bones’ Affidavit Objectively Unreasonable, Grants Motion to Suppress, by David Reutter
3. Victims’ Rights Laws a Threat to Due Process
4. Federal Court Suppresses Evidence Where Consent to Search Vehicle Obtained Via Google Translate, by Christopher Zoukis
5. Private DNA Lab Under Fire for Faulty Analysis, by Christopher Zoukis
6. ICE Utilizes Military-Style Shock Tactics to Round up Immigrants
7. Louisiana Supreme Court Holds Counsel’s Failure to Challenge ‘Stark Contrasts’ in Witness ID and Defendant’s Appearance Constituted IAC, by Dale Chappell
8. Sixth Circuit: Procedural Error and Plain Error for Judge to ‘Surprise’ Defendant and Impose an Upward Variance
9. Hawaii Supreme Court Vacates Conviction Because Defendant’s Waiver of Right to Testify Deficient Under State’s Tachibana Colloquy Requirement, by David Reutter
10. New Jersey Supreme Court Holds Inventory Search May Not Serve as Ruse for Investigatory Search, by Dale Chappell
11. Federal Judge Effectively Ends Albuquerque’s Civil Asset Forfeiture Program as Too Focused on Revenue and Not on Due Process, by Derek Gilna
12. Your Papers, May I See Your Papers?, by Christopher Zoukis
13. Hair Analysis a Useful but Not Foolproof Forensic Tool, by Derek Gilna
14. 1st Circuit: No Protective Sweep Where Identified Suspects Already in Custody at Time of Warrantless Search, by David Reutter
15. $9 Million Settlement in Baltimore Wrongful Conviction Case, by Christopher Zoukis
16. Civil Forfeiture Often Focuses on Profit Instead of Public Safety
17. Louisiana Sheriffs’ Association Backpedals on Its Pre-Trial Detainee Figures, by Derek Gilna
18. Idaho Supreme Court Rules Dead-Body Reporting Statute Unconstitutional As Applied to Defendant, by Richard Resch
19. Federal Judge Extends Stay of Executions in Louisiana, by Betty Nelander
20. Houston Forces Parolees out of City Under New Rule
21. From the Big Box to the Big House: Walmart Helps Tennessee Prosecutors Felonize Shoplifting, by Matthew Clarke
22. Iowa Supreme Court Announces Greater Privacy Protections Under State Constitution for Impounded Vehicles Than Provided by Fourth Amendment, by Richard Resch
23. New York, Faced With Millions in Payouts for Prosecutorial Misconduct, Becomes First State to Create Oversight Commission, by Derek Gilna
24. Fired Director of New York’s Criminal Forensic Science Division Alleges ‘Catastrophic’ DNA Errors, by Christopher Zoukis
25. Many Sheriffs Tempted by Lack of Oversight or Fiscal Accountability, by Matthew Clarke
26. 11th Circuit Rules Immigration Judges are United States Judges for Purposes of 18 U.S.C. § 115(a)(1)(B), by David Reutter
27. Study Indicates Link Between Officer Fatigue and Public Complaints, by Betty Nelander
28. ACLU Questions Trade Secrets Protecting DNA Testing Algorithms, by Dale Chappell
29. $28.1 Million Jury Verdict for Wrongful Convictions Upheld by 8th Circuit, by Kevin Bliss
30. Eric Schneiderman Pushed Laws Opposing Abuse of Women as He Stands Accused of Abusing Them Himself, by Steve Horn
31. Archaic Disciplinary System Allows Chicago Police to Delay Punishment, by David Reutter
32. Kentucky Supreme Court Tosses Evidence Holding Dog Sniff of Nervous Driver with Prior Drug Charges was Unreasonable, by Dale Chappell
33. New Jersey AG Intervenes in Possible Wrongful Conviction Case, Considers Reforms, by Christopher Zoukis
34. Seventh Circuit Affirms Order Granting New Trial Due to Newly Discovered Evidence, by Christopher Zoukis
35. Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Holds Sua Sponte Jury Instruction on Self-Defense Also Applies to Lesser-Included Charges, by Dale Chappell
36. NY Court of Appeals Affirms Dismissal of DWI for Improper Breathalyzer Refusal Warning, by Dale Chappell
37. 10th Circuit: Oklahoma’s Second-Degree Burglary Not an ACCA Qualifying Offense, by David Reutter
38. New Jersey Supreme Court Holds 2014 Amendment to Megan’s Law Violates Ex Post Facto Clause, by Dale Chappell
39. California Court of Appeal Holds Box Cutter Not ‘Inherently’ Deadly Weapon, by Dale Chappell
40. Kentucky Supreme Court Overrules Flawed Brindley Opinion and Announces Commonwealth Cannot Appeal Judgment of Acquittal, by Dale Chappell
41. Eight Death Row Prisoners Opt for Untested Nitrogen Gas Over Inhumane Lethal Injection, by Betty Nelander
42. Prosecutors Use Their Power to Help Reform Criminal Justice
43. Iowa Supreme Court Announces Actual Innocence Claim Is Freestanding Claim That Can Be Made Even After Guilty Plea, by Dale Chappell
44. NY Court of Appeals Holds Trial Court’s Failure to Advise Defense of Jury Note Contents Constitutes Reversible Error, by Dale Chappell
45. Insurance, Courts Protect Cops from Liability, by Dale Chappell
46. The Broad Reach of Carpenter v. United States, by Paul Ohm
47. Plainclothes Officers, 6 percent of NYC Police Force, Involved in 31 percent of Fatal Police Shootings, by Matthew Clarke
48. News in Brief
49. From Abuse of the Body to Abuse of the Mind: Police Use Psychologically Coercive Interrogation Techniques to Produce False Confessions, by Christopher Zoukis

More from David Reutter:

• Illinois Pretrial Incarceration Becomes Less Random A Year After Elimination of Cash Bail, April 1, 2025
• Philadelphia Agrees to $9.1 Million Settlement for Wrongful Murder Conviction, Feb. 15, 2025
• ‘Fictional Pleas’ and ‘Hidden Departures’: Failure to Collect Data on Binding Federal Plea Bargains Hinders Researchers, Feb. 15, 2025
• First Circuit: Two-Level Enhancement Under § 3B1.1(c) for Leadership or Managerial Role Vacated Because Government Failed to Prove Defendant’s Order Was Actually ‘Obeyed’ by Fellow Criminal Participant, Feb. 15, 2025
• Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Holds Witness Wearing Surgical Mask During Pandemic Is Denial of Sixth Amendment Right to Face-to-Face Confrontation and No General Exception to This Right for Pandemic or ‘Other Global Events’ Such as Wars and Natural, Feb. 15, 2025
• The Murky Waters of Parole, Feb. 1, 2025
• California Prisoner Awarded Over $1.26 Million in Suit Challenging Withheld Legal Mail Which Resulted in Habeas Loss, Jan. 15, 2025
• Muslim New York Prisoner’s Free Exercise of Religion Claim Reinstated, Jan. 15, 2025
• Fourth Circuit: Baltimore County Prisoners May Qualify as Employees under FLSA, Jan. 15, 2025
• In Failure-to-Treat Claims, Wellpath Denied Dismissal in Virginia, Settles in Pennsylvania, Dec. 15, 2024

More from these topics:

• California Supreme Court: Presence in High Crime Area and Desire to Avoid Contact With Police Does Not Amount to Reasonable Suspicion Justifying Detention for Suspected Criminal Activity, Aug. 1, 2024. Fourth Amendment, rights, Suspicionless Searches.
• Delaware Supreme Court: Warrant That Authorized Search of ‘Any and All’ Data of Named Files on Cellphone Is Invalid General Warrant That Also Failed to Include Temporal Limitation, June 15, 2024. Search warrants, Warrants, Particularity Requirement, Overbreadth, Warrants - General Search, Digital Devices.
• Harris County, Texas, Settles Civil Rights Case for $1.5 Million Brought by Innocent Man Shot in His Home Five Times by Trigger-Happy Deputy, Feb. 15, 2024. Police Misconduct, Excessive Force (Police), Fourth Amendment, rights, Police/Govt Misconduct, Monell Liability, Fourth Amendment.
• Seventh Circuit Announces Procedures for Addressing ‘Facially Questionable Warrant’ Due to ‘Material Handwritten Alterations’ Unsigned or Initialed by Issuing Judge, Dec. 15, 2023. Search warrants, Warrants, Probable Cause, Material Falsehoods, Authorized Persons.
• Fifth Circuit: Placing Jacket Within Fenced-In Area of Home in Presence of Police Evidences Clear Intent Not to Abandon It, Warrantless Search Violates Fourth Amendment Rights, June 15, 2023. Fourth Amendment, rights, Warrantless Searches, Searches - Home/Curtilage, Specific Intent.
• Fourth Amendment Loopholes and the PATRIOT Act’s Legacy, Sept. 15, 2022. Fourth Amendment, rights, Patriot Act, USA Patriot Act.
• Prison Visitors Have Fourth Amendment Right to Refuse Strip Search and Option to Leave Prison, Dec. 1, 2021. Strip Searches, Visitor Searches, Fourth Amendment, rights.
• Revocation Nation: Reincarceration for Technical Parole Violations in the Age of COVID-19, Nov. 15, 2020. Fourth Amendment, rights, Probation, Parole & Supervised Release, Revocation Proceedings.
• Federal Judges Beginning to Reject Geofence Warrants, Nov. 15, 2020. Search warrants, Police State-Surveillance, Electronic Surveillance.
• Fourth Circuit: Opening of Detainee’s Legal Mail Outside His Presence Violates Right to Free Speech, Nov. 1, 2020. Legal Mail, Fourth Amendment, rights, Sixth Amendment.