More from this issue:

1. A Nation on the Brink, by Christopher Zoukis
2. Office of Homeland Security Circumventing Warrant Requirement by Buying Cellphone Location Data from Marketing Firm, by Anthony Accurso
3. From the Editor, by Richard Resch
4. Using Location Surveillance to Fight COVID-19 May Chill Free Speech and Association, by David Reutter
5. This Is Not a Revolution. It’s a Blueprint for Locking Down the Nation, by John W. Whitehead
6. Fourth Circuit Expands Savings Clause of § 2255(e) to Include Later Retroactivity of New Rule, by Dale Chappell
7. Seventh Circuit: Defendant’s Statement Given to Pretrial Services Can’t Be Admitted to Impeach Witness at Trial, by Douglas Ankney
8. California Court of Appeal Explains Procedural Requirements for Vacating Felony-Murder Conviction Via Section 1170.95 Petition, by Douglas Ankney
9. Police Violence Detrimental to Public Health, by Douglas Ankney
10. Congressmen File Amicus Brief Stressing Congressional Intent That First Step Act’s New Drug Laws Apply at Resentencing, by Dale Chappell
11. Indiana Supreme Court: Removal of Police’s GPS Tracker on Suspect’s Vehicle Not Probable Cause of Theft, Suppression of Evidence, by Anthony Accurso
12. New Hampshire Supreme Court: Police Violated Miranda in Obtaining First Statement, and State Failed to Prove Second Statement Was Voluntary, by Douglas Ankney
13. 5-Year Study Shows Police Stop Black Drivers Less Often at Night When ‘Veil of Darkness’ Obscures Race, by Douglas Ankney
14. Declassified Court Ruling Details FBI Abuses of Mass Surveillance Data, by Anthony Accurso
15. Second Circuit: Three Important Rulings Under First Step Act, by Dale Chappell
16. Marijuana Possession in Virginia Remains Illegal But Is Decriminalized, by Douglas Ankney
17. Eleventh Circuit Holds Hobbs Act Robbery Doesn’t Trigger Career Offender Enhancement, by Dale Chappell
18. Biden Accuser Accused of Inflating Credentials to Qualify as Expert Witness, Calling Convictions into Question, by Derek Gilna
19. COVID-19 Creates Opportunity for Big Brother in the Sky, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
20. Perjurous New York City Cop Sentenced to a Single Day in Jail, by Edward Lyon
21. Fourth Circuit: Standalone Rehaif Error Requires Automatic Vacatur of Guilty Plea, by David Reutter
22. Nebraska Supreme Court: Multiple Theft Charges for Stealing Items Belonging to Several People at Same Time and Place Violates Double Jeopardy, by Dale Chappell
23. Is the Death Penalty Slowly Dying Across the Nation?, by Chad Marks
24. Joint State-Federal Task Forces Practice Rogue Justice Under Protection of Qualified Immunity, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
25. Colorado Supreme Court: Requiring Defense to Disclose Exhibits to Prosecution Before Trial Violates Due Process Rights, by Dale Chappell
26. Iowa Supreme Court Orders Dismissal of Charges that State Brought in Breach of Plea Agreement, by Douglas Ankney
27. Carpenter Slowly Remaking Fourth Amendment Case Law, by Anthony Accurso
28. Justice Office Awards $145 Million in Forensic Science Grants, by Anthony Accurso
29. Aggressive NYPD Police Tactics Spreading COVID-19, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
30. California Federal Court Rejects Plea Agreement’s Waiver of Compassionate Release Provision, by David Reutter
31. COVID-19 Causing Some Pretrial Detainees to Spend More Time in Jail, by Douglas Ankney
32. California Supreme Court Announces Sentencing Law Changes Apply Until Revocation Sentence Becomes Final, by Anthony Accurso
33. NY Court of Appeals: Right to Review Suppression Decision When Decision Relates Solely to a Count Satisfied by Plea but Isn’t Count to Which Defendant Pled, by Douglas Ankney
34. Report: Cops Ill-Equipped to Handle Mental Illness Crisis in Hospitals, by Edward Lyon
35. Plenty of Practice Prevents Poor Police Performance, by Edward Lyon
36. Fifth Circuit Clarifies How ‘Pronouncement Requirement’ Applies to Supervision Conditions, by Douglas Ankney
37. First Circuit: Sentence Imposed Under 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(c) Is ‘Covered Offense’ Under § 404 of First Step Act, by Douglas Ankney
38. Sixth Circuit: Courts May Consider Good Prison Conduct in Sentence Reduction Under First Step Act, by Dale Chappell
39. Minnesota Supreme Court: Hotel Guests Have Reasonable Expectation of Privacy in Registry Information, by Douglas Ankney
40. DNA Database of NYC’s Chief Medical Examiner Plagued with Errors, by Douglas Ankney
41. Pennsylvania Supreme Court: Expired Vehicle Registration Isn’t ‘Breach of the Peace’ Justifying Traffic Stop, by Douglas Ankney
42. South Carolina Supreme Court Rejects U.S. Supreme Court’s Shifting of Burden to Defendant to Prove Absence of Exigent Circumstances in DUI Cases, by Douglas Ankney
43. Report: Risk Assessment Tools not Effective, Especially When not Used, by Kevin Bliss
44. Sixth Circuit: District Court’s Refusal to Reduce Crack Sentence Under First Step Act Requires Justification, by Dale Chappell
45. Florida Supreme Court Abandons Circumstantial Evidence Review Standard, by David Reutter
46. Courts Oppose Prosecutors’ Attempts to Right Past Wrongs, by Douglas Ankney
47. No Trust Between Police and Communities They Patrol, by Kevin Bliss
48. North Carolina Supreme Court: Giving Finger to Police Not Disorderly Conduct Justifying Traffic Stop, by Dale Chappell
49. COVID-19 May Ring in a New Era of High-Tech Private Policing, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
50. New Technique Separates Mixed DNA Evidence to Tell Suspects from Victims, by Dale Chappell
51. Feds Ramp up Purchase of Riot Gear in Wake of COVID-19 Pandemic, by Douglas Ankney
52. Sixth Circuit Vacates Firearms Possession Conviction; Government Showed Jury Unauthenticated Prejudicial Facebook Video Not Admitted as Evidence, by Matthew Clarke
53. Army Veteran Serving Life Without Parole for Taking $9, by Douglas Ankney
54. News in Brief

More from Michael Fortino, Ph.D:

• Microbiome: The Latest in Cutting Edge Forensics, Dec. 15, 2021
• Excited Delirium Syndrome: Pseudo-Scientific Shield for Law Enforcement’s Violent Behavior, Nov. 15, 2021
• New Mexico Abolishes Qualified Immunity, Nov. 15, 2021
• Study: Bloodstain Pattern Analyses Display Alarming Lack of Accuracy, Oct. 15, 2021
• Ohio, Now 24th State to End LWOP for Juveniles, Oct. 15, 2021
• DNA Standards Often Make the Difference Between Life and Death, Oct. 15, 2021
• Study Shows Public Defenders Outperform Court Appointed Private Attorneys, Oct. 15, 2021
• Investigative Report Highlights Difficulties in Disciplining Cops, Oct. 15, 2021
• Digital Dogs, New Technology Designed to Sniff-Out Crime, Aug. 15, 2021
• The People Have Spoken: Clemency Appointments Should Follow the Will of the People, Aug. 15, 2021

More from these topics:

• Fourth Circuit Upholds Denial of Qualified Immunity to Jail Supervisors Who Ignored Detainee’s Cranial Abscesses, Oct. 1, 2026. Failure to Treat, Infections, Qualified Immunity, Fourteenth Amendment, rights, Deliberate Indifference.
• Sixth Circuit: Qualified Immunity Granted to Guard in Delayed Treatment for Prisoner who Suffered Heart Attack, Oct. 1, 2026. Pain, Cardiovascular, Failure to Treat, Qualified Immunity, Deliberate Indifference.
• Ninth Circuit Rules Favorably for Washington Prisoner Whose Writing Submission Was Censored, Oct. 1, 2026. Retaliation, Qualified Immunity, Mail Regulations, Censorship, First Amendment, rights.
• Eighth Circuit Reverses District Court’s Denial of Motion to Dismiss Some Defendants from Lawsuit Over Missouri Prisoner’s Suicide, Oct. 1, 2026. Qualified Immunity, Sovereign Immunity, Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death), Suicides, Deliberate Indifference.
• Second Circuit Affirms Denial of Qualified Immunity but Clarifies that 14th Amendment ‘Objective Reasonableness’ Is Standard of Review for Pretrial Detainee’s Claim of Sexual Abuse, Oct. 1, 2026. Staff-Prisoner Assault, Qualified Immunity, Fourteenth Amendment, rights, Pretrial Detention and Detainees, Wrongful Use of Force.
• Eighth Circuit Grants Summary Judgment to Sheriff and County of Nebraska Jail Where Guard Sexually Assaulted Female Prisoner, Oct. 1, 2026. Staff-Prisoner Assault, Failure to Protect (General), Qualified Immunity, Failure to Train/Supervise, Monell Liability.
• Second Circuit Rules Eighth Amendment Governs Claims of Excessive Force Brought by Parole Violator, Oct. 1, 2026. Eighth Amendment, Excessive Force, Qualified Immunity, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Probation, Parole & Supervised Release.
• Eight Circuit Reverses Denial of Partial Qualified Immunity in Detainee’s Pepper Ball Claim, Remands Excessive Force Claims, Sept. 1, 2026. Guard Brutality/Beatings, Stun Guns/Tasers, Pepper Spray/Tear Gas, Qualified Immunity, Wrongful Use of Force.
• Fourth Circuit Affirms Qualified Immunity in Strip Searches Resulting from Anonymous Tips, Sept. 1, 2026. Strip Searches, Qualified Immunity, Fourth Amendment, rights, Suspicionless Searches.
• Ninth Circuit Revives HRDC Challenge to Washington DOC Mail Restrictions, Aug. 1, 2026. Qualified Immunity, Publications/Books, Due Process, Censorship, First Amendment, rights.