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. COVID-19 Creates Opportunity for Big Brother in the Sky, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
19. Biden Accuser Accused of Inflating Credentials to Qualify as Expert Witness, Calling Convictions into Question, by Derek Gilna
20. Perjurous New York City Cop Sentenced to a Single Day in Jail, by Edward Lyon
21. Nebraska Supreme Court: Multiple Theft Charges for Stealing Items Belonging to Several People at Same Time and Place Violates Double Jeopardy, by Dale Chappell
22. Fourth Circuit: Standalone Rehaif Error Requires Automatic Vacatur of Guilty Plea, by David Reutter
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. Justice Office Awards $145 Million in Forensic Science Grants, by Anthony Accurso
28. Carpenter Slowly Remaking Fourth Amendment Case Law, by Anthony Accurso
29. California Federal Court Rejects Plea Agreement’s Waiver of Compassionate Release Provision, by David Reutter
30. Aggressive NYPD Police Tactics Spreading COVID-19, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
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. Minnesota Supreme Court: Hotel Guests Have Reasonable Expectation of Privacy in Registry Information, by Douglas Ankney
39. Sixth Circuit: Courts May Consider Good Prison Conduct in Sentence Reduction Under First Step Act, by Dale Chappell
40. DNA Database of NYC’s Chief Medical Examiner Plagued with Errors, by Douglas Ankney
41. 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
42. Pennsylvania Supreme Court: Expired Vehicle Registration Isn’t ‘Breach of the Peace’ Justifying Traffic Stop, 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. COVID-19 May Ring in a New Era of High-Tech Private Policing, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
49. North Carolina Supreme Court: Giving Finger to Police Not Disorderly Conduct Justifying Traffic Stop, by Dale Chappell
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. Army Veteran Serving Life Without Parole for Taking $9, by Douglas Ankney
53. Sixth Circuit Vacates Firearms Possession Conviction; Government Showed Jury Unauthenticated Prejudicial Facebook Video Not Admitted as Evidence, by Matthew Clarke
54. News in Brief

More from Anthony Accurso:

• D.C. Circuit Holds Compelling Suspect to Unlock Cellphone With Thumbprint Is ‘Testimonial’ Act and Violates Fifth Amendment Privilege Against Self-Incrimination, Feb. 15, 2025
• $220,000 Settlement After Woman Dies in Ohio Jail From Drug Withdrawal, Feb. 15, 2025
• Colorado Supreme Court Holds Defendant Was in ‘Custody’ for Miranda Purposes Because She Had Hands Bagged and Zip Tied, Commanded Not to Remove Them, and Questioned Alone in Interrogation Room With Door Closed, Feb. 15, 2025
• First Circuit Holds No Emergency-Aid Exception to Warrant Requirement Where Police Have Information That Subject Is Already Deceased, Feb. 15, 2025
• Police Departments Are Now Using AI to Write Reports, Feb. 15, 2025
• Illinois Supreme Court Announces Odor of Burnt Cannabis Alone Is Insufficient to Establish Probable Cause for a Warrantless Vehicle Search, Feb. 1, 2025
• Mass Spectrometry Being Studied as Way to Analyze Overlapping or Weak Fingerprints, Feb. 1, 2025
• Georgia Supreme Court Grants Habeas Relief Where Both Trial and Appellate Counsel Provided Ineffective Assistance by Failing to Challenge Indictment for Residential Burglary That Failed to Allege Defendant Illegally Entered a ‘Dwelling’, Jan. 15, 2025
• Childhood Trauma Incidence Higher Among Those Incarcerated, Jan. 15, 2025
• Nevada Supreme Court Announces Incorporated Probable Cause Affidavit Cannot Broaden Scope of Warrant’s Description of Places and Persons to be Searched or Items to Be Seized, Dec. 1, 2024

More from these topics:

• Study: DNA Transfer in Social Settings, Feb. 15, 2025. DNA Testing/Samples, Forensic Sciences, DNA Evidence, DNA Evidence/Testing.
• Study Reveals Best DNA Recovery Spots on Drug Baggies, Feb. 15, 2025. DNA Testing/Samples, War on Drugs, DNA Evidence/Testing.
• Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Grants Habeas Relief in ‘Shaken Baby Syndrome’ Case, Feb. 1, 2025. junk science, Habeas Corpus, Forensic Sciences, Child Abuse/Abusers, Evidence - Admissibility.
• Colorado Bureau of Investigation Admits Over 1,000 Cases Affected by DNA Test Misconduct, Feb. 1, 2025. Judicial Misconduct, DNA Testing/Samples, junk science, Forensic Sciences.
• Seeking Justice for Two: The DNA Scandal That Shook a Community, Jan. 15, 2025. DNA Testing/Samples, junk science, Wrongful Conviction, DNA Evidence/Testing.
• Touch-Transfer DNA Remains Misunderstood and Still Poses High Risk of Wrongful Conviction, Dec. 15, 2024. DNA Testing/Samples, junk science, DNA Evidence/Testing.
• DNA on Fired Cartridge Casings: Promising Advances to Link Suspects to Crime Scenes, Dec. 15, 2024. DNA Testing/Samples.
• Scent of Death Evidence Admitted at Indiana Murder Trial, Dec. 15, 2024. junk science, Forensic Sciences, Murder/Felony Murder, Authencity/Authentication.
• False Confessions and Wrongful Convictions: Known Causes and Steps to Eliminate Them, Dec. 1, 2024. DNA Testing/Samples, Wrongful Conviction, False Statements/Perjury, False Exculpatory Statements.
• SCOTUS Stays Texas Execution With 20 Minutes to Spare, Nov. 15, 2024. DNA Testing/Samples, Death Penalty/Death Row, Stays, Lethal Injection Method of Execution.