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California Court of Appeal Vacates Guilty Plea That Resulted in Legal Fiction
by David M. Reutter
The Court of Appeal of California, First Appellate District, Division Three, reversed a guilty plea where a trial court approved a plea bargain for human trafficking of a minor for a sex act because it was undisputed that the victim was an adult. The …
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More from this issue:
- One More Reason to Dislike Your State’s DMV, by Edward Lyon
- Trial Penalty: The Harm in Coercive Prosecutorial Tactics and Plea Bargains, by David Reutter
- Virginia Supreme Court Reverses Concealed Weapon Offense Because Statutory Exception Applied, by Douglas Ankney
- The Federal Habeas Corpus: Government’s Response and Your Reply, by Dale Chappell
- The Many Roads to Relief Under Borden, by Dale Chappell
- Montana Supreme Court: Court Reporter’s Medical Emergency and Judge’s Distress Don’t Constitute Manifest Necessity for Declaring Mistrial, Retrial Violates Double Jeopardy, by Douglas Ankney
- Arizona Supreme Court: Trial Court’s Failure to Protect Defendant’s Right to Conflict-Free Counsel May Be Raised on Direct Appeal 16 Massachusetts Supreme Court: Error to Exclude Expert Testimony on Significance of Tattoo to Support Claim of Self-Defense, by Douglas Ankney
- Virginia Passes Comprehensive Record Clearance Legislation, by Casey Bastian
- Massachusetts Supreme Court: Error to Exclude Expert Testimony on Significance of Tattoo to Support Claim of Self-Defense, by David Reutter
- Seventh Circuit: Coworker Cannot Limitlessly Search Defendant’s Office at Direction of FBI, by Anthony Accurso
- Fourth Circuit Reverses ‘Abusive Language’ Conviction Where Government Failed to Offer Evidence That Racial Slur Tended to Cause Immediate Acts of Violence, by Douglas Ankney
- Nebraska Supreme Court Reverses Denial of Pretrial Motion for Absolute Discharge on Speedy Trial Grounds, by Matthew Clarke
- California Court of Appeal Vacates Guilty Plea That Resulted in Legal Fiction, by David Reutter
- Should Public Defenders Be Tweeting?, by Anthony Accurso
- California Court of Appeal: When Federal Court Finds Petitioner Satisfies Schlup Standard, Victim Compensation Board Must Recommend Payment of Claim Without Hearing, by Douglas Ankney
- National Institute of Justice Funds Research to Differentiate Injuries Caused by Child Abuse from Accidental Injuries, by Matthew Clarke
- Police Funding Reallocated to Community Programs Nationwide, by Casey Bastian
- Ninth Circuit: Directly Searching Inside Detainee’s Pocket Not a Valid Terry Frisk for Weapons, by Anthony Accurso
- Atavistic South Carolinians Offer Option of Firing Squad to Condemned Prisoners, by Douglas Ankney
- Delaware Supreme Court: Substitution Not Allowed for Chain of Custody Witness, by Anthony Accurso
- Sixth Circuit: District Court May Consider Disparity of Defendant’s Actual Sentence Compared With Sentence Under First Step Act When Additional Factors Present, by Douglas Ankney
- Eighth Circuit: Plain Error to Impose Destructive-Device Enhancement for .410 Shotgun, by David Reutter
- Tenth Circuit Reverses Denial of Suppression Motion Because Rationale for Community-Caretaker Exception Unreasonable, by Douglas Ankney
- Report: NYPD Sold Almost 22,000 of the 55,000 Phones Seized Last Year, by Douglas Ankney
- SCOTUS: Cady’s ‘Community Caretaking’ Function of Police Doesn’t Create Standalone Doctrine Permitting Warrantless Entry into a Home, by Douglas Ankney
- Maryland and Montana: First States to Pass Laws Restricting Access to Consumer Genealogy Databases by Law Enforcement, by Casey Bastian
- South Carolina Supreme Court: Lifetime SORA Registration Requirement Unconstitutional Absent Opportunity for Judicial Review of Risk of Re-offending, by Anthony Accurso
- It’s No Shock That Tasers Increase Brutality, by Casey Bastian
- Mississippi Supreme Court: Drug Buy Between Dealer and User Doesn’t Constitute Conspiracy to Distribute, by David Reutter
- California Court of Appeal Reverses Felony-Murder Conviction Where Sentencing Occurred After SB 1437 Enacted, by Matthew Clarke
- New Mexico Supreme Court: Constitutional Error to Accept Plea Without Assistance of Counsel, by David Reutter
- Maryland Enacts Significant Police Reform, Overriding Governor’s Veto, by Jayson Hawkins
- FBI Subpoenas Media Outlets for Information on Readers of Stories Criticizing Government, by Dale Chappell
- Decision Not to Prosecute May Reduce Chance of Recidivism, by Kevin Bliss
- Fourth Circuit Extends Gant’s Automobile Search-Incident-to-Arrest Framework to Searches of Non-Vehicular Containers, by Douglas Ankney
- Texas Supreme Court: Multiple Misdemeanor Charges Resulting From Single Arrest Divisible for Expunction Purposes, by Douglas Ankney
- Police Legal Defense Funds Have Millions in Reserve, by Jayson Hawkins
- Big Brother Is Watching You Through Your Car, by Jayson Hawkins
- Warrantless Warrants and Crooked Courts in Chicago, by Jayson Hawkins
- Constitutional Protections No Protection for Colorado Man Killed by Police, by Casey Bastian
- Details Surface About Firm That Hacked iPhone for the FBI in 2016, by Anthony Accurso
- Debunking the Myth of ‘Dangerous’ Traffic Stops, by Jayson Hawkins
- Reports Show Law Enforcement Groups Are Main Force Pushing New Anti-Protest Laws, by Matthew Clarke
- Prosecutors Call for Humane Sentencing Measures, by Kevin Bliss
- Jury Refuses to Hold Abusive Cops Accountable for Beating Undercover Cop, by Anthony Accurso
- Two T-shirts Cost Louisiana Man 20 Years, by Edward Lyon
- Digital Dogs, New Technology Designed to Sniff-Out Crime, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
- Police Use of Facial Recognition May Be Broader Than Expected, by Anthony Accurso
- When Police Ignore Ordered Changes, Is It Really Reform?, by Douglas Ankney
- The Louisiana Board of Parole Giveth and Taketh Away: The Troubling Case of Bobby Sneed, by Casey Bastian
- The People Have Spoken: Clemency Appointments Should Follow the Will of the People, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
- Police Target People of Color for Cannabis Crimes Despite Legalization, by Anthony Accurso
- Bodycams Do Not Hold Cops Accountable, Communities Do, by Anthony Accurso
- News in Brief
More from David Reutter:
- Eight Circuit Reverses Denial of Partial Qualified Immunity in Detainee’s Pepper Ball Claim, Remands Excessive Force Claims, Sept. 1, 2026
- Nevada Prisoners, Families Call Out Predatory Tablet Program, Sept. 1, 2026
- Fourth Circuit: Error in Granting Judgment Prior to Adjudging Spoliation Motion, Sept. 1, 2026
- Fourth Circuit Affirms Qualified Immunity in Strip Searches Resulting from Anonymous Tips, Sept. 1, 2026
- Tenth Circuit: Colorado Governor Unentitled to Eleventh Amendment Immunity on Claim Related to DOC Religious Policies, Aug. 1, 2026
- Michigan Appeals Court: Witnesses Cannot be Forced to Wear Jail Clothes at Trial, Aug. 1, 2026
- Sixth Circuit Affirms Denial of State-Law Qualified Immunity in Scabies Case, Aug. 1, 2026
- Fourth Circuit Revives Disabled Prisoner’s Claim for Denial of Out-of-Cell Exercise Time, Aug. 1, 2026
- Sixth Circuit Announces State-Law Exceptions to Appeal Deadlines Preserve “Pending” Status Under AEDPA, Holding Belated-Appeal Procedures Toll Federal Habeas Limitations Period, April 1, 2026
- Florida Supreme Court Announces Rule 3.170(f)’s Good-Cause Plea-Withdrawal Standard Does Not Apply at Post-Appeal Resentencing, April 1, 2026
More from these topics:
- Judge Sentences Boss of ‘Horrific’ Cuyahoga Ohio Jail to Prison, Feb. 1, 2022. DOC/BOP misconduct, Jail Misconduct, Misrepresentations.
- Whistleblower Alleges Hawaii Prison Officials Provided False Audit Data, Dec. 1, 2021. Corrections Audits, Misrepresentations.
- California Sheriff Hid Number of Deaths in Sacramento County Jails, March 1, 2021. Jail Misconduct, Wrongful Death, Misrepresentations.
- $369,000 Settlement in Police Raid of Journalist’s Home and Office, May 15, 2020. First Amendment, Disclosure of Confidential Sources.
- LAPD Officers Accused of Entering Names of Innocent People Into Gang Database, May 15, 2020. Misrepresentations, Gang Membership.





