More from this issue:

1. One More Reason to Dislike Your State’s DMV, by Edward Lyon
2. Trial Penalty: The Harm in Coercive Prosecutorial Tactics and Plea Bargains, by David Reutter
3. Virginia Supreme Court Reverses Concealed Weapon Offense Because Statutory Exception Applied, by Douglas Ankney
4. The Federal Habeas Corpus: Government’s Response and Your Reply, by Dale Chappell
5. The Many Roads to Relief Under Borden, by Dale Chappell
6. 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
7. 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
8. Virginia Passes Comprehensive Record Clearance Legislation, by Casey Bastian
9. Massachusetts Supreme Court: Error to Exclude Expert Testimony on Significance of Tattoo to Support Claim of Self-Defense, by David Reutter
10. Seventh Circuit: Coworker Cannot Limitlessly Search Defendant’s Office at Direction of FBI, by Anthony Accurso
11. 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
12. Nebraska Supreme Court Reverses Denial of Pretrial Motion for Absolute Discharge on Speedy Trial Grounds, by Matthew Clarke
13. California Court of Appeal Vacates Guilty Plea That Resulted in Legal Fiction, by David Reutter
14. Should Public Defenders Be Tweeting?, by Anthony Accurso
15. 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
16. National Institute of Justice Funds Research to Differentiate Injuries Caused by Child Abuse from Accidental Injuries, by Matthew Clarke
17. Police Funding Reallocated to Community Programs Nationwide, by Casey Bastian
18. Ninth Circuit: Directly Searching Inside Detainee’s Pocket Not a Valid Terry Frisk for Weapons, by Anthony Accurso
19. Atavistic South Carolinians Offer Option of Firing Squad to Condemned Prisoners, by Douglas Ankney
20. Delaware Supreme Court: Substitution Not Allowed for Chain of Custody Witness, by Anthony Accurso
21. 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
22. Eighth Circuit: Plain Error to Impose Destructive-Device Enhancement for .410 Shotgun, by David Reutter
23. Tenth Circuit Reverses Denial of Suppression Motion Because Rationale for Community-Caretaker Exception Unreasonable, by Douglas Ankney
24. Report: NYPD Sold Almost 22,000 of the 55,000 Phones Seized Last Year, by Douglas Ankney
25. SCOTUS: Cady’s ‘Community Caretaking’ Function of Police Doesn’t Create Standalone Doctrine Permitting Warrantless Entry into a Home, by Douglas Ankney
26. Maryland and Montana: First States to Pass Laws Restricting Access to Consumer Genealogy Databases by Law Enforcement, by Casey Bastian
27. South Carolina Supreme Court: Lifetime SORA Registration Requirement Unconstitutional Absent Opportunity for Judicial Review of Risk of Re-offending, by Anthony Accurso
28. It’s No Shock That Tasers Increase Brutality, by Casey Bastian
29. Mississippi Supreme Court: Drug Buy Between Dealer and User Doesn’t Constitute Conspiracy to Distribute, by David Reutter
30. California Court of Appeal Reverses Felony-Murder Conviction Where Sentencing Occurred After SB 1437 Enacted, by Matthew Clarke
31. New Mexico Supreme Court: Constitutional Error to Accept Plea Without Assistance of Counsel, by David Reutter
32. Maryland Enacts Significant Police Reform, Overriding Governor’s Veto, by Jayson Hawkins
33. FBI Subpoenas Media Outlets for Information on Readers of Stories Criticizing Government, by Dale Chappell
34. Decision Not to Prosecute May Reduce Chance of Recidivism, by Kevin Bliss
35. Fourth Circuit Extends Gant’s Automobile Search-Incident-to-Arrest Framework to Searches of Non-Vehicular Containers, by Douglas Ankney
36. Texas Supreme Court: Multiple Misdemeanor Charges Resulting From Single Arrest Divisible for Expunction Purposes, by Douglas Ankney
37. Police Legal Defense Funds Have Millions in Reserve, by Jayson Hawkins
38. Big Brother Is Watching You Through Your Car, by Jayson Hawkins
39. Warrantless Warrants and Crooked Courts in Chicago, by Jayson Hawkins
40. Constitutional Protections No Protection for Colorado Man Killed by Police, by Casey Bastian
41. Details Surface About Firm That Hacked iPhone for the FBI in 2016, by Anthony Accurso
42. Debunking the Myth of ‘Dangerous’ Traffic Stops, by Jayson Hawkins
43. Reports Show Law Enforcement Groups Are Main Force Pushing New Anti-Protest Laws, by Matthew Clarke
44. Prosecutors Call for Humane Sentencing Measures, by Kevin Bliss
45. Jury Refuses to Hold Abusive Cops Accountable for Beating Undercover Cop, by Anthony Accurso
46. Two T-shirts Cost Louisiana Man 20 Years, by Edward Lyon
47. Digital Dogs, New Technology Designed to Sniff-Out Crime, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
48. Police Use of Facial Recognition May Be Broader Than Expected, by Anthony Accurso
49. When Police Ignore Ordered Changes, Is It Really Reform?, by Douglas Ankney
50. The Louisiana Board of Parole Giveth and Taketh Away: The Troubling Case of Bobby Sneed, by Casey Bastian
51. The People Have Spoken: Clemency Appointments Should Follow the Will of the People, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
52. Police Target People of Color for Cannabis Crimes Despite Legalization, by Anthony Accurso
53. Bodycams Do Not Hold Cops Accountable, Communities Do, by Anthony Accurso
54. News in Brief

More from Douglas Ankney:

• The Dramatic Increase in the Elderly Prison Population Is Fiscally and Morally Irresponsible, Oct. 1, 2026
• 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
• California Supreme Court Announces Totality-of-Circumstances Framework Focused on Defendant’s Subjective Understanding Under § 1473.7(a)(1), Holding Immigration Consequences Advisement Is Relevant but Not Dispositive, Oct. 1, 2026
• Idaho Supreme Court Holds Conflicting Affidavits About Plea Acceptance Require Evidentiary Hearing on Ineffective-Assistance Claim, Oct. 1, 2026
• Tenth Circuit Vacates Award of Costs to Prison Officials, Revives Prisoner’s Claim Alleging Denial of Access to Functioning Toilets and Exposure to Other Prisoners’ Feces, Oct. 1, 2026
• Second Circuit Vacates Above-Guidelines Firearm-Trafficking Sentence Based on Failure to Assist Law Enforcement and Unexplained Reliance on Factors Already Included in Guidelines Range, Sept. 1, 2026
• Ninth Circuit Reverses Convictions, Holding Requirement That Defendant Testify Before Displaying Hand Tattoos Violates Fifth Amendment, Sept. 1, 2026
• Ohio Supreme Court Announces Postconviction DNA-Testing Orders Need Only Identify Statutory Reason to Satisfy R.C. 2953.73(D) “Reasons” Requirement, Sept. 1, 2026
• Federal Court Upholds Consultants’ Finding that Oklahoma Is Not Honoring Its Consent Decree to Provide Mental Health Treatment, Sept. 1, 2026
• Idaho Legislature Moves to Hide Execution Protocol from Judicial Scrutiny, Sept. 1, 2026

More from these topics:

• Florida DOC Rebuked for Seizing Prisoner’s Excessive Force Settlement to Cover Incarceration Liens, Sept. 1, 2026. Summary Judgment, Settlements, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Trust Accounts, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights.
• Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Announces Postconviction Forensic Testing Statute Permits Digital Forensic Analysis of Cellphones, Holding Chapter 278A Not Limited to Tangible Evidence Testable for Biological Material, Aug. 1, 2026. Forensic Sciences, Searches - Cellphones/Computers/Internet, Statutory Construction/Interpretation, Failure to Consult/Investigate/Raise, Relevance.
• Passive Data Transforms Smart Devices Into Covert Witnesses in a Silent Surveillance State, July 1, 2026. Forensic Sciences, Police State-Surveillance, Searches - Cellphones/Computers/Internet, Electronic Surveillance, Exclusionary Rule.
• Oregon Supreme Court Announces Article I, Section 9, of State Constitution Protects Privacy in Internet Browsing Conducted Over Public Wi-Fi Networks, April 1, 2026. Searches - Cellphones/Computers/Internet, Warrantless Searches, Electronic Surveillance, State Constitutional Claims, Suppression.
• $450,000 Paid for Michigan Jail Detainee’s Fentanyl Death, Incarcerated Husband Prevails in Claim for Part of Payout, Feb. 1, 2026. Drug Overdose, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Deliberate Indifference.
• Pennsylvania Supreme Court (Opinion Announcing the Judgment of the Court): No Reasonable Expectation of Privacy in Unprotected Google Searches, Jan. 1, 2026. Fourth Amendment, rights, Probable Cause, Searches - Cellphones/Computers/Internet, Privacy Act/Rights, State Constitutional Claims.
• Fifth Circuit Rules Against Louisiana Prisoner Seeking to Recoup Money Made at Angola Prison Rodeo, Jan. 1, 2026. Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Trust Accounts, Qualified Immunity, Fourteenth Amendment, rights, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights.
• HRDC’s Washington Jail Debit-Release Card Suit Survives Summary Judgment, Nov. 1, 2025. Summary Judgment, Class Certification, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Official Report, HRDC Litigation.
• Protecting Your Digital Privacy, Oct. 15, 2025. Police State-Surveillance, Searches - Cellphones/Computers/Internet, Cell-Phone Location/Tracking Data, Electronic Surveillance, Digital Devices.
• Michigan Supreme Court Announces Guidance on Standards for Search Warrants of Cellphones to Satisfy Particularity Requirement of Fourth Amendment That “Reasonably Direct” Search to Uncovering Evidence of Criminal Activity Identified in Warrant, Oct. 15, 2025. Particularity Requirement, Searches - Cellphones/Computers/Internet, Cell-Phones, Warrants - General Search, Failure to Preserve Challenge.