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Police Unions Block Meaningful Criminal Justice Reform
Loaded on Jan. 15, 2021
by Casey Bastian
published in Criminal Legal News
February, 2021, page 44
Filed under:
Criminal justice system reform,
Guard Unions,
Excessive Force (Police),
Police/Govt Misconduct.
Location:
United States of America.
by Casey Bastian
Americans are asking: What is preventing the meaningful reforms in policing that are clearly needed? The answer may be police unions. While there are a plethora of issues to be addressed, unions have become an organized force actively resisting safer, less aggressive, and more accountable …
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More from this issue:
- Staggering Injustice, by Derek Gilna
- Fifth Circuit Vacates Sentence Eight Times Higher Than Guidelines Range That Was Imposed Without Explanation, by Dale Chappell
- Federal Habeas Corpus: Retroactivity of New Rules, by Dale Chappell
- Sex Panic: The War on Sex Offenders as Public Enemy Number One, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
- Fourth Circuit Announces Payton’s ‘Reason to Believe’ Standard for Entering a Third-Party’s Home Based on Arrest Warrant for Suspect Amounts to Probable Cause Suspect Resides There, by Douglas Ankney
- Colorado Supreme Court: Dividing Multiple Images of Child Pornography Into Multiple Batches to Charge Multiple Counts Violates Double Jeopardy, by Dale Chappell
- First Circuit: Double Jeopardy Protections Bar Government From Seeking Death Penalty at Retrial Where Jury’s Verdict Not Imposing Death at First Trial Ambiguous, and Trial Court Prematurely Declared Mistrial, by Douglas Ankney
- Fired San Francisco Cop Charged With Manslaughter for Fatally Shooting Unarmed Suspect, by Dale Chappell
- Ninth Circuit: Reasonable Suspicion Justifying Traffic Stop Doesn’t Provide Probable Cause to Open Door and Lean Inside Vehicle, by Douglas Ankney
- California Supreme Court Vacates Murder Conviction, Finds IAC for Failure to Obtain Expert Testimony on Time of Death, by Dale Chappell
- Police Say Seizing Property Without Trial Helps Keep Crime Down. A New Study Shows They’re Wrong., by Ian MacDougall
- New York Court of Appeals Reverses Denial of Suppression Motion Where Prosecution Fails to Provide Specific Facts to Show Traffic Stop Was Lawful, by Douglas Ankney
- Kansas Supreme Court Clarifies State Law Does Not Preclude Consent to Search Through Nonverbal Conduct, by Douglas Ankney
- Michigan Voters Approve Constitutional Amendment to Protect Electronic Data and Communications, by Anthony Accurso
- Eighth Circuit Announces ‘Use of Minor’ Enhancement Inapplicable for Merely Buying Firearm From Minor, by Dale Chappell
- Sixth Circuit Vacates Sentence Because Government Failed to Prove Sentencing Enhancements Apply, by Dale Chappell
- Illinois Supreme Court Announces Guilty Plea Doesn’t Bar Postconviction Claim of Actual Innocence and Provides Framework for Review, by Douglas Ankney
- Illinois Supreme Court Announces Predicate Offenses of Home Invasion Statute are Lesser-Included Offenses of Home Invasion Statute, by Douglas Ankney
- Montana Supreme Court: Statistical Evidence on False Accusations of Rape Improperly Bolstered Witness Credibility, by Anthony Accurso
- Eleventh Circuit Announces Drug Offenses Involving Multiple Drugs Can Qualify as ‘Covered Offense’ Under First Step Act if Crack One of the Drugs, by Dale Chappell
- SCOTUS Vacates Grant of Habeas Relief, Citing Habeas ‘Deference’ to State Court Decisions, by Dale Chappell
- Eleventh Circuit: District Court ‘Mischaracterizing’ Habeas Claim Left Claim Unresolved in Violation of Clisby, Requiring Remand, by Dale Chappell
- New York Man Exonerated of Murder and Freed After 25 Years in Prison, by Douglas Ankney
- Ninth Circuit: Rehaif Error Requires Automatic Dismissal of Indictment, by Dale Chappell
- Predator or Patsy? Long Sentences for Those Caught in Victimless Child Sex Stings
- Fourth Circuit: Commercial Vehicle Permit Requirement Insufficient Grounds to Initiate Traffic Stop, by Anthony Accurso
- California Court of Appeal: Confrontation Clause Violation Where Supervisor, Not Lab Tech Who Performed Drug Tests, Testified at Trial, by Anthony Accurso
- Eleventh Circuit: Private Probation Company With Financial Interest in its Sentencing Decisions Violates Due Process, by David Reutter
- Fifth Circuit: Conviction Vacated Because No Reasonable Suspicion to Search Person in High-Crime Area, by Anthony Accurso
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- When a Hung Jury Is Enough, by Jayson Hawkins
- Multi-Agency Task Forces Manipulate Jurisdiction to Avoid Liability, by Casey Bastian
- Inadequate and Outdated Training Results in Wild West Policing, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
- New Michigan Law Expands Criminal Records Expungement, by Casey Bastian
- Athlete Settles Tasing Suit Against Milwaukee Police, by Edward Lyon
- Eighth Circuit Affirms Habeas Relief, Finds Arkansas Supreme Court Wrongly Denied Defendant’s Self-Representation Request, by Dale Chappell
- Police Unions Block Meaningful Criminal Justice Reform, by Casey Bastian
- How Arkansas Criminalizes Poverty, by Jayson Hawkins
- Massive Corruption of a Baltimore Task Force Exposed, by Casey Bastian
- California Law Enforcement Strikes Out in 2020 Elections, by Kevin Bliss
- NYPD Agrees to Alter Religious Headwear Policy, by Casey Bastian
- Massachusetts Supreme Court Announces Requirement Prosecution Prove Defendant Knew Firearm Was Loaded Applies Retroactively, by Douglas Ankney
- Prosecutors Who Demand Accountability From Everyone But Themselves, by Casey Bastian
- Louisiana Supreme Court Vacates Murder Conviction for Speedy Trial Violation, by Dale Chappell
- News in Brief
More from Casey Bastian:
- California Prisoners Sue Gynecologist for Sexual Abuse, Aug. 1, 2025
- Policing the Vulnerable: The Criminalization of Disability, May 15, 2025
- Examining Pro-Prosecution Bias in the Judiciary: Unconscious Biases of a Prosecutorial Background, Feb. 15, 2025
- The Rise of Mass Supervision: From Rehabilitative Alternative to Shadow Carceral State, Oct. 1, 2024
- Demonstrable Remorse, Psychiatric Diagnoses, and Alternatives to Incarceration, Aug. 1, 2024
- Minnesota Sex Offender Program: The Indefinite Detention of the Reviled, Aug. 1, 2024
- The 153 Exonerations in 2023 Include 19 Resulting From Threats or Sentences of Death, July 15, 2024
- Four Dead in One Month in San Bernardino County Jails, $3,232,500 in Settlements Paid So Far, March 1, 2024
- Dangerous Encounters: Interactions Between Autistic Individuals and Law Enforcement, Dec. 15, 2023
- U.S. Sentencing Commission Publishes Compassionate Release Datafile for Fiscal Years 2020-2022, Oct. 1, 2023
More from these topics:
- Mental Health Diversion from New York State Jails Varies Widely by County, Sept. 1, 2026. Criminal justice system reform, Alternative Sentencing, Mental Health, State Legislation.
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- BOP Orders Prison Closures Amid Infrastructure Decay and Staff Shortages, Aug. 1, 2026. Transfers, Toxic Fumes/Chemicals, Staffing, Guard Unions.
- San Diego Guard Who Fatally Shot Fleeing Detainee Sentenced to 12 Years in Prison, July 1, 2026. Police Misconduct, Shootings, Excessive Force (Wrongful Death), Excessive Force (Police), Wrongful Use of Force.
- Wisconsin Governor Issues Executive Order to Restore Commutations, June 1, 2026. Prison Reform, Criminal justice system reform, Rehabilitation/Recidivism, Pardons/Clemency, Reduction of Prison Population.
- The Recycled Police Officer: Research Reveals High Cost of Ignoring Prior Misconduct, May 1, 2026. Harassment by Police, Police Misconduct, Statistics/Trends, Excessive Force (Police), Police/Govt Misconduct.
- Class Certification Granted to Suit Challenging Suspension of HALT Act in New York Prisons, April 1, 2026. Injunctions, Class Certification, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Guard Unions, Administrative Detention/Segregation.
- Private Company Investigating Rapes at California ICE Detention Center Instead of Sheriff, April 1, 2026. Corrections Corporation of America/CoreCivic, Police/Govt Misconduct, Immigration Detention, Authority and Jurisdiction.
- New York City Mayor Appoints Ex-Rikers Prisoner as Corrections Commissioner, March 1, 2026. Prison Reform, Staffing, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Guard Unions, Administrative Detention/Segregation.
- U.S. Jails Hold 52,000 Detainees for Nothing More than “Failure to Appear”, March 1, 2026. Criminal justice system reform, Statistics/Trends, Cost of Prison Systems, Bail/Pretrial Release, Arrest/Arraignment.





