More from this issue:

1. Your Car Is Spying on You, by Michael Thompson
2. People of Maine at Forefront of Battle to Keep Government Security Apparatus in Check, by Douglas Ankney
3. A Nation of Snitches: DHS Is Grooming Americans to Report on Each Other, by Nisha Whitehead, John W. Whitehead
4. Montana Supreme Court: Retroactive Application of Montana’s Sex Offender Registration Law, as Amended Since 2007, Violates Ex Post Facto Clause of State Constitution, by Douglas Ankney
5. Checking In With Community Supervision, by Anthony Accurso
6. New Jersey Takes First Steps in Eliminating Public Defender Fees, by Jordan Arizmendi
7. Ninth Circuit: Younger Abstention Doctrine Inapplicable Where Habeas Petitioner Seeks Stay While § 1172.6 Petition in State Court Being Litigated and Petitioner Entitled to Stay of Habeas Proceedings While State Petition Pending, by Douglas Ankney
8. Advent of ‘Green’ Ammunition Prompts Forensic Science to Analyze Organic and Inorganic Gunshot Residue and Establish Benchmarks for CSI, by Jo Ellen Nott
9. Colorado Supreme Court Announces ‘Self-Serving Hearsay’ Statements Introduced Under Rule of Completeness Not Hearsay and Do Not Render Defendant Impeachable, by Richard Resch
10. Michigan Supreme Court Holds Guilty Plea Cannot Be ‘Voluntary and Knowing’ When Induced by Inaccurate Understanding of Minimum and Maximum Prison Sentence, by David Reutter
11. Study Reveals Important Details About iPhone’s Building Level Registration Reliability, by Jo Ellen Nott
12. California Supreme Court Clarifies Harmless-Error Analysis of Alternative-Theory Error, Reverses and Remands Where Court of Appeal Applied Incorrect Standard, by Douglas Ankney
13. Ninth Circuit Explains Martinez ‘Cause’ and ‘Prejudice’ to Excuse Procedural Default in Federal Habeas Proceeding Where Claim of IAC in State Proceedings Was Procedurally Defaulted Due to Postconviction Counsel’s Failure to Timely Raise Claim, by Douglas Ankney
14. 10th Circuit Reverses Guidelines Enhancement Because Possession of Ammo Does Not Facilitate Possession of a Firearm, by Anthony Accurso
15. Study: ‘Inconclusive Finding’ by Examiner of Cartridge Casing Should Be Finding of ‘Excluded’ 85% of the Time, by Douglas Ankney
16. Facial Recognition Software Gives Unreliable Results with Black Individuals and Leads to Unlawful Arrests, by Jo Ellen Nott
17. ICE Employees Caught (Again) Misusing Access to Databases, by Jordan Arizmendi
18. Fourth Circuit: Evidence Suppressed Where Officers Seized Defendant Without Reasonable Suspicion and Forced Him to Prove He Was Not Armed, by Anthony Accurso
19. Electrocution by Taser Is Not Death From Excited Delirium, by Douglas Ankney
20. New Jersey Supreme Court Announces Presumption in Favor of In-Person Interpreter for Criminal Trials and Issues Guidelines for Use of Video Remote Interpreting, by Matthew Clarke
21. Sheep and Sheepdogs: Use and Abuse of Non-Lethal Crowd Control Weapons, by Benjamin Tschirhart
22. Arizona Attorney General Settles Lawsuit, Agrees to Toss Unconstitutional Law Banning the Recording of Cops, by Jo Ellen Nott
23. Fourth Circuit Vacates Denial of First Step Act Relief Where Record Unclear Whether District Court Considered All Nonfrivolous Arguments Raised by Defendant, by Douglas Ankney
24. Sixth Circuit: Plain Error Where District Court Required Defendant at Resentencing to Admit Guilt in Order to Fully Consider Defendant’s Evidence of Rehabilitation, by Douglas Ankney
25. Colorado’s Amendments to Post-Conviction DNA Testing Statute Allows Greater Number of Affected Persons to Seek Testing, by Douglas Ankney
26. Gunshot Detection Technology Continues to Acquire New Business Despite Major Clients Dropping Contracts and Researchers Questioning Its Effectiveness, by Jo Ellen Nott
27. Tenth Circuit Announces District Court Erred in Applying Attempted Murder Cross-Reference Under U.S.S.G. § 2A2.1 Based on Malice Aforethought, Without Finding Intent to Kill, by Douglas Ankney
28. Computing Fear in Black and Brown Communities, by Michael Thompson
29. DOJ Concludes Louisville Police Engaging in Patterns of Unconstitutional Conduct, by Douglas Ankney
30. ICE Tramples Over the Judicial System, by Jordan Arizmendi
31. U.K. Study of Consistency Among Pairs of Child Witnesses Shows Surprising Results, by Matthew Clarke
32. Third Circuit Announces COA Required for Federal Prisoner Appealing District Court’s Choice of Remedy in § 2255 Proceeding, by Douglas Ankney
33. West Virginia Supreme Court Announces in the Absence of a Deadline, Trial Court Must Permit Defendant to Stipule to Prior Conviction During Trial, by Douglas Ankney
34. Geofencing January 6th, by Michael Thompson
35. Three’s a Crowd: Issues of DNA Mixture Analysis and Interpretation, by Eike Blohm, MD
36. New Mexico Supreme Court Announces Trial Courts Retain Common Law Jurisdictional Authority to Correct Illegal Sentences, Allows Defendant to Withdraw Plea After Sentence Correction Involving Additional Parole Time, by Anthony Accurso
37. 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:

• Former South Carolina Jailer Spared Prison After Testimony Fails to Convict Former Sheriff, Feb. 15, 2025. Guard Brutality/Beatings, U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Sentences - Adjustments and Departures, Offense of Conviction.
• The Murky Waters of Parole, Feb. 1, 2025. Parole/Probation Searches, U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Parole Liability, Probation, Parole & Supervised Release.
• Oregon Supreme Court: Governor Can’t Revoke Commutation After Sentence Expires, Jan. 15, 2025. Parole/Probation Searches, U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Resentencing, Revocation Proceedings, Overreaching.
• After Florida Appellate Court Holds Crimes of ‘Attempt’ Eligible for Incentive Gain Time, Supreme Court Refuses Review, Jan. 15, 2025. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Conspiracies, Attempts, Solicitations, Attempts/Incomplete Acts, Credits, Sentences - Adjustments and Departures.
• Seventh Circuit Announces Maximum Revocation Sentence for Violation of Supervised Release Based on Classification of Underlying Offense at Time of Conviction, Not at Time of Revocation, Dec. 15, 2024. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Revocation Proceedings.
• California Supreme Court Announces Retroactivity of 2022 Version of Penal Code § 1170 to Upper-Term Sentences Imposed Before Its Enactment, Dec. 15, 2024. Retroactivity, U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.
• First Circuit Holds Government Breached Plea Agreement by Implicitly Arguing for Upward Variant Sentence by Including Pictures and Video of Defendant That Allegedly Depict His Criminal Tendencies in Sentencing Memo, Dec. 15, 2024. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Grounds for Variance, 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2), Plea Agreements/Guilty Pleas, Grounds.
• Fifth Circuit Judges Battle in Louisiana Over-Detention Cases, Dec. 15, 2024. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Overdetention, Credits.
• California Supreme Court Announces Uncharged and Unproven Offense-Specific Enhancements May Not Be Imposed Under § 1172.6(e) Resentencing, Dec. 1, 2024. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Resentencing, Sentence Enhancements/Departures.
• Third Circuit: Despite ‘Expressly and Repeatedly’ Requesting Low-End Sentence, Government Breached Plea Agreement by Emphasizing ‘Heinous’ Nature of Offense and Presenting Victim-Impact Evidence at Sentencing Thereby Undermining Recommendation, Dec. 1, 2024. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Mitigating Role/Circumstances/Evidence, Reduction of Sentence, Proffer Agreements/Statements/Sessions.