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Archive: 2026

September

• Formally Available, Rarely Granted: A State Prisoner’s Guide to Federal Habeas Relief by Richard Resch (p 1)
• Federal Habeas Quick Reference Guide for State Prisoners (p 26)
• Tenth Circuit Announces Resentencing After Probation Revocation Must Begin with Chapter 7 Range, Holding Chapter 5 Range Should Be Considered When Deciding Whether to Vary by David Kim (p 34)
• Sixth Circuit Holds Kentucky Deficient-Counsel Belated-Appeal Procedure Tolls Federal Habeas One-Year Limitations Period by David M. Reutter (p 35)
• Hawaii Supreme Court Announces False Evidence Standard Governs Post-Conviction Claims That Scientific Developments Invalidated Expert Testimony, Holding Prosecution Knowledge Not Required Under State Due Process Clause by David Kim (p 36)
• 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 by Douglas Ankney (p 38)
• Alaska Supreme Court Announces “Stop and Clarify” Rule Under Article I, Sections 9 and 11 of Alaska Constitution, Holding Officers Must Cease Questioning and Clarify Ambiguous Post-Waiver Request for Counsel by David Kim (p 40)
• Seventh Circuit Announces Generic Conspiracy Under U.S.S.G. § 4B1.2 Requires Bilateral Agreement, Holding Indiana Conspiracy Convictions Cannot Qualify as Crimes of Violence by David M. Reutter (p 42)
• California Supreme Court Announces Article I, Section 28(f)(3) Does Not Authorize Denial of Bail Beyond Offenses Specified in Section 12, Holding Bail Must Generally Be Set in Amount Reasonably Attainable for Defendant by David Kim (p 43)
• Ninth Circuit Reverses Convictions, Holding Requirement That Defendant Testify Before Displaying Hand Tattoos Violates Fifth Amendment by Douglas Ankney (p 45)
• Connecticut Supreme Court Holds Trial Counsel Ineffective for Failing to Challenge Misleading CSLI GeoTime Video by David Kim (p 46)
• Michigan Supreme Court Announces Two-Step Test for Mandatory LWOP Imposed for Pre-Aaron Felony Murder by David Kim (p 48)
• Ohio Supreme Court Announces Postconviction DNA-Testing Orders Need Only Identify Statutory Reason to Satisfy R.C. 2953.73(D) “Reasons” Requirement by Douglas Ankney (p 48)
• NEWS IN BRIEF (p 50)

August

• Buried in Plain Sight: How Digital Discovery Turns Disclosure Itself Into Concealment by David Kim (p 1)
• New Jersey Supreme Court Announces Brady and Carter Materiality Standards Differ, Holding Carter’s “Probably Change the Jury’s Verdict” Test for New Trial More Stringent Than Brady’s “Reasonable Probability” Standard by David Kim (p 17)
• New Jersey Supreme Court Orders Plenary Hearing Before Special Adjudicator on Reliability of Fingerprint Evidence, Holding Century of Judicial Acceptance Did Not Satisfy Trial Court’s Gatekeeping Obligation Under N.J.R.E. 702 by Douglas Ankney (p 17)
• En Banc Eleventh Circuit Announces All Parents, Including Those Convicted of Child-Sex Offenses, Enjoy Fundamental Right to Live With Their Children, Holding Alabama Residency Prohibition Subject to Strict Scrutiny by Douglas Ankney (p 19)
• Seventh Circuit Announces Courts May Examine Individual Officer’s Subjective Purpose When Assessing Whether Warrantless Administrative Inspection Was Pretextual, Holding Suppression Required Where Trooper’s Sole Motive for Stop Was Criminal Investigati by Douglas Ankney (p 21)
• Hawai’i Supreme Court Announces Totality-of-the-Circumstances Good-Cause Standard Governing State Motions to Continue Based on Witness Unavailability by David M. Reutter (p 23)
• 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 by Richard Resch (p 26)
• SCOTUS Holds § 922(g)(3) Prosecution Based Solely on Regular Marijuana Use, Without Individualized Proof of Dangerousness, Violates Second Amendment by Douglas Ankney (p 28)
• FBI Approves Rapid DNA Workflow for CODIS by Jo Ellen Nott (p 29)
• Relevant Conduct: How Federal Sentencing Law Punishes More Than the Crime of Conviction by Richard Resch (p 30)
• Ohio Supreme Court Announces Post-Verdict Judgment of Acquittal Is Not “Final Verdict” Under R.C. 2945.67(A) and Overrules Contrary Precedent, Holding State May Appeal Such Judgment by Leave of Court of Appeals but Not as of Right by David Kim (p 35)
• Pennsylvania Supreme Court Announces Theft by Deception Is Not Continuing Offense While Receiving Stolen Property Continues Only Until Defendant Disposes of Stolen Property by David M. Reutter (p 36)
• Michigan Supreme Court Holds Miranda Waiver Invalid Where LSD-Intoxicated, Hospitalized Defendant Lacked Capacity to Understand Rights Read to Him by David Kim (p 40)
• Florida Supreme Court Announces District Courts of Appeal Have Jurisdiction to Review Denial of Downward Departure Sentence, Holding Sentencing Order Is Final Order Appealable as Matter of Right by David M. Reutter (p 41)
• New Mexico Supreme Court Announces Article II, Section 10 Exclusionary Rule Governs Admissibility of Evidence Seized Outside State by Non-New Mexico Officers by Richard Resch (p 43)
• Virtual Reality Intervention Improves Police-Interaction Skills for Autistic Individuals by Jo Ellen Nott (p 44)
• Ninth Circuit Announces Murder-for-Hire Resulting in Death Under 18 U.S.C. § 1958(a) Is Not Categorically Crime of Violence and Cannot Serve as Predicate Offense for Solicitation Under 18 U.S.C. § 373(a) by David Kim (p 45)
• Louisiana Supreme Court Announces Framework Governing Factual Innocence Claims in First Application of La. C.Cr.P. Art. 926.2, Holding Second-Step Review Encompasses All Relevant Evidence by David M. Reutter (p 47)
• Eleventh Circuit Holds § 2255 Motion Not “Second or Successive” After Intervening Amended Judgment Corrected Unlawful Sentences, Even as to Claims Concerning an Undisturbed Count by David M. Reutter (p 48)
• NEWS IN BRIEF (p 49)

July

• Surveillance for Sale: The Data Broker Loophole and the Fourth Amendment After Chatrie by Richard Resch (p 1)
• Louisiana Supreme Court Declares Unconstitutional Statute Stripping Courts of Authority to Order Payment of Indigent Defense Expert Funds, Holding the Law Infringes on Judiciary’s Constitutionally Granted Jurisdiction Over Felony Cases by David M. Reutter (p 20)
• California Court of Appeal Announces Defendants Who Exercise Right to Jury Trial on Aggravating Circumstances Are Entitled to Closing Argument by Counsel on Those Factors by Douglas Ankney (p 21)
• Retroactive Guideline Amendments: The Narrow Path to a Federal Sentence Reduction by Richard Resch (p 23)
• SCOTUS Holds Federal Habeas Court May Not Consider Post-Trial DNA Evidence That Was Never Presented to Jury When Assessing Whether False Informant Testimony Influenced Verdict by Douglas Ankney (p 28)
• Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia Announces Six-Factor Test for Evaluating Presentence Motions to Withdraw Guilty Pleas Under Rule 32(e), Holds Binding Plea Agreement Does Not Extinguish Defendant’s Ability to Seek Withdrawal by Douglas Ankney (p 29)
• SCOTUS Announces Accessing Google Location History Data Constitutes a Fourth Amendment Search, Holding That Neither Brief Duration Nor Third-Party Storage Negates Reasonable Expectation of Privacy in Cellphone Location Information by Richard Resch (p 31)
• SCOTUS Announces Appeal Waivers in Plea Agreements Unenforceable When Enforcement Would Produce a Miscarriage of Justice, Adopting Majority Circuit Approach by David Kim (p 35)
• Illinois Supreme Court Announces State Common Law and Statutory Issue Preclusion Protections Exceed Federal Double Jeopardy Protections, Holding Currier v. Virginia Does Not Constrain Illinois’s Independent Doctrine by David Kim (p 36)
• California Supreme Court Announces Amended § 1170(b) Applies Retroactively to Plea-Bargained Upper Term Sentences by Douglas Ankney (p 37)
• SCOTUS Holds Mississippi Supreme Court Unreasonably Applied Batson and Unreasonably Found Waiver Where Trial Court Skipped Third Step of Inquiry by David Kim (p 39)
• Supreme Court of Maryland Holds Officer Lacked Reasonable Suspicion for Traffic Stop Based on Acquaintance’s Tip Reporting Innocent Conduct, Reaffirming That “High-Crime Area” Testimony Must Be Particularized by David M. Reutter (p 40)
• Hawai’i Supreme Court Holds Trial Court Failed to Consider HAWJIC 3.19A Factors and “Effect of Suggestiveness on Reliability” When Evaluating Field Show-Up Identifications by David Kim (p 42)
• Passive Data Transforms Smart Devices Into Covert Witnesses in a Silent Surveillance State by Jo Ellen Nott (p 43)
• Michigan Supreme Court Announces Betts Decision Invalidating 2011 SORA as Ex Post Facto Punishment Applies Retroactively to Defendants on Collateral Review by Douglas Ankney (p 44)
• South Carolina Supreme Court Announces Formal Adoption of Fourth Circuit’s Three-Step Cheek Framework for Evaluating Improper Third-Party Contacts With Jurors Under Remmer, Reverses Murdaugh Murder Convictions, and Overrules Ethier Regarding Juror Testim by Douglas Ankney (p 46)
• Safety of “The Wrap” Restraint Device Questioned Amid Fatalities and Criticism From Medical Experts by Jo Ellen Nott (p 47)
• Oregon Supreme Court Announces Witness Competency Under OEC 601 Depends on General Capacity to Be a Witness, Not Ability to Recall a Specific Fact by David M. Reutter (p 48)
• NEWS IN BRIEF (p 49)

June

• Your DNA Was at the Scene, But You Weren’t: How Touch DNA Is Convicting the Innocent by Richard Resch (p 1)
• Minnesota Supreme Court Announces Heightened Voluntariness Inquiry Required for Contingent Guilty Pleas and Holds Plea Withdrawal Is the Proper Remedy When District Court Fails to Probe Coercion Risk by David M. Reutter (p 22)
• Second Circuit Clarifies Limits on Sentencing Court’s Use of Unrelated Co-Defendant Conduct as § 3553(a) “Context” by David Kim (p 24)
• Florida Supreme Court Announces “Results” of Postconviction DNA Testing Under § 925.11 Include Underlying Testing Data Necessary for Expert Analysis, Holding That No Additional Burden Applies Once a Motion for Testing Has Been Granted by David M. Reutter (p 26)
• U.S. Sentencing Commission: 2026 Amendments to the Federal Sentencing Guidelines by Richard Resch (p 28)
• Pennsylvania Supreme Court Announces Calling Known Recalcitrant Witness Before Jury Constitutes Reversible Error and Prosecutorial Misconduct Regardless of Whether Witness Expressly Invokes Fifth Amendment Privilege, Qualifying Contrary Precedent by David M. Reutter (p 32)
• Fifth Circuit Announces Enhanced Supervised Release Provision Under 18 U.S.C. § 3583(k) Does Not Apply to Assimilative Crimes Act Offenses, Limiting Statutory Maximum to Five Years Under § 3583(b) by Douglas Ankney (p 33)
• California Court of Appeal: Vehicle Impoundment Solely to Prevent Further Unlicensed Driving Does Not Satisfy Fourth Amendment’s Community Caretaking Exception; Statutory Authorization Alone Insufficient to Establish Constitutional Reasonableness by Douglas Ankney (p 35)
• Ninth Circuit Announces Remmer Presumption of Prejudice Governs When Racially Biased Juror Participates in Deliberations but Is Excused Before Trial Court Accepts Verdict by David Kim (p 37)
• Sixth Circuit Announces Predetermining a Supervisee’s Revocation Term of Imprisonment at an Earlier Violation Hearing Renders the Resulting Sentence Both Procedurally and Substantively Unreasonable by Douglas Ankney (p 39)
• Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Announces Totality-of-the-Circumstances Framework for Evaluating Delayed Traffic Stops Under Article 14, Holding 24-Hour Gap Between Observed Infraction and Vehicle Stop Was Unreasonable by Douglas Ankney (p 40)
• California Supreme Court Announces Failure to Challenge Ambiguous Jury Instructions on Imputed Malice in a Prior Direct Appeal Does Not Categorically Bar Resentencing Relief Under Penal Code § 1172.6 by David Kim (p 42)
• South Carolina Supreme Court Announces Penile Plethysmograph Results Are Inadmissible Until Underlying Science Becomes Standardized, Affirming Reversal of Sexually Violent Predator Commitment by David Kim (p 44)
• Fourth Circuit Announces ICE’s Execution of a Removal Warrant Following a Final Removal Order Does Not Constitute a “Pending Proceeding” Under 18 U.S.C. § 1505, Vacating Noncitizen’s Obstruction Conviction in Issue of First Impression by Douglas Ankney (p 46)
• SCOTUS Announces Sentencing Disparities Created by Nonretroactive Statutory Amendments Cannot Constitute Extraordinary and Compelling Reasons for Compassionate Release by Richard Resch (p 47)
• The Constitution for Sale: FBI Confirms Resumption of Data Broker Dragnets by Jo Ellen Nott (p 49)
• NEWS IN BRIEF (p 49)

May

• Beyond Geofence Warrants: Chatrie, Reverse-Location Surveillance, and the Fourth Amendment Fight Over Digital Dragnets by Richard Resch (p 1)
• New Jersey Supreme Court Announces Historical CSLI Must Be Presented Through Expert Testimony, Rejecting Lay Mapping of Cell-Tower Locations Because Interpreting CSLI Requires Technical and Specialized Knowledge Beyond “Ken” of Average Juror by David Kim (p 21)
• First Circuit Vacates Drug Courier’s Sentence, Holding District Court Erred by Failing to Conduct Proper Comparative Culpability Analysis Under § 3B1.2 When It Excluded Other Participants in Drug Shipment From Universe of Comparators by David M. Reutter (p 24)
• Chronotype Mismatch as an Emerging Vulnerability Factor in Custodial Confessions by David Kim (p 26)
• Fourth Circuit Announces Defendant Has Standing to Appeal Based Solely on Rogers–Singletary Claim of a “Material Discrepancy Between” Written and Orally Articulated Judgment at Sentencing by Douglas Ankney (p 28)
• Oregon Supreme Court Announces Trial Courts Must Give Complete Oral Final Jury Instructions at Conclusion of Trial, Preliminary Instructions Cannot Substitute for the ORCP 59 B Charge by David Kim (p 30)
• Sixth Circuit Announces Federal Coercion and Enticement Statute Requires Knowledge of Victim’s Minor Status, Deepening Circuit Split by Douglas Ankney (p 32)
• Colorado Supreme Court Holds Prosecutor’s Interlocutory Appeal of Evidentiary Ruling Lacked Arguable Merit, Did Not Toll Speedy Trial Deadline, and Violated Defendant’s Right to Speedy Trial by David Kim (p 34)
• Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Holds Grand Jury No-Bill Terminated Sixth Amendment Right to Counsel, Clarifies Frye Exception by David Kim (p 36)
• Fourth Circuit Holds Officer’s Firearms Questioning at Outset of Traffic Stop Exceeded Permissible Scope Where Officer Abandoned Stop’s Purpose From Inception and Totality of Circumstances Did Not Support Officer-Safety Justification by David Kim (p 38)
• Uncounted COVID Deaths Reveal a Troubling Truth About Official Death Records by Jo Ellen Nott (p 39)
• The Recycled Police Officer: Research Reveals High Cost of Ignoring Prior Misconduct by Jo Ellen Nott (p 40)
• California Supreme Court Announces § 189(e)(2) Requires Nonkiller to Aid the Actual Killer in the Lethal Act, Resolving Appellate Split by David Kim (p 40)
• Colorado Limits the Use of Faulty Field Drug Tests by Jo Ellen Nott (p 42)
• Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Announces That Warrantless-Arrest Statutes Conditioning Authority on an Offense Within an Officer’s “Presence or View” Require Actual Contemporaneous Sensory Perception by David Kim (p 43)
• Guilty Until Proven Innocent: The Due Process Risks of Automated Traffic Enforcement by Jo Ellen Nott (p 45)
• Louisiana Supreme Court Announces Strickland Governs Collateral Claims That Defense Counsel Prevented Defendant From Testifying by David Kim (p 45)
• Delaware Supreme Court Announces Adoption of ABA Standard 3-6.5(b) Governing Prosecutors’ Opening Statements, Reverses Murder Convictions Based on Prosecutor’s References to Co-Defendant’s Guilty Plea by Douglas Ankney (p 46)
• Connecticut Supreme Court Announces Extension of Brady Obligations to Same-Office Impeachment Evidence by David Kim (p 48)
• NEWS IN BRIEF (p 49)

April

• Swabbed at Booking, Searched for Life: How Pre-Conviction DNA Collection Built a Genetic Mass Surveillance System by David Kim (p 1)
• Sixth Circuit Announces State-Law Exceptions to Appeal Deadlines Preserve “Pending” Status Under AEDPA, Holding Belated-Appeal Procedures Toll Federal Habeas Limitations Period by David Reutter (p 20)
• No Blood, No Proof: Study Challenges Post-Cleanup DNA Evidence by Jo Ellen Nott (p 21)
• Tenth Circuit Holds Prior California Child Pornography Conviction Does Not Trigger Federal Mandatory Minimum Because State Statute Encompasses Conduct Beyond Federal Definition Under Categorical Approach by Douglas Ankney (p 22)
• Florida Supreme Court Announces Rule 3.170(f)’s Good-Cause Plea-Withdrawal Standard Does Not Apply at Post-Appeal Resentencing by David Reutter (p 24)
• Kentucky Supreme Court Clarifies Parole Board May Delegate Final Revocation Hearings to Administrative Law Judges but Holds Due Process Requires Parolees Be Permitted to File Exceptions to ALJ Findings Before Board Renders a Final Revocation Decision by Douglas Ankney (p 26)
• Six Years of the First Step Act: Federal Prison Data Reveal Treatment Gains, Persistent Disparities, and Unanswered Questions by Richard Resch (p 28)
• Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court: Amending Indictment to Change Subsections of Aggravated Child Rape Statute Constitutes an Impermissible Substantive Amendment by David Kim (p 31)
• Colorado Supreme Court Announces Defendant Must Be Competent Before Undergoing Mental-Condition Examination Under § 16-8-107(3)(b) by David Reutter (p 32)
• New York Court of Appeals Holds Generic Physical Description Insufficient to Justify Pursuit in Mistaken Identity Case, and Suspect’s Flight Cannot Support Reasonable Suspicion Absent Evidence He Knew He Was Fleeing Law Enforcement by Douglas Ankney (p 35)
• Oregon Supreme Court Announces Article I, Section 9, of State Constitution Protects Privacy in Internet Browsing Conducted Over Public Wi-Fi Networks by David Kim (p 36)
• California Court of Appeal Announces Plea Agreements Cannot Bar § 1172.1 Resentencing, Holds Merit-Based Denial of Petition Is Appealable by David Reutter (p 38)
• New Study Exposes Reliability Gap in Traditional Time-of-Death Methods by Jo Ellen Nott (p 39)
• Pennsylvania Supreme Court Announces Mandatory Life Without Parole for Felony Murder Unconstitutional Under State Constitution, Holding Article I, Section 13 Provides Broader Protections Than Eighth Amendment by Richard Resch (p 40)
• Indiana Supreme Court Clarifies “Single Statutory Offense” for Substantive Double Jeopardy Analysis, Holding Powell Test Governs Multiple Convictions Under Elevated Forms of Common Base Offense by David Kim (p 42)
• SCOTUS Unanimously Announces Heck Does Not Bar §1983 Suits Seeking Purely Prospective Relief, Resolving Circuit Split Over Whether a Prior Conviction Precludes a Forward-Looking Constitutional Challenge to the Statute of Conviction by Richard Resch (p 44)
• SCOTUS Announces Sentencing Reform Act Does Not Authorize Automatic Extension of Supervised Release When Defendant Absconds, Resolving Circuit Split by David Kim (p 46)
• Georgia Supreme Court Clarifies That Failure to Object to Ineligible Juror Does Not Constitute Waiver Unless Party Knew or Could Have Discovered Ineligibility Through Ordinary Diligence by David Reutter (p 47)
• Montana Supreme Court Holds Defendant’s Sentence Must Be Vacated Where District Court Premised Sentence on Defendant’s Exercise of Constitutional Rights to Jury Trial, Silence, and Against Self-Incrimination by Douglas Ankney (p 48)
• News In Brief (p 49)

March

• “I Have Nothing to Hide”: Why Innocent People Should Never Talk to Police by Chuck Sharman (p 1)
• Fifth Circuit Holds Texas Sexual Assault of a Child Statute Sweeps More Broadly Than Federal SORNA Tier Offenses by Douglas Ankney (p 18)
• Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Holds Motion Judge Abused Discretion by Denying Evidentiary Hearing on IAC Claim Where Plea Counsel’s Affidavit Was Not Inherently Inconsistent With Colloquy Statements Regarding Immigration Advice by David Reutter (p 19)
• Fifth Circuit Announces Long Vehicle Protective-Search Exception Requires Contemporaneous Facts Demonstrating Third Party’s Potential Dangerousness Before Warrantless Vehicle Search Is Permissible by David Kim (p 21)
• Washington Supreme Court Clarifies Double Jeopardy Analysis for Multiple Assault Convictions, Holding That Assaultive Acts Occurring Over Short Time Period in Same Location Without Intervening Events Constitute Single Course of Conduct by David Reutter (p 23)
• Fourth Circuit Clarifies Two-Year Statute of Limitations Governs All § 1983 Claims Arising in West Virginia, Regardless of Underlying Tort or Survivability by David Kim (p 25)
• New Jersey Supreme Court Reverses Drug Convictions Under Cumulative Error Doctrine, Holding Combined Effect of Improper References to Television Series, Gun Violence, and Search Warrants Deprived Defendant of Fair Trial by David Reutter (p 26)
• Montana Supreme Court: Due Process Prohibits Courts From Relying on Unproven Charging Allegations When Imposing Sex Offender Registration Duty, Announces First-Impression Rule Limiting Review to Elements of Conviction by David Kim (p 29)
• New York Court of Appeals Announces Coercive Police Tactics Compelling Suspect to Exit Home Constitute “Constructive Entry” Violating Payton, Holds Attenuation Analysis Applies to Third-Party Consent by David Reutter (p 31)
• Eleventh Circuit Announces Hobbs Act Robbery Requires Force Before or During Taking, Reversing Conviction Where Defendant Used Force Only After Co-Conspirator Had Surreptitiously Stolen Property and Departed by David Kim (p 32)
• Second Circuit Holds Exclusion of Evidence Corroborating Defendant’s Testimony About Third-Party Statements Bearing on Intent Was Error, Clarifying That Rule 404(b) Does Not Bar Non-Propensity Evidence Offered to Support Credibility by David Kim (p 34)
• Delaware Supreme Court Announces Four-Part Plain Error Framework, Aligning Prejudice Standard With Federal Approach Requiring Reasonable Probability of Different Outcome by Douglas Ankney (p 37)
• Oregon Supreme Court Announces Bright-Line Rule Requiring Dismissal Without Prejudice When State Fails to Appoint Counsel for Eligible Criminal Defendant Within 60 Days in Misdemeanor Cases or 90 Days in Felony Cases Post-Arraignment by David Kim (p 39)
• A Critical Safeguard for the Accused: NIST’s New DNA Standard Challenges the Reliability of “Messy” Crime Scene Evidence by Jo Ellen Nott (p 41)
• Fourth Circuit Clarifies Revocation Appeal Provides “Procedurally Appropriate Mechanism” for Raising Rogers Challenge to Unannounced Supervised Release Conditions, Vacates Revocation Judgment Based on Null Standard Conditions by David Reutter (p 42)
• Hawaii Supreme Court Announces State Constitution Requires Law Enforcement to Record All Custodial Interrogations, Overruling Three-Decade-Old Precedent and Recognizing New Due Process Right by Sagi Schwartzberg (p 44)
• The Unintentional Informant: Household Pets as Vectors of Human DNA by Jo Ellen Nott (p 44)
• The “Free Trial” Police State by Jo Ellen Nott (p 46)
• Acquitted Conduct Sentencing: Not Guilty – But Punished Anyway by Douglas Ankney (p 47)
• NEWS IN BRIEF (p 49)
• by Jo Ellen Nott I n a significant victory for the reintegration of formerly incarcerated individuals and those with arrest records, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed House Bill 1836, known as the “Clean Slate” Act, on January 16, 2026. The legislation by Jo Ellen Nott (p 49)

February

• Modern Drone Surveillance: The Fourth Amendment’s Blind Spot by David Kim (p 1)
• SCOTUS Announces Single Act Violating Both 18 U.S.C. §§ 924(c)(1)(A)(i) and 924(j) May Result in Only One Conviction, Ruling Congress Did Not Clearly Express Intent to Overcome Blockburger Presumption Against Cumulative Punishment for Same Offense by David Kim (p 18)
• Washington Supreme Court Announces Race and Ethnicity Are Relevant Factors Courts May Consider When Applying the Totality of the Circumstances Test for Determining Whether Suspect Is “In Custody” for Miranda Purposes by David Kim (p 20)
• SCOTUS Clarifies Emergency-Aid Home Entries Require Only an “Objectively Reasonable Basis for Believing” an Occupant Faces Serious Danger, Rejecting a Probable-Cause Standard and Montana’s Terry-Like Caretaker Test by Richard Resch (p 22)
• Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Announces Resende’s “Sequential Prosecution Rule” for Armed Career Criminal Sentencing Enhancement Is Binding Precedent, Not Dictum by Richard Resch (p 24)
• Georgia Supreme Court Clarifies Framework for Evaluating Extraordinary Motions for New Trial Based on Scientific Developments, Holding Trial Court Applied Incorrect Legal Standard in Denying “Shaken Baby Syndrome” Challenge by David Kim (p 26)
• SCOTUS Announces Federal Prisoners May Seek Certiorari Review of Authorization Denials Under § 2255(h) and Are Not Subject to § 2244(b)(1)’s Bar on Previously Presented Claims by Richard Resch (p 28)
• California Supreme Court Announces Excessive Fines Clauses Are the Proper Method to Challenge Punitive Fines, Holds Equal Protection Requires Courts to Consider Defendant’s Inability to Pay Before Imposing Certain Ancillary Assessments Upon Request by David Kim (p 31)
• Washington Supreme Court Holds Courts Must Meaningfully Consider Youth When Assessing Miranda Waiver and Clarifies That Res Gestae Exception Requires Temporal Proximity to Charged Crime by Sagi Schwartzberg (p 33)
• Maine Supreme Judicial Court Announces Trial Courts Must Rigorously Scrutinize Reliability of Expert Testimony in Unrecognized Forensic Fields, Holding Trial Court Erred in Admitting Forensic Podiatry Footprint-Comparison Testimony Without a Demonstrated by Douglas Ankney (p 36)
• Flock’s Gunshot Sensors Are Expanding to “Distress” Sounds by Sagi Schwartzberg (p 38)
• How AI Integration Used by Law Enforcement Fails the Public by Jo Ellen Nott (p 39)
• California Court of Appeal Holds Perkins Operation Violated Miranda Where Known Law Enforcement Officer’s “Stimulation” Tactics Amounted to Custodial Interrogation After Suspect Invoked Right to Counsel by David Kim (p 40)
• Illinois Supreme Court Announces Six-Element Jeffries Test Governs Self-Defense Jury Instructions in Cases Involving Force Against Police Officers, Rejecting Appellate Court Approaches That Either Created Separate Threshold Inquiry or Automatically Requir by Douglas Ankney (p 42)
• Pennsylvania Supreme Court Announces Expert Testimony on Manner of Death Must Satisfy Same Reasonable-Degree-of-Certainty Standard Applicable to All Expert Opinions by David Kim (p 44)
• Supreme Court of Maryland Announces Police Officer’s Observation of Driver Manipulating Cellphone Screen Does Not, Without Additional Facts, Establish Reasonable Suspicion for Traffic Stop Under Fourth Amendment by Douglas Ankney (p 46)
• When Words Mislead: Replacing “Touch” and “Trace DNA” with “Transfer DNA” by Jo Ellen Nott (p 48)
• SCOTUS Announces MVRA Restitution Constitutes Criminal Punishment Subject to Ex Post Facto Clause Protections by David Kim (p 48)
• News In Brief (p 50)

January

• Aphantasia: Why Truthful Witnesses Can Sound Like Liars by Richard Resch (p 1)
• California Supreme Court Announces Single Criminal Act Harming Multiple Victims Constitutes Only One Strike Under Three Strikes Law by David Kim (p 16)
• First Circuit Announces Modification of Juvenile’s Life-­Without-­Parole Sentence to Parole-­Eligible Life Term Constitutes “New Judgment” Under AEDPA, Exempting Second-­in-­Time Habeas Petition From Gatekeeping Requirements by Richard Resch (p 18)
• Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Announces Duration of GPS Monitoring Must Be Considered in Individualized Reasonableness Determination and Resulting Monitoring Period May Be Shorter Than Probationary Term by David Kim (p 20)
• Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Announces Adoption of Transferred Intent Self-­Defense by Matthew Clarke (p 20)
• Digital Parallel Construction: Detecting and Challenging Hidden AI by Richard Resch (p 22)
• California Court of Appeal: Trial Courts Have Inherent Authority to Correct Unauthorized Sentences at Any Time Without Habeas Petition by David Kim (p 27)
• Tiny Plants, Big Consequences: Moss Evidence in Courtrooms by David Kim (p 29)
• Pennsylvania Supreme Court (Opinion Announcing the Judgment of the Court): No Reasonable Expectation of Privacy in Unprotected Google Searches by David Kim (p 32)
• Delaware Supreme Court Announces Trial Courts Must First Resolve Defense Counsel’s Motion to Withdraw Before Addressing Defendant’s Plea-­Withdrawal Request, Holding Failure to Do So Violates Sixth Amendment Right to Counsel by David Kim (p 36)
• Supreme Court of Maryland Announces Division of Correction Must Immediately Apply Time-Served Credit Against Valid Sentences When Convictions Are Vacated and May Not Toll Execution Pending Reprosecution; New Sentences Arising From New Convictions Take by Sagi Schwartzberg (p 38)
• Iowa Supreme Court Announces Framework for Admissibility of Expert Testimony on Eyewitness Identification, Holding Generalized Testimony on Psychological Factors Ordinarily Should Be Admitted by David Kim (p 40)
• Federal Funds Now Available for Police Drone Purchases by Jo Ellen Nott (p 44)
• Utah Supreme Court Announces Framework for Analyzing Combined Brady and Napue Violations, Affirms Postconviction Relief in Capital Murder Case by Douglas Ankney (p 46)
• Eighth Circuit Announces Presidential Commutation Does Not Moot Challenge to Underlying Sentence by Richard Resch (p 48)
• NEWS IN BRIEF (p 49)