by Anthony Accurso
In its January 8, 2021, opinion, the Supreme Court of Alabama held that a law enforcement agent’s testimony about how historical cell-site data could be used to determine the approximate location of the defendants’ cellphones is scientific testimony, and as such, it must be properly assessed for ...
by Anthony Accurso
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania held that the Article I, Section 8 of the Commonwealth’s Constitution affords greater privacy protections to drivers than the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, reviving the rule that law enforcement must establish both probable cause and exigent circumstances to justify a ...
by Anthony Accurso
The Supreme Court of Kentucky clarified the meaning of the statute that allows a defendant to be eligible for parole after serving 20% of their sentence despite committing a violent crime resulting in death.
Michael Wayne Crowe rented a hotel room with his wife Felicia Walker on ...
by Anthony Accurso
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit held that evidence of mere possession of drugs together with an officer’s generalized allegations regarding the behavior of drug traffickers did not provide sufficient probable cause to search the photos on a suspect’s cellphone.
Bryan Matthew Morton was ...
by Anthony Accurso
Law enforcement use of unmanned aerial vehicles, UAVs or “drones,” became more common during the pandemic and nationwide protests, but new drone technology being deployed by police departments has troubling implications for civil rights.
Chula Vista, a city of approximately 50 square miles between San Diego and ...
by Anthony Accurso
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit vacated a defendant’s conviction after the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York issued jury instructions that implied the defendant had a motive to lie on the stand.
Juan Solano was arrested after transporting a ...
by Anthony Accurso
After being identified by faulty facial recognition software, a New Jersey man spent 10 days in jail and forfeited his savings to beat the charges.
Nijeer Parks, 33, had two previous convictions for selling drugs and had served six years in prison. But he turned his life ...
by Anthony Accurso
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit vacated a defendant’s sentence after ruling the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado improperly applied an enhancement under § 2K2.1(a)(4)(A) of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines for having a prior crime of violence that is not, in ...
by Anthony Accurso
The Supreme Court of Indiana held that a defendant’s right to a speedy trial was violated where he was made to wait six-and-a-half years before he was retried on a pending 30-year habitual-offender enhancement.
Stanley V. Watson was convicted by a jury in 2001 of dealing cocaine ...
by Anthony Accurso
A police raid on the home of aFlorida data scientist involving officers who aimed loaded firearms at young children draws attention to issues of police misuse of force, outdated technology laws, and the possible misuse of law enforcement to retaliate against a whistleblower.
According to reporting by ...
