by Derek Gilna
U.S. sanctions have been imposed on two officials in the International Criminal Court(“ICC”) following the ICC’s 2019 decision to reopen an investigation into war crimes in Afghanistan.
On September 2, 2020, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo sanctioned Fatou Bensouda, the chief prosecutor, ...
by Derek Gilna
LeBron James, known for his skillful brand of basketball and leadership on the hard court, has been using his platform as one of the best known American athletes to advocate for voting rights for convicted felons.
James, who has made no secret of his opinion of several ...
by Derek Gilna
Arrest statistics and eyewitnesses seem to show that the New York City Police Department is continuing its pattern of making low-level arrests for non-violent crime in low income areas of the city during the COVID-19 pandemic, which had killed 23,592 people in the city as of August 11. Many of these arrests are made by officers failing to wear masks and gloves and not practicing “social distancing.”
On a Friday night in April 2020, police arrested a child selling chips and candy at a Harlem subway station, grabbing and restraining him after he failed to obey commands to stop. The arrest came hours after the allegedly violent arrest, filmed by onlookers, of a man who refused to leave a different subway station when told to disburse.
“Government and businesses are drastically modifying practices to limit physical contact, and yet that practice has not been implemented by NYPD,” said the Legal Aid Society, in a letter to Mayor Bill de Blasio and Police Commissioner Dermot Shea.
“We are deeply concerned that our New York City government officials have not modified or reassessed how the NYPD interacts with already vulnerable communities,” it said. “In every aspect of life, we ...
by Derek Gilna
Tara Reade, who has accused presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden of sexually assaulting her in 1993 when she worked for him as an aide, now faces accusations that she inflated her academic credentials to win certification as a prosecution expert witness on domestic violence in several criminal proceedings in Monterrey County, California. That county’s public defender has promised to investigate those charges and a list of clients who might have been affected is being compiled.
Questions about Reade’s credentials include whether she received an undergraduate degree at Antioch University in Washington state. A spokesman for the university said that although Reade attended classes, she received no degree, which Reade disputes. Reade later earned a law degree from Seattle University.
On May 21, 2020, Reade’s lead attorney, Douglas H. Wigdor, known for his vigorous advocacy of victims of sexual assault, further complicated the situation when he withdrew from representing her, without providing reasons for the move, stating the move was, “by no means a reflection on whether then-Senator Biden sexually assaulted Ms. Reade. Much of what has been written about Reade is not probative of whether then-Senator Biden sexually assaulted her, but rather is intended to victim-shame ...
by Derek Gilna
A December 2018 report by the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury after its audit of the state’s Private Probation Services Council found that it “did not adequately oversee private probation entities, putting probationers at risk.” The period was for July 1, 2013, through October 31, 2018.
The ...
by Derek Gilna
The bedrock principle of criminal defense is to force the prosecution to prove its case against his client, but in the case of Randolph Farwell, his attorney agreed to a stipulation of facts that was tantamount to a guilty plea because it admitted each element of the ...
by Derek Gilna
The Supreme Court of Indiana ruled that following the reversal of a gang enhancement sentence under Ind. Code § 35-50-2-15 the trial court on remand is required to resentence the defendant on all remaining underlying convictions.
Marquell M. Jackson had been convicted of several criminal offenses ...
by Derek Gilna
Video simulators are now used by some police departments to train their officers in the use of non-lethal force. A 2005 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit that dogs are property, whose killing constitutes an unreasonable seizure and a violation of the ...
by Derek Gilna
Although bigger cities and states have gotten most of the negative publicity regarding police misconduct, Minnesota and its biggest city, Minneapolis, are drawing unwanted national attention for over $60 million in payouts the past 11 years. Minneapolis’ share of that figure was almost $21 million, or 35 ...
by Derek Gilna
The city of Detroit, Michigan, has settled a Section 1983 federal civil rights suit filed by Kenneth Savage and Ashley Franklin after police unnecessarily shot three dogs while confiscating potted marijuana plants from the owners’ enclosed yard.
The $225,000 settlement was the most recent payout by the ...
