by Doug Ankney
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit vacated a defendant’s sentence for failing to register as a sex offender under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”), holding that the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas committed plain …
by Doug Ankney
Sitting en banc, the Supreme Court of Delaware vacated the defendant’s convictions and remanded, holding that the prosecution’s use of indirect hearsay evidence violated his Sixth Amendment confrontation rights. Although defense counsel did not object at trial, the Court applied plain error review and determined …
by Douglas Ankney
When Pontius Pilate declared he found “no fault” in the man before him, he sent Jesus to be crucified anyway. Two thousand years later, a version of this practice persists in America’s federal courts. It is called “acquitted conduct sentencing,” and it permits judges to …
by Doug Ankney
In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Judicial Court of Maine held that the trial court erred in admitting expert testimony comparing partial, sock-clad bloody footprints found at the crime scene to sample prints taken from the defendant. The Court determined that the State’s expert did …
by Doug Ankney
In a unanimous opinion, with a special concurrence by Chief Justice Neville, the Supreme Court of Illinois held that when a defendant seeks a self-defense jury instruction after using force against a police officer, the trial court must apply the established six-element test from People …
by Doug Ankney
The Supreme Court of Maryland held that police officers lacked reasonable suspicion to conduct a traffic stop based solely on their observation of a driver manipulating, touching, or pressing the screen of a mobile phone while operating a vehicle. The Court explained that because Maryland’s …
by Douglas Ankney
In a case involving an issue of first impression in Utah, the Supreme Court of Utah adopted a two-step analytical framework for evaluating prejudice when both Brady and Napue violations are present, drawing from approaches utilized by several United States Courts of Appeals. Applying the …
by Douglas Ankney
The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit vacated Dionel Guía-Sendeme’s sentence and remanded for resentencing, holding that the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico erred in its mitigating role analysis under U.S. Sentencing Guidelines § 3B1.2 by limiting the …
by Doug Ankney
“I consider trial by jury as the only anchor ever yet imagined by man, by which a government can be held to the principles of its constitution.” —Thomas Jefferson (Personal letter to Thomas Paine, dated July 11, 1789)
The American criminal justice system is …
by Douglas Ankney
The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit affirmed the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico’s grant of 28 U.S.C. § 2254 habeas relief, holding that the Commonwealth intelligently waived any § 2244(d)(1)(C) timeliness defense by knowingly omitting it from …
