by Douglas Ankney
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit reaffirmed that a district court must personally invite a defendant to allocute at the time of sentencing.
A jury convicted Michael Scripps of seven counts of wire fraud for fraudulently transferring millions of dollars from the bank accounts ...
by Douglas Ankney
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit explained the meaning of conduct that is “part of the same course of conduct or common scheme or plan” when a district court determines whether it is relevant conduct for sentencing purposes.
On January 22, 2018, Tom Lewis ...
by Douglas Ankney
On June 30, 2020, the Supreme Court of Hawai’i announced that, going forward, police officers are not permitted to testify in expert or lay capacity that a driver appeared intoxicated, overruling State v. Toyomura, 904 P.2d 893 (Haw. 1995).
Maxwell F. Jones was convicted following a ...
by Douglas Ankney
May 26, 2020, demonstrations around the nation erupted over the police killing of George Floyd. Shortly afterwards, the FBI signed an expedited agreement to extend its relationship with Dataminr, The Intercept reported.
Dataminr is a company that monitors social media and had already had contracts with the ...
by Douglas Ankney
NYC Mesh is a free community owned internet service provider in New York City that is operated by a group of activists. The activists’ new project involves archiving hundreds of gigabytes of the city’s surveillance camera footage in an effort to hold police accountable.
Aakash Patel, a ...
by Douglas Ankney
The Supreme Court of the United States (“SCOTUS”), in a 5-4 decision, ruled in favor of a defendant who argued that the State of Oklahoma (“Oklahoma”) lacked jurisdiction to prosecute him because he is a Native American, and his alleged crime occurred on tribal land. The decision ...
by Douglas Ankney
Perhaps now those who are actually innocent in Virginia will be able to prove their claims, thanks to legislation signed by Governor Ralph Northam. The Writ of Actual Innocence law was created in Virginia in 2004. Only four wrongfully convicted persons have obtained relief under the law’s ...
by Douglas Ankney
The Supreme Court of Hawai’i held that showing a video to the jury of a defendant declining an officer’s request to reenact the crime violated the defendant’s right to remain silent.
Anthony G. Beaudet-Close had an altercation with Luke Ault. Ault sustained life-threatening injuries, was hospitalized, and ...
by Douglas Ankney
The Supreme Court of Hawai’i announced that, going forward, trial courts have a duty to obtain a knowing and voluntary waiver of the penal-responsibility defense.
In June 2014, Michael Glenn was charged with Terroristic Threatening in the First Degree. Upon motion of defense counsel, the circuit court ...
by Douglas Ankney
The Supreme Court of Colorado announced the framework for distinguishing a true threat from constitutionally protected speech.
A few days after a shooting at Arapahoe High School, students from Littleton High School (“LHS”) got into an argument on Twitter with students from Thomas Jefferson High School (“TJHS”). ...
