Skip navigation
CLN bookstore

Articles by Douglas Ankney

Washington Supreme Court: Defendant Detained for Search at Border Was ‘In Custody’ for Miranda Purposes

The Supreme Court of Washington determined that Alejandro Escalante was “in custody” and entitled to the warnings enunciated in Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966), when he was detained for a search at the U.S.-Canada border.

Escalante and three friends were returning from a music ...

Dogs Can Detect One-Billionth of a Teaspoon of Gasoline

According to a recent study from the University of Alberta, trained dogs can detect gasoline in trace amounts as small as one-billionth of a teaspoon (or 5 pico-liters). “During an arson investigation, a dog may be used to identify debris that contains traces of ignitable liquids — ...

Missouri Shows Indifference to Human Life by Proceeding with Execution Amid Pandemic

The “Show Me” state showed indifference to human life by carrying out the death sentence of Walter Barton on May 19, 2020, at the state prison in Bonne Terre, Missouri. Neither the courts nor the governor would intervene.

Executions require interactions among large numbers of people. Court ...

FBI Provides Fitness App in Exchange for Users’ GPS Coordinates

During the coronavirus lockdown, the FBI is urging people to stay in shape by downloading its Fitness App. On March 23, 2020, the agency tweeted “download the FBI’s Physical Fitness Test app to learn proper form for exercises you can do at home like pushups and sit ...

Using Doctor-Prescribed Marijuana Could Send Some People Back to Prison

Melissa Gass is a wife and a mother of five children who suffers from seizures as a result of a car crash when she was 10 years old. The seizures occur weekly, sometimes daily. She suddenly feels a throbbing pain in the back, left side of her ...

Police Use of Robotic Technology Raises Civil Liberty Concerns

Fearing the potential abuse of robotics technology ...

Seventh Circuit: Defendant’s Statement Given to Pretrial Services Can’t Be Admitted to Impeach Witness at Trial

In a case of first impression, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit ruled that it is impermissible to admit a statement made by the defendant to Pretrial Services for the purpose of impeaching the testimony of a witness at trial.

In August 2014, Detective ...

California Court of Appeal Explains Procedural Requirements for Vacating Felony-Murder Conviction Via Section 1170.95 Petition

The Court of Appeal of California, Sixth Appellate District has explained the procedural requirements for adjudication of petitions filed pursuant to Penal Code § 1170.95.

In the middle of the night of June 14, 1991, John Lewis Drayton and three other men entered the Wards’ home with ...

Police Violence Detrimental to Public Health

by Douglas Ankney

The 25,000-member American Public Health Association (“APHA”) issued a statement addressing police violence that begins: “Law enforcement violence is a critical public health issue.” And in what could be termed a “typical case in support,” Joseph Goldstein of The New York Times reported the tragic stories of ...

New Hampshire Supreme Court: Police Violated Miranda in Obtaining First Statement, and State Failed to Prove Second Statement Was Voluntary

The Supreme Court of New Hampshire affirmed a superior court’s decision suppressing the initial incriminating statements made by Dominic Carrier because police violated the protections of Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966). The Court also affirmed the suppression of additional statements because the State failed ...

 

 

Stop Prison Profiteering Campaign Ad 2
Advertise here
CLN Subscribe Now Ad 450x600