by Douglas Ankney
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (“EFF”) partnered with Reynolds School of Journalism at the University of Nevada-Reno (“RSJ”), to release for use by journalists, academics, and the general public a database containing thousands of data points on over 3,000 sheriff’s offices and police departments nationwide. The …
by Douglas Ankney
The Supreme Court of the United States (“SCOTUS”) remanded Terence Tramaine Andrus’ case to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals (“TCCA”), directing the TCCA “to address Strickland prejudice in light of the correct legal principles.”
Andrus, 18, was high on marijuana and PCP when …
by Douglas Ankney
The Supreme Court of Indiana held that a defendant cannot be forced to unlock her smartphone because doing so would violate her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. The Court also provided a detailed rationale against extending the “foregone conclusion” exception of Fisher v. United States …
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, …
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 …
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 …
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.
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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 …
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. …
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 …
