by Mark Wilson
The Oregon Court of Appeals held that a lower court improperly failed to suppress blood alcohol content ("BAC") evidence taken in violation of a defendant's constitutional right to remain silent.
Oregon police received information about someone driving erratically and the wrong way, nearly causing a head-on collision. ...
by Mark Wilson
The Oregon Supreme Court held that a lower court misapplied the prejudice prong of the ineffective assistance of counsel standard when it found petitioner’s claim “purely speculative” in the absence of “affidavits of Supreme Court justices regarding whether the court might have allowed review.”
In 2001, Melton ...
by Mark Wilson
“Officer Samson Ajir violated police directives, and common sense, by engaging in a dangerous foot chase upon entry upon a scene where Mr. Johnson was in a mental health crisis. Officer Ajir needlessly shot Mr. Johnson three times,” according to a federal wrongful death suit Johnson’s mother ...
by Mark Wilson
The Oregon Supreme Court held that a legislative reduction of voter-approved mandatory sentences for repeat property offenders that was passed by a mere simple majority was not invalid.
Since 1902, the Oregon Constitution has recognized a dual system of legislation and “two law-making bodies, the legislative assembly ...
by Mark Wilson
The Supreme Court of Oregon ruled that the Oregon Constitution requires that a warrant to seize and search a computer (and other digital devices) identify the information to be searched for, including the time that the information was created, accessed, or otherwise used. Failure to provide such ...
by Mark Wilson
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that Washington state’s accomplice liability statute renders the state’s drug trafficking law too broad to serve as an Armed Career Criminal Act (“ACCA”) predicate offense.
The ACCA requires a 15-year mandatory minimum sentence for individuals convicted ...
by Mark Wilson
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that Washington state’s accomplice liability statute renders the state’s drug trafficking law too broad to serve as an Armed Career Criminal Act (“ACCA”) predicate offense.
The ACCA requires a 15-year mandatory minimum sentence for individuals convicted ...
by Mark Wilson
The Supreme Court of Oregon held that the Oregon Constitution prohibits prosecutors from using a criminal defendant’s refusal to submit to a breath test as evidence against him in a prosecution for driving under the influence of intoxicants (“DUI”).
Under Oregon’s Implied Consent law, an individual ...
by Mark Wilson
The New Mexico Court of Appeals held that the state was required to pay statutory damages of $100 per day for a four-year non-disclosure of requested public records.
Longtime animal welfare activist Marcy Britton learned of raids by the newly formed New Mexico Attorney General’s Animal Cruelty ...
by Mark Wilson
The City of Norwalk, Connecticut, paid $25,000 to settle false arrest and malicious prosecution claims against a Norwalk Police Department (NPD) detective.
On October 3, 2013, Robert Ragsdale complained to the NPD that he was robbed by an assailant who stole his watch and $10. He described ...
