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Eleventh Circuit Announces Hobbs Act Robbery Requires Force Before or During Taking, Reversing Conviction Where Defendant Used Force Only After Co-Conspirator Had Surreptitiously Stolen Property an...

Article • March 1, 2026 • from CLN April, 2026

Filed under: New Trial/Judgment of Acquittal, Theft, Statutory Construction/Interpretation, Predicate Acts/Offenses, Hobbs Act

Eleventh Circuit Announces Hobbs Act Robbery Requires Force Before or During Taking, Reversing Conviction Where Defendant Used Force Only After Co-Conspirator Had Surreptitiously Stolen Property and Departed by David Kim by David Kim The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit held that a taking of property does …

NEWS IN BRIEF

Article • March 1, 2026 • from CLN April, 2026

NEWS IN BRIEF by Alaska: Alaska News Source reported that former Bethel Police Department (BPD) Off. Jonathan Murphy, 39, was convicted on February 13, 2026, of a brutal use of force. Body-camera footage captured Murphy during a December 2023 stolen-vehicle stop as he struck the compliant driver, Bernard Mael. When …

SCOTUS Announces Federal Prisoners May Seek Certiorari Review of Authorization Denials Under § 2255(h) and Are Not Subject to § 2244(b)(1)’s Bar on Previously Presented Claims

Article • February 1, 2026 • from CLN March, 2026

Filed under: Habeas Corpus, AEDPA, Appealable Issues/Orders, Statutory Construction/Interpretation, Authority and Jurisdiction

SCOTUS Announces Federal Prisoners May Seek Certiorari Review of Authorization Denials Under § 2255(h) and Are Not Subject to § 2244(b)(1)’s Bar on Previously Presented Claims by Richard Resch by Richard Resch The Supreme Court of the United States held that 28 U.S.C. § 2244(b)(3)(E), which prohibits certiorari review of authorization …

News In Brief

Article • February 1, 2026 • from CLN March, 2026

News In Brief by Arkansas: The Saline Courier reported a swift fall from grace for Bryant Police Department (BPD) Sgt. Brett Carpenter, after he was observed off-duty driving his pickup the wrong way on a service road off I-30 on January 13, 2026. Saline County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO) deputies stopped …

NEWS IN BRIEF

Article • January 1, 2026 • from CLN February, 2026

NEWS IN BRIEF by Alabama: WABM in Birmingham reported that former Eleventh Judicial Circuit Presiding Judge Gilbert P. Self, 64, was sentenced to 51-1/2 years in state prison on December 17, 2025, following his conviction the previous month on public corruption charges. As CLN reported, a jury found him guilty …

NEWS IN BRIEF

Article • December 15, 2025 • from CLN January, 2026

NEWS IN BRIEF by Alabama: In a rare victory for ethics enforcement in the Cotton State, a Lauderdale County jury returned a guilty verdict on November 7, 2025, against a former state judge accused of public corruption. According to the Alabama Political Reporter, Gilbert Porterfield Self, Sr., former presiding judge …

Centurion of Florida LLC v. HRDC, FL, Order and Final Judgment Awarding Attorney's Fees and Costs, Counterclaim-Public Records Request, 2025

Filing • November 21, 2025

Filed under: Public Records Act

Centurion of Florida LLC v. HRDC, FL, Order and Final Judgment Awarding Attorney's Fees and Costs, Counterclaim-Public Records Request, 2025 Filing # 236344305 E-Filed 11/21/2025 01:53:06 PM IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE SEVENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT, IN AND FOR PUTNAM COUNTY, FLORIDA CENTURION OF FLORIDA LLC PLAINTIFF/COUNTER-DEFENDANT CASE NO.: DIVISION: …

Centurion of Florida LLC v. HRDC, FL, Order and Final Judgment Awarding Attorney's Fees and Costs, Counterclaim-Public Records Request, 2025

Brief • November 21, 2025

Filed under: Public Records Act

Centurion of Florida LLC v. HRDC, FL, Order and Final Judgment Awarding Attorney's Fees and Costs, Counterclaim-Public Records Request, 2025 Filing # 236344305 E-Filed 11/21/2025 01:53:06 PM IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE SEVENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT, IN AND FOR PUTNAM COUNTY, FLORIDA CENTURION OF FLORIDA LLC PLAINTIFF/COUNTER-DEFENDANT CASE NO.: DIVISION: …

NEWS IN BRIEF

Article • November 15, 2025 • from CLN December, 2025

NEWS IN BRIEF by Alabama: The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama sentenced former Centre Police Department (CPD) Off. Michael Kilgore, 41, to four years in federal prison on October 8, 2025, after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in a wild evidence-planting scheme to …

Wilson v. Dixon, FL, Second Declaration of Stefano Schiavon, Conditions of Confinement, 2025

Brief • November 2, 2025

Filed under: Conditions of Confinement, Ventilation, Exposure to Heat

Wilson v. Dixon, FL, Second Declaration of Stefano Schiavon, Conditions of Confinement, 2025 Case 1:24-cv-24253-KMW Document 82-2 Entered on FLSD Docket 11/02/2025 Page 1 of 92 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA MIAMI DIVISION CASE NO. 1:24-cv-24253 DWAYNE WILSON, TYRONE HARRIS, and GARY WHEELER, individually and on behalf …

NEWS IN BRIEF

Article • October 15, 2025 • from CLN November, 2025

NEWS IN BRIEF by California: Former Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Deputy Matthew Joseph Dessert, 42, was sentenced to nine years in prison on August 8, 2025, for sexually abusing his teenage daughter. According to The Modesto Bee, County Superior Court Judge Jeff Mangar said that the lawman violated his office’s trust …

Friends of Everglades v. Kristi Noem, Omnibus Order, Mass Migrant Detention, 2025

Brief • August 21, 2025

Filed under: Limitations on Period of Detention, Detention - Generally, Immigration Detention

Friends of Everglades v. Kristi Noem, Omnibus Order, Mass Migrant Detention, 2025 Case 1:25-cv-22896-KMW Document 131 Entered on FLSD Docket 08/21/2025 Page 1 of 82 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA CASE NO. 25-22896-CV-WILLIAMS FRIENDS OF THE EVERGLADES, INC., et al., Plaintiffs, v. KRISTI NOEM, et al., Defendants. …

News in Brief

Article • August 1, 2025 • from CLN August, 2025

Filed under: Assault by Police, Misconduct/Corruption, Guard Misconduct, Police Misconduct, Stun Guns/Tasers, Immigration, False Arrest, Evidence - Integrity/Reliability of

News in Brief by Alabama: Walker County Sheriff Nick Smith faces six misdemeanor counts after a grand jury indicted him on May 30, 2025, for knowingly employing uncertified personnel. WBRC in Birmingham reported that Smith’s second-in-command, Chief Deputy Ralph Williams, was also indicted on one count of providing false or …

Eleventh Circuit Announces Sixth Amendment Right to Proceed Pro Se at Sentencing if Defendant ‘Clearly and Unequivocally’ Expresses Desire to Do So After Faretta Inquiry

Article • August 1, 2025 • from CLN August, 2025

Filed under: Mootness, Counsel - Withdrawal/Substitution of, Self-representation

Eleventh Circuit Announces Sixth Amendment Right to Proceed Pro Se at Sentencing if Defendant ‘Clearly and Unequivocally’ Expresses Desire to Do So After Faretta Inquiry by Jeffrey Cohen The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit held that the defendant had clearly and unequivocally asserted his Sixth Amendment …

News in Brief

Article • July 1, 2025 • from CLN July, 2025

Filed under: Misconduct/Corruption, Pepper Spray/Tear Gas, Shootings, Dogs, Police--Excessive Force, Brady Violations, Home Search, Bribery/Extortion/Theft, Brady Rule violations, Perjury/Perjured Testimony

News in Brief by Arkansas: The downward spiral of former Hot Spring County Sheriff Derek “Scott” Finkbeiner, 47, continued with his fourth arrest on May 2, 2025, reported KATV out of Little Rock. The arrest stemmed from Finkbeiner’s attempt to contact a witness, co-defendant Jordan Hammond, through the Signal app, …

News in Brief

Article • May 15, 2025 • from CLN June, 2025

Filed under: News in Brief

News in Brief by Alabama: On March 31, 2025, in State of Alabama v. Mac Marquette, Morgan County Circuit Judge Charles Elliott denied former Decatur Police Department officer Marquette’s motion for self-defense immunity in the fatal shooting of Steve Perkins. According to the Associate Press, the denial depended legally on …

NEWS IN BRIEF

Article • March 15, 2025 • from CLN April, 2025

Filed under: News in Brief

NEWS IN BRIEF by Alabama: On February 19, 2025, a grand jury called for the immediate abolition of the Hanceville Police Department for its “rampant culture of corruption” that turned it into a criminal enterprise. The New York Post reported that an investigation followed the death of dispatcher Christopher Willingham, …

News in Brief

Article • February 15, 2025 • from CLN March, 2025

Filed under: News in Brief

News in Brief by Alaska: In a rare move, federal prosecutors asked an Alaska judge to vacate the 2019 assault conviction of long-time felon Johnny-Lee Preston Burk, citing a concealed relationship between the presiding judge and a prosecutor in the case. The Alaska Beacon reported that United States District Judge …

Eleventh Circuit: Asylee’s Florida Convictions for Marijuana Possession and Lewd and Lascivious Battery Do Not Warrant Removal Under INA

Article • February 1, 2025 • from CLN February, 2025

Filed under: Immigration, Enforcement of Immigration Laws, Marijuana Laws/Issues, Assault Weapons, Nationality/National Origin

Eleventh Circuit: Asylee’s Florida Convictions for Marijuana Possession and Lewd and Lascivious Battery Do Not Warrant Removal Under INA by Sam Rutherford by Sam Rutherford The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit held that an asylee’s convictions in Florida state court for possession of marijuana under Fla. Stat. …

News in Brief

Article • February 1, 2025 • from CLN February, 2025

Filed under: News in Brief

News in Brief by Arizona: Phoenix resident Penny McCarthy, 66, endured a terrifying ordeal after United States Marshals arrested her at gunpoint in her home, mistaking her for a fugitive, according to KNXV. Body camera footage shows officers refusing to confirm her identity despite McCarthy repeatedly asking them. “I truly …