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Corrupt Kansas City Detective Sexually Assaulted Women with Impunity for Years

Article • August 20, 2022

Filed under: Staff-Prisoner Assault

Corrupt Kansas City Detective Sexually Assaulted Women with Impunity for Years by Jo Ellen Nott by Jo Ellen Nott Kansas City, Kansas, (“KCK”) retired detective Roger Golubski used his position of authority and power to sexually abuse at least 70 women of color and with limited resources during his long …

Tenth Circuit Announces District Court Abused Discretion by Imposing Harsher Sentence Based on Defendant’s Decision to Plead Guilty Without Plea Agreement

Article • June 15, 2022 • from CLN July, 2022

Filed under: U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Rejection

Tenth Circuit Announces District Court Abused Discretion by Imposing Harsher Sentence Based on Defendant’s Decision to Plead Guilty Without Plea Agreement by David Reutter by David M. Reutter In a case of first impression in any circuit, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit held that under 18 …

Tenth Circuit: Where Defendant Actually Sentenced to Drug Treatment and Probation Rather Than 28-32 Months in Prison as Per State Sentencing Guidelines, Conviction Can’t Serve as Predicate ‘Felony’ f...

Article • March 15, 2022 • from CLN April, 2022

Filed under: U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Firearms Owners' Protection Act, In Connection With Another Felony Offense, Drug Testing/Treatment Programs, Probation, Parole & Supervised Release

Tenth Circuit: Where Defendant Actually Sentenced to Drug Treatment and Probation Rather Than 28-32 Months in Prison as Per State Sentencing Guidelines, Conviction Can’t Serve as Predicate ‘Felony’ for 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1) by Dale Chappell by Dale Chappell The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit held that …

News in Brief

Article • February 15, 2022 • from CLN March, 2022

Filed under: News in Brief

News in Brief by Alabama: On December 21, 2021, two former police officers in West Blocton, Alabama, were arrested and charged with sexual assault. According to WBRC, a news station serving Birmingham, the Tuscaloosa Police Department announced that the former officers, Craig Baird Arnold, 49, and Brian Keith Whatley, 50, …

News in Brief

Article • December 15, 2021 • from CLN January, 2022

Filed under: News in Brief

News in Brief by Arizona: Claims for $300,000 were filed in September 2021 against the city of Chandler, Arizona, in advance of a lawsuit planned by two activists arrested during a protest against police brutality six months earlier. According to a report by the Phoenix New Times, the men, Darien …

Kansas Supreme Court Affirms Reversal and Dismissal of Murder Charges Based on Speedy Trial Violation

Article • October 15, 2021 • from CLN November, 2021

Filed under: Speedy Trial

Kansas Supreme Court Affirms Reversal and Dismissal of Murder Charges Based on Speedy Trial Violation by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The Supreme Court of Kansas affirmed a judgment of the Court of Appeals (“COA”) that reversed Danny W. Queen’s convictions for intentional second-degree murder; attempted second-degree murder; and attempted …

Kansas Supreme Court Affirms Dismissal of Convictions After State Fails to Preserve Issue for Appeal

Article • July 15, 2021 • from CLN August, 2021

Kansas Supreme Court Affirms Dismissal of Convictions After State Fails to Preserve Issue for Appeal by Dale Chappell by Dale Chappell The Supreme Court of Kansas upheld the dismissal of a defendant’s convictions after the district court found several instances of ineffective assistance of counsel (“IAC”), including an actual conflict …

HRDC v. Johnson County, Kansas, et al., KS, Censorship, Settlement, 2021

Filing • April 29, 2021

Filed under: Settlements, PLN Litigation, Censorship

HRDC v. Johnson County, Kansas, et al., KS, Censorship, Settlement, 2021 IN THE MATTER OF: Human Rights Defense Center v. Johnson County, KS, et al. Case No. 2:20-cv-02447 U.S. DISTRICT COURT, DISTRICT OF KANSAS ___________________________________________ SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT THIS SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT (hereinafter referred to as the “Agreement”) is made and entered …

Kansas Supreme Court: Wrong Standard Used in Review of Plea Withdrawal Motion Requires Remand

Article • February 15, 2021 • from CLN March, 2021

Filed under: Resentencing, Plea Agreements/Guilty Pleas

Kansas Supreme Court: Wrong Standard Used in Review of Plea Withdrawal Motion Requires Remand by David Reutter by David M. Reutter The Supreme Court of Kansas held that when an appellate court determines a district court abuses its discretion by applying the wrong legal standard to its consideration of a …

News in Brief

Article • January 15, 2021 • from CLN February, 2021

Filed under: News in Brief

News in Brief by Arizona: The family of 40-year-old Ryan Whitaker, who was fatally shot in the back by a police officer investigating a noise complaint, settled in December 2020 with the city of Phoenix for $3 million by unanimous City Council vote. Whitaker was shot in the doorway of …

Kansas Supreme Court Clarifies State Law Does Not Preclude Consent to Search Through Nonverbal Conduct

Article • January 15, 2021 • from CLN February, 2021

Filed under: Involuntary, Doctrine of Unconstitutional Conditions

Kansas Supreme Court Clarifies State Law Does Not Preclude Consent to Search Through Nonverbal Conduct by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The Supreme Court of Kansas clarified that state law does not require consent to search to be verbal and that nonverbal conduct may constitute consent under the totality of …

Kansas Supreme Court Reverses Conviction Where Trial Court Refused to Give Self-Defense Instruction

Article • November 15, 2020 • from CLN December, 2020

Filed under: Jury Instructions, Verdicts

Kansas Supreme Court Reverses Conviction Where Trial Court Refused to Give Self-Defense Instruction by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The Supreme Court of Kansas reversed Michael Alan Keyes’ murder conviction because the district court refused to give his requested self-defense instruction. Keyes was tried for the murder of Jimmy Martin. …

Kansas Supreme Court Announces Residual Clause of Law Prohibiting Knife Possession by Felons Unconstitutionally Vague

Article • October 15, 2020 • from CLN November, 2020

Filed under: Felon in Possession Statute, Vagueness/Overbreadth

Kansas Supreme Court Announces Residual Clause of Law Prohibiting Knife Possession by Felons Unconstitutionally Vague by Anthony Accurso by Anthony Accurso In a decision issued on July 17, 2020, the Supreme Court of Kansas struck the residual clause of the state’s statute prohibiting possession of a knife by a convicted …

HRDC v. Board of County Commissioners for Johnson County, Kansas, et al., KS, Censorship, Complaint, 2020

Filing • September 11, 2020

Filed under: PLN Litigation, Censorship

HRDC v. Board of County Commissioners for Johnson County, Kansas, et al., KS, Censorship, Complaint, 2020 Case 2:20-cv-02447 Document 1 Filed 09/11/20 Page 1 of 14 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF KANSAS HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENSE CENTER, ) ) Plaintiff, ) v. ) ) BOARD OF …

Kansas Supreme Court: District Court Failed to Apprise Defendant of Right to Jury Trial

Article • July 15, 2020 • from CLN August, 2020

Filed under: Right to Jury Determination/Trial, Right to Bench Trial

Kansas Supreme Court: District Court Failed to Apprise Defendant of Right to Jury Trial by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The Supreme Court of Kansas held that a district court “failed to properly apprise [Bryan Richard] Harris of his right to a jury trial and failed to ensure that Harris …

News in Brief

Article • July 15, 2020 • from CLN August, 2020

Filed under: News in Brief

News in Brief by California: A series of racist and anti-Muslim posts on social media allegedly has ties to a private group of active and retired San Jose Police officers calling themselves 10-7ODSJ, a reference to the police code for “off duty,” mercurynews.com reports. In June 2020, four of them …

News in Brief

Article • May 15, 2020 • from CLN June, 2020

Filed under: News in Brief

News in Brief by Arizona: Tucson has a new ordinance topunish those who fail to stay outside designated crime scene perimeters, the Tucson Star reports. The law aims to halt “cop haters” with cameras, but the potential fallout is a stifling of First Amendment rights. While people should not provoke …

SCOTUS: Due Process Doesn’t Require States to Adopt a Specific Test for Determining Insanity

Article • May 15, 2020 • from CLN June, 2020

Filed under: Mental Health

SCOTUS: Due Process Doesn’t Require States to Adopt a Specific Test for Determining Insanity by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The Supreme Court of the United States (“SCOTUS”) determined that “no insanity rule in this country’s heritage was ever so settled as to tie a State’s hands centuries later” and …

SCOTUS: Knowledge that Driver’s License of Vehicle’s Registered Owner Was Revoked Provides Reasonable Suspicion to Initiate Traffic Stop

Article • May 15, 2020 • from CLN June, 2020

Filed under: Traffic stop

SCOTUS: Knowledge that Driver’s License of Vehicle’s Registered Owner Was Revoked Provides Reasonable Suspicion to Initiate Traffic Stop by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The Supreme Court of the United States (“SCOTUS”) whittled away at Fourth Amendment protections by holding that when a police officer has knowledge that the driver’s …

Kansas Supreme Court Holds Threat of Violence Statute Violates First Amendment to Extent it Criminalizes ‘Reckless’ Conduct

Article • April 15, 2020 • from CLN May, 2020

Filed under: First Amendment, rights

Kansas Supreme Court Holds Threat of Violence Statute Violates First Amendment to Extent it Criminalizes ‘Reckless’ Conduct by Dale Chappell by Dale Chappell The Supreme Court of Kansas held on October 25, 2019, that the statute criminalizing speech determined to be a threat of violence is unconstitutional, at least as …