Search | Criminal Legal News

Smallwood v. Williams, IN, Brief of Amici Curiae, Excessive Force, 2022

Brief • April 13, 2022

Filed under: Sexual Assault, Excessive Force

Smallwood v. Williams, IN, Brief of Amici Curiae, Excessive Force, 2022 Case: 21-3047 Document: 25 Filed: 04/13/2022 Pages: 35 No. 21-3047 IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SEVENTH CIRCUIT HOWARD SMALLWOOD, v. Plaintiff-Appellant, DON WILLIAMS, ET AL., Defendants-Appellees. On Appeal from the United States District Court for …

News in Brief

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

Filed under: News in Brief

News in Brief by Alabama: Techdirt reports that police in Brookside have routinely violated the law in traffic enforcement. By early February 2022, it was clear that the local police department in the small town had been racking up staggering amounts of income in traffic fines, receiving more than $600,000 …

News in Brief

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

Filed under: News in Brief

News in Brief by Alabama: A former Alabama cop convicted of murdering a mentally ill and suicidal man in his own home reported to a state prison in Montgomery on September 6, 2021, to begin serving a 25-year sentence he received for the crime, according to Huntsville TV station WAFF. …

Indiana Supreme Court Applies Recently Announced Proportionality Framework for In Rem Fines and Holds Forfeiture of $35,000 Land Rover Grossly Disproportionate to Underlying Offense in Violation of Ei...

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

Filed under: Eighth Amendment, Seizure of Prisoner Funds

Indiana Supreme Court Applies Recently Announced Proportionality Framework for In Rem Fines and Holds Forfeiture of $35,000 Land Rover Grossly Disproportionate to Underlying Offense in Violation of Eighth Amendment, Ending 7-Year Saga by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The Supreme Court of Indiana affirmed the holding of the Grant Superior …

Seventh Circuit: Cronic Doesn’t Provide Exclusive Situations for its Application, Finds Attorney Abandonment at Sentencing Despite Counsel Being Physically Present

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

Filed under: Ineffective Assistance of Counsel

Seventh Circuit: Cronic Doesn’t Provide Exclusive Situations for its Application, Finds Attorney Abandonment at Sentencing Despite Counsel Being Physically Present by Dale Chappell by Dale Chappell In a case where a defendant’s lawyer was present at sentencing but did “absolutely nothing” to help him, the U.S. Court of Appeals for …

Seventh Circuit: Coworker Cannot Limitlessly Search Defendant’s Office at Direction of FBI

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

Filed under: Warrantless Searches

Seventh Circuit: Coworker Cannot Limitlessly Search Defendant’s Office at Direction of FBI by Anthony Accurso by Anthony W. Accurso The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit held that a coworker cannot conduct limitless searches of a defendant’s work area at the direction of a government agent, simply because …

Seventh Circuit Holds Hobbs Act Robbery Not ‘Crime of Violence’ for Career Offender Enhancement, Likely IAC for Not Anticipating Outcome

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

Seventh Circuit Holds Hobbs Act Robbery Not ‘Crime of Violence’ for Career Offender Enhancement, Likely IAC for Not Anticipating Outcome by Dale Chappell by Dale Chappell The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit joined most other circuits and held that Hobbs Act robbery does not meet the definition …

Department of Homeland Security-Condition of Confinement Worksheet, Dec. 2021

Publication • 2021

Filed under: Prison Conditions

Department of Homeland Security-Condition of Confinement Worksheet, Dec. 2021 Department of Homeland Security Immigration and Customs Enforcement: Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations Condition of Confinement Inspection Worksheet (This document must be attached to each G-324A Inspection Worksheet) This Form is to be used for Inspections of Facilities Used Over …

Seventh Circuit: District Court Retains Jurisdiction When Habeas Petitioner Moves to Prison Outside of District

Article • April 15, 2021 • from CLN May, 2021

Filed under: Out of State Transfers, Transfers, Habeas Corpus

Seventh Circuit: District Court Retains Jurisdiction When Habeas Petitioner Moves to Prison Outside of District by Dale Chappell by Dale Chappell Settling issues of habeas corpus jurisdiction that have been less than clear in previous cases, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit held on February 12, 2021, …

Seventh Circuit Affirms Vacatur of Death Sentence Based on Newly Discovered Evidence of Defendant’s Intellectual Disability

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

Filed under: Death Penalty, Mental Retardation/Intellectual Disability, Effect of Vacatur

Seventh Circuit Affirms Vacatur of Death Sentence Based on Newly Discovered Evidence of Defendant’s Intellectual Disability by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirmed the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana’s vacatur of Bruce Carneil Webster’s death sentence based …

Seventh Circuit: Indiana’s Sex Offender Registration Act’s ‘Other Jurisdiction Requirement’ Unconstitutional Violation of Right to Travel

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

Filed under: Sex Offender Registration, Travel Restrictions

Seventh Circuit: Indiana’s Sex Offender Registration Act’s ‘Other Jurisdiction Requirement’ Unconstitutional Violation of Right to Travel by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit upheld U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana’s opinion that found a provision of Indiana’s Sex Offender …

Indiana Supreme Court: Speedy Trial Right Violated After 6.5 Years Without Retrial

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

Filed under: Delays in Prosecution of Case

Indiana Supreme Court: Speedy Trial Right Violated After 6.5 Years Without Retrial by Anthony Accurso by Anthony Accurso The Supreme Court of Indiana held that a defendant’s right to a speedy trial was violated where he was made to wait six-and-a-half years before he was retried on a pending 30-year …

Police Departments Buying Teslas

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

Filed under: Property

Police Departments Buying Teslas by Anthony Accurso by Anthony Accurso Reporting from TheNew Republic highlights how police departments are turning to electric car manufacturers to replace aging fleet vehicles. Climate change and pandemic budget-cuts have police departments considering ways to both save money and prepare for a green energy future. …

News in Brief

Article • December 15, 2020 • from CLN January, 2021

Filed under: News in Brief

News in Brief by Alaska: A plan to shift the response to mental health crises away from police and into the hands of mental health professionals made strides in November 2020. The Assembly approved money to launch a mobile crisis intervention team. In Anchorage, it would operate at the fire …

Indiana Supreme Court Announces New Analytical Framework for Review of Substantive Double Jeopardy, Overruling Richardson

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

Filed under: Double jeopardy

Indiana Supreme Court Announces New Analytical Framework for Review of Substantive Double Jeopardy, Overruling Richardson by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The Supreme Court of Indiana announced a new analytical framework for reviewing claims of substantive double jeopardy, overruling Richardson v. State, 717 N.E.2d 32 (Ind. 1999). A jury convicted …

Indiana Supreme Court: Must Be Immediate Causal Connection Between Confrontation and Other Crime by Defendant to Negate Self-Defense

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

Filed under: U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Degree of connection to charged crimes

Indiana Supreme Court: Must Be Immediate Causal Connection Between Confrontation and Other Crime by Defendant to Negate Self-Defense by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The Supreme Court of Indiana reaffirmed the standard set forth in Mayes v. State, 744 N.E.2d 390 (Ind. 2001), that held a statute barring a claim …

Seventh Circuit: ‘Especially Compelling Justification’ Required for Same Maximum Sentence on Resentencing

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

Filed under: U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, First Step Act

Seventh Circuit: ‘Especially Compelling Justification’ Required for Same Maximum Sentence on Resentencing by Dale Chappell by Dale Chappell The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit held on June 19, 2020, that a district court resentencing someone again to the maximum sentence possible and well over double the recommended …

Indiana Supreme Court: Forcing Defendant to Unlock Smartphone Violates Fifth Amendment Right Against Self-Incrimination

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

Filed under: Fifth Amendment, Cell-Phones

Indiana Supreme Court: Forcing Defendant to Unlock Smartphone Violates Fifth Amendment Right Against Self-Incrimination by Douglas Ankney 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 …

Indiana Supreme Court: Removal of Police’s GPS Tracker on Suspect’s Vehicle Not Probable Cause of Theft, Suppression of Evidence

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

Filed under: Theft, GPS Tracking Device

Indiana Supreme Court: Removal of Police’s GPS Tracker on Suspect’s Vehicle Not Probable Cause of Theft, Suppression of Evidence by Anthony Accurso by Anthony Accurso The Supreme Court of Indiana suppressed all evidence resulting from search warrants obtained on the basis that the sheriff’s department concluded a suspect “stole” the …

Federal Court Overturns Conviction for Person Linked to Former Subway Spokesperson’s Child Porn Case

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

Filed under: Ineffective Assistance of Counsel

Federal Court Overturns Conviction for Person Linked to Former Subway Spokesperson’s Child Porn Case by Dale Chappell by Dale Chappell The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana overturned the conviction of Russell Taylor, a person linked to Jared Fogle’s child pornography case, finding that Taylor’s counsel failed …