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Order of the Governor, PA, COVID-19 Release, 2020

Publication • April 10, 2020

Filed under: COVID-19

Order of the Governor, PA, COVID-19 Release, 2020 COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR ORDER OF THE GOVERNOR OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA REGARDING INDIVIDUALS INCARCERATED IN STATE CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTIONS WHEREAS, the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have declared the coronavirus disease 2019 …

Pennsylvania Supreme Court Holds Retention of Defendant’s ID Card Constitutes ‘Seizure’ for Fourth Amendment Purposes

Article • March 18, 2020 • from CLN April, 2020

Filed under: Fourth Amendment, rights

Pennsylvania Supreme Court Holds Retention of Defendant’s ID Card Constitutes ‘Seizure’ for Fourth Amendment Purposes by Dale Chappell by Dale Chappell The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania held on January 22, 2020, that the retention of a person’s identification card by law enforcement constituted a “seizure” under the U.S. Constitution, triggering …

In Case of First Impression, Pennsylvania Supreme Court Holds Compelling Suspect to Disclose Computer Password Is Testimonial in Nature and Violates Fifth Amendment’s Privilege Against Self Incriminat...

Article • January 21, 2020 • from CLN February, 2020

Filed under: Self Incrimination

In Case of First Impression, Pennsylvania Supreme Court Holds Compelling Suspect to Disclose Computer Password Is Testimonial in Nature and Violates Fifth Amendment’s Privilege Against Self Incrimination by Douglas Ankney By Douglas Ankney In a case of first impression, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania held that compelling a suspect to …

Wright v. Westmoreleand County, PA, Complaint, Excessive Force, 2020

Brief • January 9, 2020

Filed under: Excessive Force, Guard Brutality/Beatings

Wright v. Westmoreleand County, PA, Complaint, Excessive Force, 2020 Case 2:20-cv-00040-MPK Document 1 Filed 01/09/20 Page 1 of 8 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA CIVIL ACTION DAROB WRIGHT, Plaintiff, v. Civil Action No. 2:20-cv-40 WESTMORLAND COUNTY, JOHN WALTON, and CORRECTIONS OFFICER DOE, JURY …

Third Circuit Grants Habeas Relief in Loss of GBMI Plea in Pennsylvania Court Due to IAC, Announces New Rule

Article • December 18, 2019 • from CLN January, 2020

Filed under: Habeas Corpus

Third Circuit Grants Habeas Relief in Loss of GBMI Plea in Pennsylvania Court Due to IAC, Announces New Rule by Dale Chappell by Dale Chappell The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit granted habeas relief on September 3, 2019, to a Pennsylvania state prisoner who had lost his …

Man Freed Who Sat in Prison Nearly 30 Years While Prosecutors Withheld Evidence of Innocence

Article • November 19, 2019 • from CLN December, 2019

Filed under: Prosecutor/Attorney General Misconduct, Release and Reentry, Wrongful Conviction

Man Freed Who Sat in Prison Nearly 30 Years While Prosecutors Withheld Evidence of Innocence by Dale Chappell by Dale Chappell A man who sat in prison for almost 30 years because prosecutors and police withheld evidence that someone else committed the crime was set free July 16, 2019, after …

High Bail Amounts Lead to Sharp Increase in Franklin, PA, Jail Population

Article • November 19, 2019 • from CLN December, 2019

Filed under: Crime/Demographics, Statistics/Trends, Bail, Bail Bonds

High Bail Amounts Lead to Sharp Increase in Franklin, PA, Jail Population by Dale Chappell by Dale Chappell In Franklin County, Pennsylvania, a rural area with about 154,000 residents, high bail amounts are forcing people who can’t afford to purchase their freedom to plead guilty just to get out of …

Pennsylvania Supreme Court: Probationer Must Violate Specific Condition of Probation or Commit New Crime to Be Found in Violation

Article • October 14, 2019 • from CLN November, 2019

Filed under: Probation

Pennsylvania Supreme Court: Probationer Must Violate Specific Condition of Probation or Commit New Crime to Be Found in Violation by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania held that a court must find, based on a preponderance of the evidence, that a probationer violated a specific condition …

Dr Bennet Omalu Expert Report - Estate of Thomas Rutkowski, Deceased Medico-Legal Report

Brief • August 15, 2019

Filed under: Injury -- Misc., Brain Injury

Dr Bennet Omalu Expert Report - Estate of Thomas Rutkowski, Deceased Medico-Legal Report • Bennet Omalu PATHOLOGY Phone: 916-513-5253 Fax: 866-402-6875 bennetomalu@bennetomalu.com Autopsy and Anatomic Pathology Clinical Pathology and Toxicology Forensic Pathology Neuropathology Epidemiology Medico-Legal Consultations August 15, 2019 Michael J. Zicolello, Esq. Schemery Zicolello, P.C. Attorneys at Law 333 …

$270,000 Awarded to Grandmother Brutalized by Pennsylvania Cops

Article • July 17, 2019 • from CLN August, 2019

Filed under: Police Misconduct, Excessive Force, Settlements, Police, Excessive Force (Police)

$270,000 Awarded to Grandmother Brutalized by Pennsylvania Cops by Edward Lyon by Ed Lyon  Peacefully sleeping the night away, grandmother Charlene Klein was rudely awakened by Allentown, Pennsylvania, cops beating on her door on May 2, 2016. A law-abiding citizen, she opened her front door in response to the Knights …

Pennsylvania Supreme Court Holds Consent to Search Does Not Include K-9 Sniff When No K-9 Present When Consent Given and Wait 40 Minutes for Its Arrival

Article • July 16, 2019 • from CLN August, 2019

Filed under: Searches, Police, Traffic stop

Pennsylvania Supreme Court Holds Consent to Search Does Not Include K-9 Sniff When No K-9 Present When Consent Given and Wait 40 Minutes for Its Arrival by Dale Chappell by Dale Chappell In a case of first impression, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania held that a search in connection with …

Police, Prosecutors Use Asset Forfeitures to Lease SUVs, Customize Motorcycles, Install WiFi at Home, and More

Article • June 22, 2019

Filed under: Forfeiture, Police

Police, Prosecutors Use Asset Forfeitures to Lease SUVs, Customize Motorcycles, Install WiFi at Home, and More by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, District Attorney Craig Stedman spent more than $21,000 of drug forfeiture money to lease a 2016 Toyota Highlander. After Stedman was ordered to release records …

Pennsylvania police officer decertifications

Publication • 2019

Filed under: Police Misconduct

Pennsylvania police officer decertifications Accardo Sylvester 7/8/2004 0:00 NULL Anderson Wade 7/8/2004 0:00 NULL Argenta Dean 9/14/2012 O:OO Olyphant Borough PD Argenta Dean 9/14/2012 0:00 Jermyn Boro Police Department Attlnello James 7/8/2004 0:00 NULL Baird Clark 7/8/2004 0:00 NULL Baird John 7/8/2004 O:OO Philadelphia City PD Basehore Anthony 7/8/2004 0:00 …

Pennsylvania Governor Signs Into Law New Bills to Help Convicts, Extends Postconviction Filing Time Limits

Article • May 15, 2019 • from CLN June, 2019

Filed under: Release and Reentry, Post-release, ex-offender, re-entry

Pennsylvania Governor Signs Into Law New Bills to Help Convicts, Extends Postconviction Filing Time Limits by Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf signed into law in October 2018 three new provisions that will help convicts. Calling it “commonsense legislation,” Wolf said he intended to promote “smart sentencing reform” by approving the bipartisan …

Pennsylvania Supreme Court Rules as a Matter of 1st Impression That Mother’s Use of Opioids During Pregnancy Not Child Abuse

Article • April 12, 2019 • from CLN May, 2019

Filed under: War on Drugs, Children of Prisoners

Pennsylvania Supreme Court Rules as a Matter of 1st Impression That Mother’s Use of Opioids During Pregnancy Not Child Abuse by Chad Marks by Chad Marks On December 28, 2018, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ruled as a matter of first impression that a mother cannot be found to be …

Pennsylvania Supreme Court Retroactively Applies Birchfield, Holding that Enhanced Criminal Penalties for Refusing Warrantless Blood Tests are Unconstitutional

Article • April 12, 2019 • from CLN May, 2019

Filed under: DNA Testing/Samples, Search warrants, Fourth Amendment, rights

Pennsylvania Supreme Court Retroactively Applies Birchfield, Holding that Enhanced Criminal Penalties for Refusing Warrantless Blood Tests are Unconstitutional by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania retroactively applied Birchfield v. North Dakota, 136 S.Ct. 2160 (2016), holding that Samuel Anthony Monarch’s enhanced penalties for refusing warrantless blood …

Pennsylvania Institutional Law Project v. Wetzel, PA, Settlement Agreement, Censorship, 2019

Brief • March 25, 2019

Filed under: Censorship

Pennsylvania Institutional Law Project v. Wetzel, PA, Settlement Agreement, Censorship, 2019 Case 1:18-cv-02100-JEJ-EBC Document 92 Filed 03/25/19 Page 1 of 26 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA PENNSYLVANIA INSTITUTIONAL LAW PROJECT, ABOLITIONIST LAW CENTER, AMISTAD LAW PROJECT, and AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION OF PENNSYLVANIA, …

Third Circuit: Pennsylvania’s SORNA Requirements Sufficiently Restrictive to Constitute Custody for Habeas Jurisdiction

Article • March 16, 2019 • from CLN April, 2019

Filed under: Sex Offender Registration, Sex Offender Residence, Habeas Corpus, Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act

Third Circuit: Pennsylvania’s SORNA Requirements Sufficiently Restrictive to Constitute Custody for Habeas Jurisdiction by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit held that the registration and reporting requirements of Pennsylvania’s Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”) are sufficiently restrictive to constitute custody …

Appeals court provides new vehicle to challenge registration

Article • March 15, 2019 • from CLN April, 2019

Filed under: Sex Offender Registration, Appeals, Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act

Appeals court provides new vehicle to challenge registration by Larry N. by Larry N., NARSOL We are excited to report that registrants in Pennsylvania now will have a new vehicle to challenge sex offender registration. The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit Court handed down a precedential …

Third Circuit Orders Habeas Relief Based on Trial Counsel’s Failure to Present or Even Investigate Mental Health and Juvenile Records in Pennsylvania Death Penalty Case

Article • February 14, 2019 • from CLN March, 2019

Filed under: Attorney Misconduct, Death Penalty/Death Row, Mental Health

Third Circuit Orders Habeas Relief Based on Trial Counsel’s Failure to Present or Even Investigate Mental Health and Juvenile Records in Pennsylvania Death Penalty Case by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke  On July 12, 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ordered that habeas relief be provisionally …