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New Jersey Supreme Court Reverses Drug Convictions Under Cumulative Error Doctrine, Holding Combined Effect of Improper References to Television Series, Gun Violence, and Search Warrants Deprived D...

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

Filed under: Background Evidence, Prejudice - Potential for Undue, Bad Acts Evidence, Improper Comments, Plain Error

New Jersey Supreme Court Reverses Drug Convictions Under Cumulative Error Doctrine, Holding Combined Effect of Improper References to Television Series, Gun Violence, and Search Warrants Deprived Defendant of Fair Trial by David Reutter by David M. Reutter The Supreme Court of New Jersey unanimously reversed the defendant’s controlled dangerous substances …

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 …

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 …

New Jersey Supreme Court Announces “Shaking Without Impact” Expert Testimony Inadmissible, Holding Shaken Baby Syndrome Diagnosis Lacks Required General Acceptance Within Biomechanical Engineering Com...

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

Filed under: Brain Injury, Forensic Sciences, Evidence - Integrity/Reliability of, Expert and Opinion Testimony, Scientific Testimony or Evidence

New Jersey Supreme Court Announces “Shaking Without Impact” Expert Testimony Inadmissible, Holding Shaken Baby Syndrome Diagnosis Lacks Required General Acceptance Within Biomechanical Engineering Community Under Frye by David Kim by David Kim he Supreme Court of New Jersey affirmed the exclusion of expert testimony regarding Shaken Baby Syndrome/Abusive Head Trauma …

New Jersey Supreme Court: Parked Vehicle in Police Parking Lot Not Subject to Warrantless Search Under Automobile Exception Where None of the Exigencies Justifying Exception Under State Constitution ...

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

Filed under: Exigent Circumstances, Warrantless Searches, Automobile Exception, Exception to Warrant Requirement, State Constitutional Claims

New Jersey Supreme Court: Parked Vehicle in Police Parking Lot Not Subject to Warrantless Search Under Automobile Exception Where None of the Exigencies Justifying Exception Under State Constitution Present by Sagi Schwartzberg by Sagi Schwartzberg The Supreme Court of New Jersey held that the automobile exception to the warrant requirement …

Third Circuit: Where Prosecutor “Flooded” Jury Trial With Evidence of Defendant’s Prior Bad Acts, Counsel Was Constitutionally Ineffective in Not Seeking Contemporaneous Limiting Instructions and Not ...

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

Filed under: Jury Instructions, Strickland Standard, Failure to Preserve Challenge, Motive/Opportunity/Intent/Identity Evidence, Bad Acts Evidence

Third Circuit: Where Prosecutor “Flooded” Jury Trial With Evidence of Defendant’s Prior Bad Acts, Counsel Was Constitutionally Ineffective in Not Seeking Contemporaneous Limiting Instructions and Not Objecting When Evidence Went Beyond Limited Purpose – by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit …

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 …

Third Circuit: No ‘Constructive Possession’ of Firearm Discovered in Trunk of Vehicle Six Months After Defendant’s Arrest,  During Which Time He Was Incarcerated and Vehicle Impounded in Tow Lot Whose...

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

Filed under: Preponderance of the Evidence Standard, Possession or Use of Firearms, Collective Knowledge Doctrine

Third Circuit: No ‘Constructive Possession’ of Firearm Discovered in Trunk of Vehicle Six Months After Defendant’s Arrest, During Which Time He Was Incarcerated and Vehicle Impounded in Tow Lot Whose Sole Security Feature Was a Locked Gate by Sagi Schwartzberg The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit …

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, …

Third Circuit Announces Claim of Innocence Does Not Resolve Whether Defendant Would Have Accepted Plea Offer Absent Counsel’s Error and Holds Counsel Ineffective for Failing to Properly Advise Defend...

Article • December 15, 2024 • from CLN January, 2025

Filed under: Actual Innocence/Claim of Innocence, Ineffective Assistance of Counsel, Mandatory Minimum Sentence, Plea Agreements/Guilty Pleas, Rejection

Third Circuit Announces Claim of Innocence Does Not Resolve Whether Defendant Would Have Accepted Plea Offer Absent Counsel’s Error and Holds Counsel Ineffective for Failing to Properly Advise Defendant About Mandatory Sentences If Plea Offer Rejected by Sam Rutherford by Sam Rutherford The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third …

News in Brief

Article • October 1, 2024 • from CLN October, 2024

Filed under: News in Brief

News in Brief by Alabama: Former Centre policeman Michael Kilgore, 40, should have known co-conspirators will bumble any crime. After his co-conspirator went singing to authorities, Kilgore was fired and charged with conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance in May 2023. WRCB reported, that according to the plea agreement, Kilgore …

News in Brief

Article • September 1, 2024 • from CLN September, 2024

Filed under: News in Brief

News in Brief by Arizona: On June 29, 2024, the Tempe police department posted a Facebook message regarding an award that two of its officers had just received. “Congratulations to Officer Zachary Hyde and Officer Gavin Young. Last night both received the Hero Award at the 35th annual Mothers Against …

News in Brief

Article • August 1, 2024 • from CLN August, 2024

Filed under: News in Brief

News in Brief by

NJPP-PrisonProfiteers- How Private Companies Profit From Prison Phone Calls and Harm New Jersey Residents-Aug2024

Publication • August 1, 2024

Filed under: Telephone Rates, Private Phone Contractors

NJPP-PrisonProfiteers- How Private Companies Profit From Prison Phone Calls and Harm New Jersey Residents-Aug2024 August 2024 Prison Profiteers: How Private Companies Profit From Prison Phone Calls and Harm New Jersey Residents Marleina Ubel, Senior Policy Analyst For the thousands of people incarcerated in New Jersey's prisons and jails, a phone …

New Jersey Supreme Court Announces Extension of Eyewitness Identification Safeguards of Henderson to Pretrial Preparation Sessions and Provides Framework for Showing Photos During Pretrial Phase

Article • May 15, 2024 • from CLN May, 2024

Filed under: witness misidentification, Eyewitness Testimony, Lineups

New Jersey Supreme Court Announces Extension of Eyewitness Identification Safeguards of Henderson to Pretrial Preparation Sessions and Provides Framework for Showing Photos During Pretrial Phase by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The Supreme Court of New Jersey unanimously extended the investigative eyewitness identification safeguards of State v. Henderson, 27 A.3d …

Taxpayers Foot the Bill for Police Training on How to Violate Constitutional Rights

Article • April 15, 2024 • from CLN April, 2024

Filed under: Contractor Misconduct, Police Misconduct, Police, Terry Stops, Suspicionless Searches

Taxpayers Foot the Bill for Police Training on How to Violate Constitutional Rights by Anthony Accurso by Anthony W. Accurso Until recently, police departments in New Jersey were covering expenses for their officers to attend training sessions conducted by Street Cop Training (“SCT”), an organization that encourages “a hypervigilant warrior …

Special Report, Visits and Phone Calls, NJ Office of the Corrections Ombudsperson (April 2024)

Publication • April 1, 2024

Filed under: Telephones, Telephone Access, Visiting, Video Visitation

Special Report, Visits and Phone Calls, NJ Office of the Corrections Ombudsperson (April 2024) Visits and Phone Calls NJ Office of the Corrections Ombudsperson, Special Report April 2024 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Sustaining relationships with loved ones through a period of incarceration can be difficult, but research suggests that doing so has …

Howard v. The County of Essex, NJ, Complaint, Discrimination, 2024

Brief • March 4, 2024

Filed under: Discrimination, Racial Discrimination

Howard v. The County of Essex, NJ, Complaint, Discrimination, 2024 ESX-L-001515-24 03/04/2024 2:00:00 AM Pg 1 of 26 Trans ID: LCV2024562192 LURETHA M. STRIBLING, ESQ. 1030 South Avenue West, Suite 1A Westfield, New Jersey 07090 (908) 403-0113 Attorney for the Plaintiff Attorney ID No. 008452004 LMStribling@verizon.net IDESHA HOWARD SUPERIOR COURT …

New Jersey Supreme Court Excludes CSLI Testimony Based on Agent’s ‘Rule Of Thumb’ Method for Determining Defendant’s Location

Article • February 15, 2024 • from CLN February, 2024

Filed under: Cell-Phone Location/Tracking Data, Application, Opinions and Expert Testimony, Expert and Opinion Testimony

New Jersey Supreme Court Excludes CSLI Testimony Based on Agent’s ‘Rule Of Thumb’ Method for Determining Defendant’s Location by Anthony Accurso by Anthony W. Accurso The Supreme Court of New Jersey held a lower court erred when it allowed an FBI agent to testify about cell site location information (“CSLI”) …