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Pennsylvania Supreme Court (Opinion Announcing the Judgment of the Court): No Reasonable Expectation of Privacy in Unprotected Google Searches
Article • January 1, 2026 • from CLN February, 2026
Filed under: Fourth Amendment, rights, Probable Cause, Searches - Cellphones/Computers/Internet, Privacy Act/Rights, State Constitutional Claims
Pennsylvania Supreme Court (Opinion Announcing the Judgment of the Court): No Reasonable Expectation of Privacy in Unprotected Google Searches by David Kim by David Kim In an issue of first impression, the Opinion Announcing the Judgment of the Court (“OAJC”) concluded that a person who conducts general, unprotected internet searches …
Delaware Supreme Court Announces Trial Courts Must First Resolve Defense Counsel’s Motion to Withdraw Before Addressing Defendant’s Plea-­Withdrawal Request, Holding Failure to Do So Violates Sixth ...
Article • January 1, 2026 • from CLN February, 2026
Filed under: Appointment of Counsel, Sixth Amendment, Counsel - Constructive denial of, Self-representation, Withdrawal
Delaware Supreme Court Announces Trial Courts Must First Resolve Defense Counsel’s Motion to Withdraw Before Addressing Defendant’s Plea-­Withdrawal Request, Holding Failure to Do So Violates Sixth Amendment Right to Counsel by David Kim by David Kim The Supreme Court of Delaware held that when defense counsel moves to withdraw after …
Ninth Circuit Announces Abandonment Doctrine Applies to Cellphones but Courts Must Analyze Intent to Abandon Device Separately From Intent to Abandon Data
Article • December 15, 2025 • from CLN January, 2026
Filed under: Fourth Amendment, rights, Cell-Phones, Motions To Suppress, Digital Devices, Seizure
Ninth Circuit Announces Abandonment Doctrine Applies to Cellphones but Courts Must Analyze Intent to Abandon Device Separately From Intent to Abandon Data by David Kim by David Kim The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that while the abandonment doctrine applies to cellphones, courts must analyze …
SCOTUS Holds Sixth Amendment Requires Case-Specific Necessity Determination to Screen Child Witnesses, Rejecting Reliance on Mandatory State Statutes Based on Generalized Legislative Findings
Article • December 15, 2025 • from CLN January, 2026
Filed under: Sixth Amendment, Confrontation Clause/Rights, Video/Closed Circuit TV Testimony, Confrontation Clause
SCOTUS Holds Sixth Amendment Requires Case-Specific Necessity Determination to Screen Child Witnesses, Rejecting Reliance on Mandatory State Statutes Based on Generalized Legislative Findings by Richard Resch by Richard Resch In a per curiam opinion, the Supreme Court of the United States reversed a divided Mississippi Supreme Court decision, holding that …
The Legal Fight for Homeowner Compensation After SWAT Raids
Article • December 15, 2025 • from CLN January, 2026
Filed under: Sovereign Immunity, Fifth Amendment, Constitution, state, Destruction of Property
The Legal Fight for Homeowner Compensation After SWAT Raids by Jo Ellen Nott by Jo Ellen Nott Homeowners are often left financially devastated and without clear legal recourse after police raids cause extensive property damage, forcing them to bear costs that many say should be the public’s responsibility. The case …
ICE Amasses Mass Surveillance Arsenal Targeting U.S. Citizens and Protesters
Article • November 15, 2025 • from CLN December, 2025
Filed under: Protests, First Amendment, rights, Police State-Surveillance, Enforcement of Immigration Laws, Electronic Surveillance
ICE Amasses Mass Surveillance Arsenal Targeting U.S. Citizens and Protesters by Jo Ellen Nott by Jo Ellen Nott Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”), backed by new legislation passed in July 2025 called the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, is engaging in a never-before-seen expansion of mass surveillance technology. This technology …
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Announces Police Cannot Execute Anticipatory Warrant Absent Triggering Event Regardless of Whether Factual Allegations in Warrant Affidavit Independently Give Rise...
Article • October 15, 2025 • from CLN November, 2025
Filed under: Search warrants, Fourth Amendment, rights, Probable Cause, Execution, State Constitutional Claims
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Announces Police Cannot Execute Anticipatory Warrant Absent Triggering Event Regardless of Whether Factual Allegations in Warrant Affidavit Independently Give Rise to Probable Cause to Search, Thereby Providing Greater by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts held that “art. 14 of the …
Drones and License Plate Readers: Police Creating Warrantless Aerial Surveillance Networks
Article • October 15, 2025 • from CLN November, 2025
Filed under: Fourth Amendment, rights, Police State-Surveillance, Warrantless Searches, Curtilege, Electronic Surveillance
Drones and License Plate Readers: Police Creating Warrantless Aerial Surveillance Networks by Jo Ellen Nott by Jo Ellen Nott Police adoption of drone-as-first-responder (“DFR”) programs is increasing and now integrating with automated license plate reader (“ALPR”) technology to create a potent new form of surveillance, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (“EFF”) …
Sixth Circuit: Erlinger Error Requires Resentencing Where Government Cannot Prove Beyond Reasonable Doubt That Jury Would Find Prior Offenses Committed on Different “Occasions”
Article • October 15, 2025 • from CLN November, 2025
Filed under: Sixth Amendment, Three Strikes Statutes/Rule, Prior Conviction/Sentence/Incarceration, Blakely/Booker, Miscalculation of the Guidelines Sentencing Range
Sixth Circuit: Erlinger Error Requires Resentencing Where Government Cannot Prove Beyond Reasonable Doubt That Jury Would Find Prior Offenses Committed on Different “Occasions” by Anthony Accurso by Anthony W. Accurso The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit held that the U.S. District Court for the Western District …
How to Build a Human; A Forensics Company Tells Cops It Can Use DNA to Predict a Suspect’s Face. Scientists Worry the Tool Will Deepen Racial Bias.
Article • September 15, 2025 • from CLN October, 2025
Filed under: Forensic Sciences, Fourth Amendment, rights, DNA Evidence, Advanced Imaging Technology
How to Build a Human; A Forensics Company Tells Cops It Can Use DNA to Predict a Suspect’s Face. Scientists Worry the Tool Will Deepen Racial Bias. by Jordan Smith Originally published on February 2, 2025. Republished with permission from The Intercept https://theintercept.com/2025/02/02/forensic-dna-phenotyping-parabon-nanolabs-police/, an award-winning nonprofit news organization dedicated to …
Colorado Supreme Court Announces Police Facilitating 
Drug-­Detection Dog’s Entry Into Vehicle by Opening Door 
During Traffic Stop Without Probable Cause Is Unconstitutional Search in Violation of Fo...
Article • July 1, 2025 • from CLN July, 2025
Filed under: Fourth Amendment, rights, Drug-Sniffing Dog, Automobile Searches/Seizures
Colorado Supreme Court Announces Police Facilitating Drug-­Detection Dog’s Entry Into Vehicle by Opening Door During Traffic Stop Without Probable Cause Is Unconstitutional Search in Violation of Fourth Amendment by Anthony Accurso The Supreme Court of Colorado held that the police conducted an unreasonable search under the Fourth Amendment of a …
Sixth Circuit Announces Invoking Fifth Amendment While Testifying at Trial Does Not Contradict Prior Proffer Statement Nor Does Questioning the Sufficiency of the Prosecution’s Evidence
Article • July 1, 2025 • from CLN July, 2025
Filed under: Fifth Amendment, Sufficiency of Evidence, Prior Inconsistent Statements, Proffer Agreements/Statements/Sessions
Sixth Circuit Announces Invoking Fifth Amendment While Testifying at Trial Does Not Contradict Prior Proffer Statement Nor Does Questioning the Sufficiency of the Prosecution’s Evidence by David Kim The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled that invoking the Fifth Amendment while testifying at trial does not …
Not-­So-­Friendly Neighborhood Spidernet: Emerging Mass Surveillance Tool to Weave a Web Around Your Digital Life
Article • July 1, 2025 • from CLN July, 2025
Filed under: Fifth Amendment, Advanced Imaging Technology, Fourth Amendment
Not-­So-­Friendly Neighborhood Spidernet: Emerging Mass Surveillance Tool to Weave a Web Around Your Digital Life by Michael Thompson P olice have long sought tools to monitor and predict criminal activity with precision, and a new system called Spidernet brings that vision closer to reality. Developed by researchers at the University …
Understanding Your Constitutional Rights in the 
‘100-Mile Border Zone’: A Primer for Non-Citizens in the United States When Confronted by Law Enforcement
Article • July 1, 2025 • from CLN July, 2025
Filed under: Immigration, Fifth Amendment, Searches - Border Stops/Searches, Level of Suspicion, Routine vs. Non-Routine Border Searches, Immigration Law/Offenses, Fourth Amendment
Understanding Your Constitutional Rights in the ‘100-Mile Border Zone’: A Primer for Non-Citizens in the United States When Confronted by Law Enforcement by Richard Resch The “100-­mile border zone” is not just a geographic area—it is a legal construct that provides federal authorities broader powers to enforce the nation’s immigration …
Arguing Successful Federal Habeas Corpus Claims
Article • June 1, 2025 • from CLN June, 2025
Filed under: Habeas Corpus, Sixth Amendment, Ineffective Assistance of Counsel
Arguing Successful Federal Habeas Corpus Claims by Dale Chappell This column is a follow-up to my original column published in the March 2021 issue of Criminal Legal News titled “Raising Successful Federal Habeas Corpus Claims.” In that first piece, I explained how to identify valid claims for federal habeas relief, …
Mississippi Supreme Court Vacates Convictions, 
Holding Multiple Errors by State Resulted in ‘Legal Chaos’ 
That Deprived Defendant of Right to Fair Trial 
Under ‘Cumulative-Error Doctrine’
Article • May 15, 2025 • from CLN June, 2025
Filed under: Fifth Amendment, Prejudicial Spillover, Hearsay Evidence, Graphic and Inflammatory Evidence
Mississippi Supreme Court Vacates Convictions, Holding Multiple Errors by State Resulted in ‘Legal Chaos’ That Deprived Defendant of Right to Fair Trial Under ‘Cumulative-Error Doctrine’ by Jeffrey Cohen Sitting en banc, the Supreme Court of Mississippi reversed both the trial court and Court of Appeals’ decisions that the State’s multiple …
SCOTUS Announces Rejection of ‘Moment-of-Threat 
Doctrine’ Because It Improperly Narrows Required 
‘Totality of the Circumstances’ Analysis for Fourth 
Amendment Excessive-Force Claims
Article • May 15, 2025 • from CLN June, 2025
Filed under: Shootings, Police--Excessive Force, Excessive Force (Police), Fourth Amendment, rights
SCOTUS Announces Rejection of ‘Moment-of-Threat Doctrine’ Because It Improperly Narrows Required ‘Totality of the Circumstances’ Analysis for Fourth Amendment Excessive-Force Claims by David Kim The Supreme Court of the United States held that courts may not apply the “moment-of-threat” doctrine when evaluating the reasonableness of police officers’ use of deadly …
Ninth Circuit Announces Attorney Cannot Be Compelled to Provide ‘Privilege Log’ Protected Under Fisher if Doing So Would Undermine Client’s Fifth Amendment ‘Act-of-Production Privilege’ and Attorney-C...
Article • April 15, 2025 • from CLN May, 2025
Filed under: Fifth Amendment, False Statements, Testimony or Documents, Attorney/Client, Brady/Giglio/Jencks Act Issues
Ninth Circuit Announces Attorney Cannot Be Compelled to Provide ‘Privilege Log’ Protected Under Fisher if Doing So Would Undermine Client’s Fifth Amendment ‘Act-of-Production Privilege’ and Attorney-Client Privilege by Sagi Schwartzberg by Sagi Schwartzberg The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that an attorney cannot be compelled to …
D.C. Circuit Holds Compelling Suspect to Unlock Cellphone With Thumbprint Is ‘Testimonial’ Act and Violates Fifth Amendment Privilege Against Self-Incrimination
Article • February 15, 2025 • from CLN March, 2025
Filed under: Fifth Amendment, Searches - Cellphones/Computers/Internet, Non-Testimonial, Testimonial Statements, Self-Incrimination Clause
D.C. Circuit Holds Compelling Suspect to Unlock Cellphone With Thumbprint Is ‘Testimonial’ Act and Violates Fifth Amendment Privilege Against Self-Incrimination by Anthony Accurso by Anthony W. Accurso The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit held that a defendant being compelled to provide a thumbprint constitutes a testimonial act …
SCOTUS Announces Confrontation Clause Prohibits Expert Witness From Testifying About Non-­Testifying Expert’s Statements Regarding Forensic Testing Performed by Non-­Testifying Expert in Support of Te...
Article • January 15, 2025 • from CLN November, 2024
Filed under: Forensic Sciences, Fourteenth Amendment, rights, Exclusion of Witnesses at Trial, Confrontation Clause/Rights
SCOTUS Announces Confrontation Clause Prohibits Expert Witness From Testifying About Non-­Testifying Expert’s Statements Regarding Forensic Testing Performed by Non-­Testifying Expert in Support of Testifying Expert’s Opinion Testimony at Trial by Sam Rutherford by Sam Rutherford The Supreme Court of the United States unanimously held that the Sixth Amendment’s Confrontation Clause …
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