California Court of Appeal: Evidence Insufficient to Show Robbery Victim Moved ‘Substantial Distance’ to Support Simple Kidnapping Conviction and Amendments to § 186.22 Require Vacatur of Gang Enhancements by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney In consolidated appeals, the Court of Appeal of California, Fourth Appellate District, held that the evidence …

Third Circuit Vacates Possession of Cocaine Conviction Due to Insufficient Evidence to Support Weight Element by David Reutter by David M. Reutter On July 7, 2023, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, in a precedential ruling, ordered a defendant to be resentenced after it found there was …

California Court of Appeal: Trial Court’s Dismissal of Charge Based on Express Statement of ‘Insufficient Evidence’ Is Equivalent to Acquittal for § 1170.95 Resentencing by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The Court of Appeal of California, Third Appellate District, affirmed the finding of a superior court in a § 1170.95 …

Second Circuit: Nondescript Photo of Unidentified Black Male Insufficient Grounds to Conduct Investigatory Stop by Anthony Accurso by Anthony Accurso The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed a lower court order denying defendant’s evidence suppression motion on the grounds that a photo, which provided very little identifying …

10th Circuit: Evidence Insufficient to Support Conviction for Attempting to Kill Witness by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit ruled that the evidence was insufficient to support John Terry Chatman, Jr.’s conviction of obstruction of justice by attempting to kill a witness. …

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Reverses Murder Conviction Due to Insufficient Evidence by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts reversed Jean Carlos Lopez’s murder conviction because the evidence was insufficient to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that Lopez knowingly participated in the killing with the requisite …