Seventh Circuit Finds Lack of Evidence, Grants Habeas Relief, and Orders ‘Immediate Release’ by Dale Chappell by Dale Chappell In a rare case, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit granted habeas corpus relief to a state prisoner after finding that the State’s evidence was lacking and the …

Iowa Supreme Court Vacates Guilty Plea for Lack of Evidence and Ineffective Assistance of Counsel by David Reutter by David M. Reutter The Supreme Court of Iowa ruled there was no factual basis to support a defendant’s guilty plea to possessing a tool with the intent to use in the …

Seventh Circuit: Unsupported CI Statements Insufficient to Justify Higher Drug Quantity for Sentencing by Dale Chappell by Dale Chappell The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit held on January 28, 2020, that the unsupported statements by confidential informants (“CI”) about drug amounts and transactions outside the direct criminal …