From Witness Descriptions to Digital Mugshots: AI’s Growing Role in Policing by James Mills Police departments across the United States are increasingly using artificial intelligence (“AI”) to generate composite sketches of suspects based on witness descriptions, accelerating an investigative process that once relied solely on human artists. The adoption of …

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 …

Ninth Circuit Explains Martinez ‘Cause’ and ‘Prejudice’ to Excuse Procedural Default in Federal Habeas Proceeding Where Claim of IAC in State Proceedings Was Procedurally Defaulted Due to Postconviction Counsel’s Failure to Timely Raise Claim by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit explained …

Maryland Cops Stop People Based on Smell of Pot Despite Being Legal in State, Lawmakers Pass Bill to End Abusive Practice by Miles Dyson by Miles Dyson Maryland lawmakers have passed a bill that will restrict police officers’ ability to search people based on the smell of marijuana. The bill, …

Dozens of LA Sheriff’s Deputies Suspected of Gang Membership Ordered to Show Gang Tattoos and Snitch on Fellow Cops by Miles Dyson by Miles Dyson Dozens of Los Angeles County Sheriff’s (“LASD”) deputies have been ordered to show their suspected gang tattoos and reveal the names of other deputies who …

Problems With Predictive Policing by Jayson Hawkins by Jayson Hawkins Phillip K. Dick made the concept of “pre-crime” famous in his novel Minority Report, which described a future where people with “pre-cognitive” abilities could predict a crime and those predictions were used to arrest and convict “offenders.” Without the luxury …