How Appealing notes that the DC Circuit’s decision in Abigail Alliance v. Eschenbach will be reheard en banc. This is a big deal. As this blog wrote about in more detail in this post, the conclusion of Abigail Alliance was that individuals had a due process right to access potentially lifesaving drugs even before they have […]
READ MOREFederal Judge Orders Access to Experimental Drug
A federal judge has ordered the drug company PTC Therapeutics to give a teenager access to its still-experimental drug PTC124, which the company is developing for treatment of duchenne muscular dystrophy. This decision would seem to be at odds with the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals’ ruling in Abigail Alliance v. Eschenbach , unless the legal […]
READ MOREIn re Noelle M. on Staying Sentences (PC 654) for Multiple Drug Sales
It was not error for a trial court to refuse to apply Penal Code section 654 to stay multiple sentences for sale of methadone even though the separate sales all occurred during a single football game, the Third District Court of Appeal held 12/16/08 in In re Noelle M. (C056780). Section 654 of course is typically […]
READ MOREHabits of the Common Drug Dealer
The post about Honda Accords being “common” drug dealer cars made me wonder what else the courts say is common drug dealer behavior. So after a little Westlaw browsing, here is a list of behaviors that suggest an individual may be a drug dealer: 1. Whistling (State v. Dunson, 2006 WL 400144 (Ohio App. 2 Dist., […]
READ MORELessons from famous lawyer Alan Dershowitz
Alan Dershowitz, the youngest professor of law in history, has some drastically bold ideas for the American legal system. First and foremost, Dershowitz is against the Second Amendment. He has been extremely vocal about gun controls and believes that 100 percent of all guns should be banned. He points out that the perception that guns […]
READ MOREHonda Accords: The Drug Dealer Car of Choice
The Fifth Circuit issued an unpublished opinion Friday in a case called U.S. v. Olvera (No. 04-11499). It’s a relatively unremarkable case about drug evidence uncovered after a search pursuant to the automobile exception. The one thing that’s intriguing about it is the justification given by the agent who stopped the car: “[The suspect] left one of […]
READ MOREShould Prison Sentences Be Based on Crimes Not Yet Committed?
The U.S. Constitution requires due process before a criminal defendant can be deprived of life, liberty, or the pursuit of happiness. It is also a fundamental tenet of the U.S. justice system that defendants cannot be prosecuted for things they might do or for things they think about doing- which is why even charges of […]
READ MOREThird Circuit on Qualified Immunity for Heavy-Handed Police Tactics in Drug Bust
The Third Circuit issued a reasonable ruling Monday in a really terrifying case called Couden v. Duffy (No. 04-1732). The case concerns a 2001 drug bust gone wrong in Newark, Delaware, in which FBI and local police, with guns drawn, chased a mom and her teenage kids, threw a flashlight through the window of the […]
READ MOREConrad Black Re-Sentenced to an Additional 13 Months’ Imprisonment
On Friday, U.S. District Judge Amy St. Eve of the Northern District of Illinois re-sentenced Lord Conrad Black, former CEO of newspaper giant Hollinger International, Inc., to serve the remainder of his sentence, as reported in Canada’s Globe and Mail. Black has served 29 months of his original 78 month sentence, imposed following his conviction […]
READ MOREFEDS DROP LANCE ARMSTRONG INVESTIGATION
Hello again blog readers. After a year hiatus, I’m rejoining the blogosphere. My thanks to my law partner, Anthony Lake, for keeping things running in my absence. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles announced Friday (no coincidence that the announcement came Friday in an effort by the government to avoid unfavorable press), that is was […]
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