The New York Police Pilot Android Smartphone Program, which began last summer, provides police with thousands of criminal records while they canvas a particular building or area. Over 400 phones have been distributed to police officers since the program began. Police can now access your criminal history and your neighbors by tapping on their smartphone […]
READ MOREThe Kelly Surprise: Attorney General Concedes That Amendment of Compassionate Use Act Was Unconstitutional
Surprising news in California medical marijuana law: the California Attorney General has conceded that the legislature’s amendment of the 1996 Compassionate Use Act was unconstitutional, meaning that criminal defendants may soon be able to regain the ability to put on a trial defense under the Compassionate Use Act even if the amount of medical marijuana […]
READ MORECourt Suppresses Evidence in Wecht Case, Leaving Little or Nothing Left
Last Thursday, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, District Judge Sean J. McLaughlin presiding, ruled that the government could not use evidence obtained from two search warrants against former Allegheny County Coroner, Dr. Cyril H. Wecht, as reported by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The warrants were issued for Dr. Wecht’s pathology laboratory in 2005. Agents seized […]
READ MOREMalamud Linked to PACER Pilot Shut Down
Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) is an archaic, document tracking system used by the federal courts. This is the database that stores all complaints, court motions, case scheduling and decisions. In 2001, the Judicial Conference of the US released a web-based version of the PACER database allowing remote access to most federal civil […]
READ MOREUnited States Sentencing Commission Proposes Amendment to Acceptance of Responsibility Guideline
The United States Sentencing Commission recently released proposed amendments to the Federal Sentencing Guidelines. Among the proposed changes, including changes relating to [insert list here], is a proposed change to the guidelines regarding acceptance of responsibility. The Commission, through this proposed amendment, seeks to reconcile to conflicting circuit opinions regarding the interpretation of the existing […]
READ MORECourts Face Growing Challenges Over Jurors’ Increasing Use of Internet, Computers, Cellphones, Etc.
In this age of universal access to information through computers, cellphones and other devices, there is one group the courts are increasingly opposed to having access—the jury. A March 18 article in the New York Times relates how jurors in a large criminal case in South Florida were discovered to have done research on the […]
READ MOREQueens Man Arrested for Firing a Realistic Toy Gun in Queens Park
A Queens man by the name of Jack Pawlowski was arrested on Wednesday, May 8, 2013 for firing a toy gun that resembled a real weapon and then handed it to his three year old son and other family members to play with. Apparently some people at Ditmar’s Park thought the gun was real. Maria Smilios […]
READ MOREFelony Cases in Bronx Have Longest Delays
One of the central ideas of our criminal justice system is the promise of a speedy trial. Felony cases in the Bronx have seen the longest delays in New York City. Seven in 10 cases have surpassed the state’s guidelines, which require that most felony crimes be tried within 180 days. Cases are piling up […]
READ MOREInsurance Fraud Scandal in New York’s Russian Foreign Ministry
For the past six months, New York prosecutors and the FBI have collected evidence concerning health insurance fraud, perpetrated by Russian diplomats. They are now confident that they have enough evidence to mount a solid case. According to Prosecutor Preet Bharara, the diplomats falsified income statements and other information regarding marital status and nationality to […]
READ MORETo Testify or Not to Testify…That is the Question.
Few topics are discussed among lawyers more. Should you put your client on the stand or not? Sometimes it’s just not an option for any number of reasons. Maybe your client has a criminal history that has too much to impeach with. Maybe your client told so many inconsistent versions of a story to the […]
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