Judge jails Rowan clerk for contempt; 5 deputies pledge to issue marriage licenses Friday morning
A federal judge sent Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis to jail Thursday for contempt of court after she testified that her religious beliefs against same-sex marriage made it impossible for her to comply with his order to resume issuing marriage licenses. “My conscience will not allow me,” Davis told U.S. District Judge David Bunning in […]
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Hard Times and Drug Law: A Q&A With “Dry Manhattan” Author Michael A. Lerner
Alcohol prohibition was repealed in America in 1933, during tough economic times. Today, with our economy in shambles yet again, the discussion around drug policy reform seems to be gaining traction. Michael A. Lerner is the author of the terrific book Dry Manhattan: Prohibition in New York City. I asked him a couple questions intended to […]
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En Banc Rehearing in Abigail Alliance v. Eschenbach
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 […]
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Federal 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 […]
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In 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 […]
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Habits 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., […]
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Lessons 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 […]
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Honda 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 […]
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Should 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 […]
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Third 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 […]
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