Mark David Chapman, the killer of former Beatle John Lennon, won’t be traveling anyplace shortly. The 61-year old Chapman was refused release — for the ninth time — Saturday. Although the rationalizing supporting the ruling was not stated; previously the Parole Board has said that letting Chapman out would weaken “respect for the law.” Chapman […]
READ MOREAddressing Drug Policing and Racial Disparities: An Interview with Ryan King of The Sentencing Project
A recent report by The Sentencing Project documents, in considerable detail, something that many Americans uneasily suspect about the way the war the drug war is policed: namely, that it affects African American communities vastly more than those communities “deserve” based on their level of drug use. This isn’t the only report or the only […]
READ MOREJustin Bieber Raises Flag Scandal in Argentina
Adding another bizarre controversy to his recent South American tour, Justin Bieber offended many Argentine fans this past weekend by mishandling a flag thrown onstage. The Evolution of Justin Bieber Bieber’s current South American tour passed through Buenos Aires on Saturday night, but the singer’s wild show hit an awkward snag when fans tossed a […]
READ MOREIndictments: Black man shot four whites because of race
Who is Lakim Faust? You’ve heard of Dylan Roof. You’ve (probably) never heard of Lakim Faust. That’s not surprising. America’s mainstream media tends to walk all over itself when a white male perpetuates a mass shooting. Listen to the same media outlets for news about a mass shooting when perpetrated by a black man, all […]
READ MOREClothing line Illuminati calls for murder of George Zimmerman on Twitter
Tweet a Death Threat on Twitter, No Problem. Report a Death Threat and See Your Account Suspended When the famous clothing line Illuminati issued a threat in July 2013, which called for the death of George Zimmerman, Twitter went wild with many Twitter users calling for the social network to ban the account. “@Twitter, Please […]
READ MOREInterview With Jerry McDevitt on Dr. Wecht’s Trial
In the first of two posts, Pittsburgh criminal defense attorney, Jerry McDevitt, comments on his successful defense of famed pathologist, Dr. Cyril Wecht. Q: Jerry congratulations on the dismissal of all charges in the Wecht case in the Western District of Pennsylvania earlier this month. (Readers can find earlier posts here) I want to talk […]
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 […]
READ MOREPeople v. Ward: Due Process and Equal Protection Challenge to California Crack
The disparity between the treatment of powder and crack cocaine under California criminal law does not violate principles of due process or equal protection, the Second District Court of Appeal held 10/1/08 in People v. Ward, B200354. The defendant in Ward argued that the sentencing disparity violated substantive due process and equal protection principles because […]
READ MOREFollow-up on 911 calls as “non-testimonial”
I spoke to Louis Turchirelli, who was the lawyer on Pitts v. State, which I wrote a post on recently. I asked him if he was going to take the case up on appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. He advised me that there was a similar case pending already. I went to the Supreme Court […]
READ MOREPhoto of trained child with gun prompts police visit to N.J. home
Facebook Image Prompts NJ Raid by Cops and Child Services Take an overreaching child and family services agency add in an overly aggressive police department, and you have the ingredients for a disaster. When Shawn Moore took a photo of his 11-year old son holding his birthday present, a .22 caliber tactical rifle, he never […]
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