Feb 03 2013
So this morning’s NY Times article about pervasive perjury in criminal cases by members of the NYPD will come as no surprise to regular criminal defense practitioners. Among those who practice in this field, the practice is called “testilying.” But while Michelle Alexander’s article does a good job of describing the problem and pointing to …
Nov 28 2012
This Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review a decision by the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals blocking the enforcement of an Illinois eavesdropping law. The broadly written law makes it a felony to make an audio recording of someone without their permission, punishable by four to 15 years in prison. In most …
Oct 12 2012
Several states around the country, most notably California, Florida and Texas, permit a person charged with a crime to enter a plea of “NoLo Contendre” which is Latin for “I Do Not Contest The Matter.” This allows the accused to resolve his criminal matter by a plea bargain without admitting guilt of the crime. Its …
Jul 15 2012
For years, since Congress passed the draconian and rigid Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA) in the wake of the first WTC bombing and the Oklahoma City attack, Federal appeals courts have not seen fit to extend the Act’s harsh one year statute of limitations on habeas corpus appeals, even in cases of actual …
Apr 11 2012
A long time ago, I wrote an article entitled “The Constitution is Overrated” and friends and colleagues of mine who knew the admiration and passion that I have for this country’s grand document were surprised at the piece which faulted, not the document itself, but how courts have applied it; rarely, do courts give those …