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Christmas Miracle -- or not

By Melody Evans and Kirk Redmond

From the Tenth Circuit today:This case requires us to dismiss a criminal indictment because of the failure to comply with the requirements of the Speedy Trial Act of 1974 (the ?Act?), 18 U.S.C. §3161 et seq.Thought it'd never happen, didn't ya? Well, in US v. DeMarco Deon Williams, his mandatory life sentence was vacated, conviction reversed with instructions to dismiss. The Court went through a lengthy analysis, with dates and math and charts and color graphs, to find that the Act had been violated. There was an invalid prospective waiver and trial court failure to make adequate findings. This decision is a good primer on Speedy Trial Act law, so if you have this issue, it is a helpful case. The waiver analysis reminds that it is not just the defendant's rights at stake, but the public's right to a timely disposition...continue to full post

Full post as published by Kansas Federal Defender on December 21, 2007 (boomark / email).