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Criminal Law Blog Posts from February 08, 2010

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Criminal Law Posts (February 08, 2010)

US v. Comstock: Will the U.S. Supreme Court Uphold the Federal Government's Power to Commit Sex Offenders, or Invoke Principles of Federalism?

2-8-2010 National:Currently pending before the Supreme Court is an important case, United States of America v. Comstock, that will test whether Chief Justice Roberts and the Court's conservative majority are willing to extend the protections of federalism even to sex offenders. My initial impressions of the oral argument, held in January, suggest that
Posted on Sex Offender Issues, News, Recidivism and Studies on February 08, 2010 at 11:40 PM

this week’s edition.

Leading off this edition: No new opinions of note are had this edition. In the news, NPR’s Fresh Air has an exceptional piece interviewing David Dow discussing his Autobiography of an Execution. In a sign of the times, Gabriel Gonzales returned to the same Bexar County courtroom Monday where, 13 years earlier, a jury had condemned him [...]
Posted on Capital Defense Weekly on February 08, 2010 at 11:31 PM

COUNTY COURT IN DISARRAY!!

The Colonel of County Court reports:Alright, remain seated and listen up. We continued our reconnoiter of the Monday County Court situation and things are not looking good. This experiment of no soundings is headed towards failure. The simple reason is that courts don't work if people cannot get into court. And the standing room only crowds of clients,
Posted on Justice Building Blog on February 08, 2010 at 11:22 PM

Michael Jackson?s Doctor Pleads Not Guilty to Involuntary Manslaughter in Singer?s Death

Conrad Murray, the personal physician of Michael Jackson, pleaded not guilty to a single felony charge of involuntary manslaughter in the death of the famous performer. Bail was set at $75,000?three times more than the amount faced by most people who are charged with involuntary manslaughter. Prosecutors had wanted bail set at $300,000. Michael Jackson
Posted on Boston Criminal lawyer Blog on February 08, 2010 at 11:03 PM

?Professional Criminal? Label Can Warrant Consecutive Sentences

The word ?consecutive? is a word that can strike fear into the heart of any criminal defendant. That single word can make decades? worth of difference in defendants? sentencing hearings, transforming multiple convictions into one extended prison term. Where sentences are imposed ?consecutively? in Tennessee, they run back-to-back, meaning four senten
Posted on Tennessee Criminal Lawyer Blog on February 08, 2010 at 10:03 PM

I am Accused of Criminal Battery - What Should I Do Next? - California Penal Code Section 242

Anyone who has been charged with battery, under California Penal Code section 242, should be prepared to retain an experienced criminal defense law firm to represent him or her in court. An experienced criminal defense attorney will know how to examine all the circumstances surrounding a criminal battery case to secure the most favorable disposition of
Posted on Southern California Criminal Defense Blog on February 08, 2010 at 10:00 PM

Virtue Doesn't Keep the Lights On

Never expect compensation for a good deed. Rarely will those you help ever even bother to thank you - let alone pay you. Just ask Anne Danaher. Anne Danaher, Erin Brockovitch style, was a non-lawyer who spent thousands of hours fighting for a cause she believed was just. Nevertheless, she is being denied just compensation for her work: Danaher was...
Posted on Crime & Federalism on February 08, 2010 at 9:38 PM

LEBOW v. ROSSMAN TRANSCRIPT

The Seventeenth - click here for February's SAO Online Newsletter. This month's highlight: the SAO is joining the PD's Office in a "wear blue jeans to work for Haiti relief" day. No, not this Thursday, as Judge Holmes has approved, but Monday, February 15th. From the newsletter:"Here at SAO, staffers who have chosen to work on Pr
Posted on JAABlog on February 08, 2010 at 9:29 PM

Bad (Allegedly)

The Los Angeles Times article on the not-guilty plea by Michael Jackson's physician to a charge of involuntary manslaughter is here. And the lyrics to Jackson's hit song "Bad" are here. In part: The Word Is Out You're Doin' Wrong...
Posted on CrimProf Blog on February 08, 2010 at 8:03 PM

"Would Ending The Drug War Stimulate Economic Growth?"

The title of this post is the headline of this new commentary up here at The Atlantic. Here is how it starts: Correspondent Richard Posner wrote an interesting blog post suggesting six ways that the U.S. could stimulate economic growth,...
Posted on Sentencing Law and Policy on February 08, 2010 at 6:37 PM

Eighth Circuit rejects challenge to constitutionality of Arkansas lethal injection protocol

As detailed in this AP article, today a "federal appeals court upheld Arkansas' lethal injection procedure ... [by affirming] the dismissal of a lawsuit filed by three death-row inmates, including two who are scheduled to die over the next nine...
Posted on Sentencing Law and Policy on February 08, 2010 at 6:33 PM

The Latest Breathalyzer Proves No More Reliable Than Others

As readers of this blog are aware, one of my pet peeves is the public’s blind trust in the little metal boxes that analyze a DUI suspect’s breath and spit out a number that supposedly represents the amount of alcohol in his blood. The simple, scientifically proven fact is that all the various models of [...]
Posted on DUI Blog on February 08, 2010 at 5:03 PM

David Dow on NPR's Fresh Air Today

Check your local NPR affiliate for the broadcast time of today's Fresh Air, or you can listen to the interview at this LINK later today. Attorney David Dow has made a career out of defending death row inmates in Texas...
Posted on StandDown Texas Project on February 08, 2010 at 4:35 PM

Power plant explosion centers on safety www.privateofficer.com

MIDDLETOWN CT Feb 8 2010 Source: Hartford Courant – Possible gaps in safety protocols at the Kleen Energy power plant are at the center of the investigation into Sunday’s blast that killed five and injured 12. It occurred during the always-dangerous process of purging, or cleaning, of the underground, high-pressure natural-gas pipeline that
Posted on Private Officer News on February 08, 2010 at 4:32 PM

Dallas police officer arrested for pulling gun on bouncer

Dallas TX Feb 8 2010 An off-duty veteran Dallas police sergeant was arrested early Sunday, accused of hitting and pulling a gun on a Greenville Avenue bar owner and bouncer as both tried to get him to leave at closing time early Sunday morning. Sgt. Hector Roa, 37, was being held Sunday at the Lew Sterrett [...]
Posted on Private Officer News on February 08, 2010 at 4:17 PM

Open Thread ... Monday

Welcome back to the Open Thread, our blog's space for off-topic comments and discussion. If you've seen an interesting story somewhere else, feel free to post a link below. As always, please follow our standard rules: Please sign your comments,...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 4:15 PM

Michael Jackson's doctor charged with involuntary manslaughter

Dr. Conrad Murray's lawyer says his client will plead not guilty. If he's found guilty, he could be sentenced to four years.
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 4:04 PM

Ohio on Pace for Execution State Record

That's the title of Andrew Welsch-Huggins' AP report, via today's Washington Times. LINKAfter a relative lull in the number of executions Ohio carries out annually, it appears poised to sharply increase lethal injections in the months to come, possibly setting...
Posted on StandDown Texas Project on February 08, 2010 at 4:01 PM

Intriguing little Eleventh Circuit ruling on loss calculation and restitution

The Eleventh Circuit has an interesting little decision today in US v. Patterson, No. 09-13354 (11th Cir. Feb. 8, 2010) (available here), that should be of interest to folks working on various white-collar sentencing issues. Here is how the ruling...
Posted on Sentencing Law and Policy on February 08, 2010 at 4:00 PM

Teacher forced teen to touch her chest, Fla. cops say

She's also accused of fondling his buttocks.
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 3:50 PM

Churches hire guards, install alarms after fires www.privateofficer.com

TYLER TX Feb 8 2010 ? Eight Texas churches barely 150 miles apart have caught fire since New Year’s Day, putting pastors and congregations on edge and on guard, wondering whether theirs is next. Authorities determined that seven of those fires were intentionally set, and they are investigating one Thursday as a possible arson. There have [...]
Posted on Private Officer News on February 08, 2010 at 3:48 PM

Eighth Circuit Upholds Arkansas' LI Protocol

The ruling is here. The Arkansas News Bureau has, "Court Upholds Lethal Injection Protocol." A federal appeals court has upheld Arkansas' lethal injection procedure, finding it is designed "to avoid the needless infliction of pain, not to cause it." The...
Posted on StandDown Texas Project on February 08, 2010 at 3:47 PM

AZ judge suppresses evidence from search of TX polygamist ranch

I said from the get-go that the search warrant used to get on the YFZ Ranch property in Eldorado back in 2008 was overbroad, based on lies, and that evidence derived from the Great Eldorado Polygamist Roundup should be suppressed in criminal court.Now an Arizona judge has concluded the same thing after prosecutors there tried to introduce evidence agai
Posted on Grits for Breakfast on February 08, 2010 at 3:47 PM

How "The Dating Game" figures into a murder trial

In Santa Ana, Calif., a man named Rodney Alcala, 66, is on trial for the 1979 slaying of a 12-year-old girl. (He's also suspected of a handful of other murders.) Alcala, who has an IQ near 160 or 170 and...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 3:43 PM

You Are Who You Choose

Over the past decade, Buddhism, Taoism, and Greek and Roman wisdom are all being scientifically validated. Probably there is little reason to read past Marcus Aurelius' Meditations. In general: You are who you choose to be. You become your actions. Epictetus said: "If you want to be a writer...write." How banal? Is it? How many people say, "I want to..
Posted on Crime & Federalism on February 08, 2010 at 3:42 PM

As seen on TV

Tony Rizzo has an interesting story about a KCPD officer making a shot that you usually only see on TV: This kind of dangerous confrontation often ends badly. But on Saturday, when Kansas City police confronted a suicidal, knife-wielding woman,...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 3:27 PM

The More Things Change, The More Potential Clients Stay The Same

When I first started in private practice, I'd go anywhere to represent someone. I'd drive hours to a courthouse, or meet a client at a convenient place. I went to some interesting places.... Now, a few years later, most meetings are in my office, most cases, close to home. But then there was last Thursday. A frantic mom called from her home a few hundr
Posted on Criminal Defense on February 08, 2010 at 3:15 PM

Madoff?s British Office will not be Charged in Connection to Scam

The London-based office of convicted con artist Bernie Madoff will not be charged in the criminal investigation into a large investment scam resulting in billions of lost investments around the world. The United Kingdom Serious Fraud Office said their investigators have not produced enough evidence against the London branch of Madoff?s operation to
Posted on The Criminal Defense Blog on February 08, 2010 at 2:46 PM

Attention Drivers: You are not Required to Take DUI Field Sobriety Tests

Despite common misperception?due in large part to the fact that cops don?t often share this information?neither California nor Nevada DUI field sobriety tests or ?FSTs? are mandatory tests. You have the absolute right to refuse to take these tests and most DUI defense attorneys will advise you to do just that. This is because DUI field sobriety tests
Posted on DUI Blogger on February 08, 2010 at 2:41 PM

Dad abused girl because she didn't say her ABCs, cops say

A few outlets have said he basically tried to "waterboard" the little girl. From the News Tribune of Tacoma: Tabor spoke to a Yelm police officer and said that he and his girlfriend had ?held her down on the counter...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 2:11 PM

"A Mediocre Criminal, but an Unmatched Jailhouse Lawyer"

Adam Liptak has the column on this interesting journey at the New York Times.
Posted on CrimProf Blog on February 08, 2010 at 2:05 PM

The Manuel Tapes - Comments on Tom Manuel & Use of an Entrapment Defense

I am quoted in the following article which appeared February 7th in the St. Augustine Record and was written by Tiffany Pakkala . The Manuel Tapes He's guilty — but was he set up? Legal experts differ There is no shadow of a doubt that former St. Johns County Commissioner Tom Manuel took $60,000 in bribes — and he knew it was dirty m
Posted on Palm Beach Criminal Defense Blog on February 08, 2010 at 2:02 PM

Man tried to buy crack with credit card, Mich. cops say

Things did not go well.
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 1:45 PM

Some "bikini baristas" go the extra mile for tip money

In Washington state, several communities have tried to regulate a growing trend there: Drive-through coffee shops where the baristas work in bikinis. In Everett, police say they caught five baristas who would "put on erotic shows" and let customers touch...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 1:22 PM

Man says he was sodomized outside KC club

From Tony Rizzo: A 35-year-old Kansas City man told police Saturday that he was sexually assaulted by another man outside a midtown nightclub. The alleged victim told officers that he was waiting for a cab outside a bar at 39th...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 1:15 PM

Court Declines to Find Exception to Auto Exception

US v. Kelly: Kelly was the subject of an investigation into drug dealing in the Hampton Roads, Virginia, area. Officers obtained a warrant to search Kelly's home, although not any vehicles that were there. When police executed the search warrant, a green Lexus that was known to be Kelly's was one of three vehicles outside the house. When Kelly was t
Posted on Fourth Circuit Blog on February 08, 2010 at 12:49 PM

Decision to Agree to Mistrial Is Counsel's to Make, Not Defendant's

US v. Chapman: In this 2255 action, Chapman challenged the effectiveness of his counsel at trial. In particular, Chapman argued that when the Government went beyond the scope of certain evidentiary rulings with relation to FRE 404(b) evidence, his counsel was ineffective for moving only for a mistrial with prejudice, which the district court denied.
Posted on Fourth Circuit Blog on February 08, 2010 at 12:48 PM

The Cost Issue in Pennsylvania

"State could save by ending death penalty," is the title of Jeanette Krebs' column in the Harrisburg Patriot-News. Krebs is the paper's editorial page editor. As Gov. Ed Rendell unveils what is expected to be a tough budget this week,...
Posted on StandDown Texas Project on February 08, 2010 at 12:46 PM

Appeal Waiver Not Valid, Defendant Loses Anyway

US v. Manigan: Manigan pleaded guilty to three counts of possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, pursuant to a plea agreement in which he waive his right to all appeals and 2255 claims (save ineffective assistance of counsel and prosecutorial misconduct) - the Government waived nothing. Nonetheless, the district court at the plea hearing told
Posted on Fourth Circuit Blog on February 08, 2010 at 12:46 PM

13 B&Es at Same Location Trigger ACCA

US v. Carr: Carr pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. He had 13 prior felony convictions in North Carolina for breaking or entering, leading the district court to determine he qualified as an Armed Career Criminal. Carr agreed that he had the 13 convictions, but argued that they did not occur "on occasions different from one a
Posted on Fourth Circuit Blog on February 08, 2010 at 12:44 PM

Lawfully Obtained ID Info Can Be Used Unlawfully

US v. Abdelshafi: Abdelshafi owned and ran a medical transport (aka ambulance) service that contracted with Medicaid to transport patients in Virginia. As part of the routine transportations that Abdelshafi's company would do, it would collect bits of personal identifying information such as birth dates and Medicaid IDs. Eventually, investigators dis
Posted on Fourth Circuit Blog on February 08, 2010 at 12:43 PM

Booze thief tries to hide in police station, Wyo. cops say

At some point, he figured out where he was and tried to run, but it was too late, officers state.
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 12:19 PM

Nurse faces criminal charge for reporting doctor

In Kermit, Texas, a nurse is charged with misusing official information, a third-degree felony, after she and a colleague wrote an anonymous letter to the state medical board, complaining about a doctor. State investigators found several violations involving the doctor...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 12:09 PM

Reviews of Autobiography of an Execution

Journalist Steve Weinberg writes a review of David Dow's Autobiography of an Execution for today's Christian Science Monitor, "A death penalty attorney writes with candor about the painful burdens of his job." Dow is not the first anti-death penalty advocate...
Posted on StandDown Texas Project on February 08, 2010 at 12:01 PM

Advisers Sue State Securities Regulator

Years ago I wrote a column for Research Magazine titled Fight Back, an analysis of a litigation strategy for advisers when faced with frivolous customer complaints. The article created something of a stir among securities lawyers, which was a good thing. Sometimes regulated professionals are too timid to stand up for their rights.Two former financial a
Posted on SECLaw.com on February 08, 2010 at 11:58 AM

Benforado on Overlooked Biases

Adam Benforado (Drexel University - Earle Mack School of Law) has posted Frames of Injustice: The Bias We Overlook (Indiana Law Journal, Vol. 85, forthcoming 2010) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: The Cultural Cognition Project (CCP) at Yale Law...
Posted on CrimProf Blog on February 08, 2010 at 11:56 AM

UPDATE: Baby's body found near Carthage

An autopsy is planned for today in Columbia to see if the body found Saturday is Eddie Salazar, the 8-month-old who disappeared last week in Carthage The boy's father was arrested for filing a false report.
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 11:55 AM

"New legal issue: Payment for child porn victims"

The title of this post is the headline of this new AP piece, which effectively reviews the robust legal and policy debates over whether restitution orders should be a big part of federal child porn sentencing proceedings. Here are excerpts:...
Posted on Sentencing Law and Policy on February 08, 2010 at 11:53 AM

BERNSTEIN v. HAURY

Attorney Alan Bernstein has filed to run against Circuit Judge William Haury. The paperwork should post on the Florida Division of Elections' website tomorrow.What can be said about this one? Haury is a fair man, and the consummate gentleman. He's shown great compassion and insight since being appointed by Governor Crist.Oh well.
Posted on JAABlog on February 08, 2010 at 11:45 AM

Wrongly convicted man forgives accuser

CNN has a piece about Dean Cage, a Chicago man who spent 14 years in prison until he was cleared by DNA evidence, and how he's built a friendship with the woman who wrongly accused him of raping her. On...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 11:39 AM

Maybe you should keep that to yourself

From nwfdailynews.com: The 30-year-old Crestview man told police he was weaving because he was just trying to get home and that he had drunk "a six-pack probably." He also said that the drinks had likely affected his driving. When asked...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 11:27 AM

More details about that weird kidnapping

A few weeks ago, three men from southern Missouri allegedly drove to New Jersey, kidnapped a pet-store owner named Jeffrey Muller and brought him back to Missouri, where he escaped. Sadly, police say, they kidnapped the wrong Jeffrey Muller. Charges...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 11:01 AM

Wells Fargo To Add 1,400 Advisors

Stories about Merrill adding trainees surfaced last week, now we learn that Wells Fargo Advisors is looking to add 1,400 financial advisors. A published report said that the advisors will be a combination of 1,000 recruits from other firms and 400 trainees. More>>>Technorati Tags: broker transition, stock brokers
Posted on SECLaw.com on February 08, 2010 at 10:59 AM

Massachusetts Student Needs Experienced Lawyer In Assault Of Wall Case

Last week, the Boston Criminal Lawyer Blog discussed cases involving assaults of various natures. Some involved drugs. Some involved the ultimate assault... homicide. This week, we begin with assault of a different kind. Here, no person was assaulted. It was a wall. No, it was not a drunk driving case, where an inebriated driver believed that the
Posted on Boston Criminal lawyer Blog on February 08, 2010 at 10:56 AM

Not remotely crime-related

Toledo strip club raises $1,000 for charity via "Lap Dances for Haiti." Though, as the Blade newspaper notes, that's sort of a misnomer: Lap dances are illegal in Ohio. Instead, the club donated all of its cover charges from Saturday...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 10:37 AM

Jogger says he was literally whipped in Overland Park

One of his attackers included a dude with a mohawk, no less. (How very "Road Warrior.") OP police say he had marks that COULD have come from a whip, though they're still investigating. This allegedly happened about 1 this morning...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 10:29 AM

People get killed for singing "My Way" at Filipino karaokes

From the New York Times: The authorities do not know exactly how many people have been killed warbling ?My Way? in karaoke bars over the years in the Philippines, or how many fatal fights it has fueled. But the news...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 10:18 AM

Feds considering charges against Roeder

You might ask yourself: What's the point? Especially since Roeder has already been convicted of killing Dr. George Tiller and given a Hard 50 sentence, meaning he won't be eligible for parole until age 101. Well, there are two reasons....
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 10:14 AM

California Court of Appeal Clarifies "Force" Requirement of False Imprisonment - PC Section 236-237

In the recent case of People v. Santos Dominguez (2010) 2010 WL 60237 (hereafter Dominguez), the California Court of Appeal held that the amount of force required for false imprisonment of an unresisting infant or child is the amount of physical force required to take and carry the child away a substantial distance for an illegal purpose or with an ill
Posted on Southern California Criminal Defense Blog on February 08, 2010 at 10:00 AM

PURSUIT OF JUSTICE

2-8-2010 Oregon:A lawyer fights for a young man he says was wrongly prosecutedA small-town Oregon lawyer remains so outraged over what prosecutors did to a Central Oregon teenager in 2006 that he intends to go all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court to seek redress.For now, University of Oregon Law School graduate Steve Richkind, aided by several current
Posted on Sex Offender Issues, News, Recidivism and Studies on February 08, 2010 at 9:42 AM

Should it be illegal to pretend to be a war hero?

They're one of the few groups that make child molesters look good: People who pretend to have won medals for military service. In 2005, Congress passed a law, the Stolen Valor Act, that makes it a crime to do just...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 8:45 AM

Man used Internet to get stranger to rape his ex, Wyo. cops say

Here's what police in Casper think happen: A man named Jebidiah James Stipe allegedly posed as his ex-girlfriend online and posted a Craigslist ad for a "real aggressive man." One man responded, and Stipe, who was serving as a Marine...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 8:30 AM

No Hollywood ending for Jesse James Hollywood

In Santa Barbara, Calif., a judge has given Jesse James Hollywood a sentence of life without parole for a 2000 homicide that -- beyond attracting a lot of press attention -- became the subject of a major movie, "Alpha Dog."...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 8:00 AM

Alaska police try to solve Mo. natives' murders

The AP had a piece this weekend about the 1983 slayings of Kathy Morris and Jerry Elrod Jr. in Fairbanks. The investigator working on the case is trying to interview people who might remember anything about the victims or the...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 7:30 AM

Boss sued for age discrimination, flatulence

"Constant barrages of flatulence," it should be noted.
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 08, 2010 at 7:15 AM

Vt. Internet sex registry facing tweaks, challenges

2-8-2010 Vermont:MONTPELIER ? Coming amendments to a 2009 law that expanded the state's Internet sex-offender registry appear to have staved off at least one lawsuit challenging the new statute. However civil-rights advocates say it's only a matter of time before the broadened Web-based registry faces a more strenuous constitutional challenge.Last year
Posted on Sex Offender Issues, News, Recidivism and Studies on February 08, 2010 at 6:51 AM

Fourth Amendment News--CNET News

Police want to serve warrants and orders for electronic data electronically to eliminate delay Police want backdoor to Web users' private data by Declan McCullagh on CNET News: Anyone with an e-mail account likely knows that police can peek inside it if they have a paper search warrant. But cybercrime investigators are frustrated by the speed of tr
Posted on Fourth Amendment on February 08, 2010 at 2:31 AM

Deputy found dead, pinned between car and tree www.privateofficer.com

WALHALLA, S.C. Feb 8 2010 — The Oconee County coroner said a sheriff’s deputy has died after he was pinned between his patrol car and a tree. Coroner Karl E. Addis told multiple media outlets that 26-year-old William Frederick Schuck III of Rabun Gap, Ga., died Sunday morning. Schuck had been patrolling a private dirt road near [...]
Posted on Private Officer News on February 08, 2010 at 2:29 AM

MD: Removal of occupants from car is irrelevant if there is cause for stop

Defendant's removal from the car is "utterly immaterial" to the question of the cause for the stop. The eight minutes for the dog to arrive was not unreasonable. Jackson v. State, 2010 Md. App. LEXIS 24 (February 4, 2010). This is another entertaining opinion by Retired Judge Moylan, inter alia, describing the Arvizu/Sokolow totality of the circumstan
Posted on Fourth Amendment on February 08, 2010 at 2:27 AM

Do harsher sex offender laws really work?

2-8-2010 Maryland:After the recent kidnapping and murder of 11-year-old Sarah Foxwell in Salisbury, Md., an alleged sex offender by the name of Thomas J. Leggs Jr. was charged with kidnapping and burglary. Little Sarah's body was found badly burned on Christmas Day 2009. Do sex offender registries really work? Consider the following: Leggs already was
Posted on Sex Offender Issues, News, Recidivism and Studies on February 08, 2010 at 2:25 AM

Buffalo security officer opens fire on driver www.privateofficer.com

Buffalo NY Feb 8 2010 A security guard fired three shots at a car whose driver crashed into a downtown parking ramp and then drove toward the guard, Buffalo police said. The guard shot the Glock pistol at the driver’s tires to stop the car, police said. Police arrested the driver, Geraldo Perez of Buffalo, on charges [...]
Posted on Private Officer News on February 08, 2010 at 2:17 AM

M.D.Ala.: Nexus: Unemployed document forger likely kept stuff to do so in his house

Arrest warrant justified entry into defendant?s house looking for him. He was unemployed, and, although there were no cars outside, officers heard noises inside that stopped when they knocked. Defendant was suspected of forging IDs and other documents, and it was reasonable to assume that the materiel for doing so would be there. United States v. Thou
Posted on Fourth Amendment on February 08, 2010 at 2:14 AM

E.D.Mo.: Officer's use of e-mails in Internet sting case does not state a violation of the Fourth Amendment or any statute

Defendant?s broadranging attack on seizure of e-mails that he sent was [utterly frivolous and] rejected. He assumed the risk that the recipient would keep and make use of them. And, violation of the Yahoo service agreement is hardly a ground to suppress. United States v. Grady, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 124582 (E.D. Mo. December 18, 2009): Further, the
Posted on Fourth Amendment on February 08, 2010 at 2:08 AM

Police nab 6 in Atlanta Macy?s robberry www.privateofficer.com

ATLANTA GA Feb 8 2010– Police have arrested six people suspected of smashing a car into a department store, causing thousands of dollars in damage before pulling out with a load of stolen clothing. Four of them were captured at a nearby Waffle House. Morrow police said about $10,000 in clothing items stolen from the Macy’s [...]
Posted on Private Officer News on February 08, 2010 at 2:03 AM

D.C.Cir.: Officer's subjective intent for stop was irrelevant because there was an objective basis

Defendant?s car frisk was based on objective observations, and the officer?s supposed subjective belief did not matter. He had a knife, overtinted windows, and a "thin blue line" sticker when he had nothing to do with law enforcement. United States v. Vinton, 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 2450 (D.C. Cir. February 5, 2010)*: Finally, Vinton's argument that Offi
Posted on Fourth Amendment on February 08, 2010 at 2:01 AM

Security officers called heros after rescue www.privateofficer.com

Rochester NY Feb 8 2010 Source: WSEH.com Security guards at a local nightclub are being called heroes for helping rescue people from a burning apartment building. The fire started around 3:30 a.m. in a 3-story building at 121 Liberty Pole Way. Workers from “Club NV” noticed the smoke, called 911 and ran upstairs to help. “The alarm di
Posted on Private Officer News on February 08, 2010 at 1:42 AM

Greene County authorities will fight state bingo raids www.privateofficer.com

Greene County ALA. Feb 8 2010 The sheriff would have the authority to “deputize” men in order to stop a raid of the Greenetrack bingo operations by a state anti-gambling task force, a state legislator said in a press conference this afternoon in front of the facility. State Sen. Bobby Singleton, D-Greensboro, surrounded by Greene County [..
Posted on Private Officer News on February 08, 2010 at 1:32 AM

Special police officer involved in shoot-out www.privateofficer.com

� SAN FRANCISCO CA Feb 8 2010(AP) - Police say one person is dead and four critically injured after a shooting outside a nightclub near San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf. The shooting around 1:40 a.m. Sunday took place outside the Suede Nightclub and Lounge on Bay Street, according to a police spokesman. The two-story nightclub is about thr
Posted on Private Officer News on February 08, 2010 at 1:19 AM

Nightclub security officer stabbed to death www.privateofficer.com

Pasco WA Feb 8 2010 — A 41-year-old Kennewick man who worked as a bouncer and security guard for El Patron Night Club on Lewis Street in Pasco was murdered overnight. The man, whose name has not been released, was found lying in the alley near the night club with knife wounds at 2 a.m. today, [...]
Posted on Private Officer News on February 08, 2010 at 12:20 AM

quick look at this week’s new case law

So far we’ve spotted only a handful of decisions of note for the next email edition, all of which are after the jump Robert W. Jackson, III v. Danberg,� 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 2100 (3rd Cir 2/1/2010) Panel upholds Delaware letha l injection protocols but takes it to task for its “blitheness.” James Phillip Barnes v. State, [...]
Posted on Capital Defense Weekly on February 08, 2010 at 12:19 AM

NOT TO BRAG BUT

WE WON EVERY SUPER BOWL PREDICTION WE MADE!We won our guaranteed super bowl coin toss lock. We picked the first team to score and how (Colts, fg). We picked the under. And most importantly we told you to take the Saints, forget the points and take the odds because the Saints as underdogs would win outright. We swept the board. We said the final scor
Posted on Justice Building Blog on February 07, 2010 at 11:55 PM

Michigan court: Homeless sex offender OK not registering

2-7-2010 Michigan:LANSING ? The Michigan Court of Appeals has upheld a lower court?s decision that a homeless sex offender shouldn?t be punished for not registering an address or giving his whereabouts to law enforcement.The opinion of the three-judge panel was released Tuesday. The Lansing State Journal reports today the office of Ingham County Prosec
Posted on Sex Offender Issues, News, Recidivism and Studies on February 07, 2010 at 11:40 PM

Home invader shot during KC break-in

From Bob Cronkleton: An intruder was shot tonight after breaking into a Kansas City house and chasing someone inside. Someone inside shot the intruder after he broke into the house in the 2700 Block of Lister Avenue about 8:15 p.m.,...
Posted on Crime Scene KC on February 07, 2010 at 11:35 PM

In the News & Around the Blogosphere

DOJ Press Release, Two New Jersey Executives Each Sentenced to 27 Months in Jail for Roles in Nationwide Scheme to Defraud the Federal E-Rate Program Celestine Bohlen, Bloomberg, German Bounty Tears Veil Off Swiss Secrecy: Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant,...
Posted on White Collar Crime Prof Blog on February 07, 2010 at 10:50 PM

A closer look at an upcoming execution date: Hank Skinner

Where DNA evidence exists in a capital case common sense suggests it should be tested.� Texas, in Hank Skinner’s case, says no. In a little over two weeks Texas is scheduled to kill Hank Skinner despite large quantities of potentially exculpatory DNA evidence readily available for testing. The State at trial had a heavily circumstantial case [...
Posted on Capital Defense Weekly on February 07, 2010 at 9:57 PM

JAABCAM

1.) Ari Porth, Dan Gelber, Mike Satz, Mike McAuliffe (PB SA), Dennis Ward (Keys SA), and some other guy at last Friday's press conference. The event was sparsely attended, and mostly forced off the news by the BSO Beatdown video. Miami SA Katherine Fernandez Rundle wasn't at the lip service fest, since she was all over TV the same day due t
Posted on JAABlog on February 07, 2010 at 9:29 PM

Index theft categories to inflation

In 1993, Texas set the current threshold for felony theft at $1,500 for a state jail felony - below that, theft receives misdemeanor charges that don't involve state prison time. The jump to the next offense category is quite significant - someone must steal more than $20,000 to be charged with a third degree felony.However, adjusting for inflation, $1
Posted on Grits for Breakfast on February 07, 2010 at 7:46 PM

Man murders alleged rapist nephew

2-7-2010 Dubai:A man murdered a nephew who raped his daughter and refused to marry her when she became pregnant, Dubai Criminal Court heard yesterday.A lawyer representing Arab defendant TB, 47, called on the court to reduce any sentence to the lowest possible level because of the circumstances of the case.The defence also urged the court to rule out p
Posted on Sex Offender Issues, News, Recidivism and Studies on February 07, 2010 at 6:18 PM

Legal experts have differing opinions on sexual predator law

2-7-2010 Wisconsin:Opponents question fairness; proponents say society is saferThe impetus of Wisconsin's sexual predators law is a 36-year-old case.Gerald Turner was convicted of sexually assaulting and killing 9-year-old Lisa French of Fond du Lac in 1973. Just as he was to be released, state lawmakers created a statute that allowed prosecutors to ke
Posted on Sex Offender Issues, News, Recidivism and Studies on February 07, 2010 at 6:04 PM

McGinty: Prostitution bill would help young victims

2-7-2010 Georgia:Imagine the worst.Imagine your 12-year-old daughter has been kidnapped and, when she's finally found, she's been forced into a child prostitution ring. Imagine that she's kept in a drug-induced haze and raped repeatedly. Imagine the horror, grief and shock that would overwhelm you and your family as you dealt with that situation, and t
Posted on Sex Offender Issues, News, Recidivism and Studies on February 07, 2010 at 5:53 PM

Man Dies After Being Tasered by Police

2-7-2010 Virginia:ARLINGTON, Va. - There are new questions after a man died during a struggle with police at a busy Metro stop. Officers used a Taser on the man after he wouldn't cooperate at Pentagon City. Arlington police are investigating their first-ever police-involved death involving a Taser.The man, identified as 36-year-old William Bumbrey, a D
Posted on Sex Offender Issues, News, Recidivism and Studies on February 07, 2010 at 5:45 PM

Security officer dies in blizzard

Newark Delaware Feb 7 2010 By: Brett Davis/Staff PRIVATE OFFICER NEWS www.privateofficer.com A security officer seems to have become a victim of the heavy snowstorm that fell in the area over the week-end. Delaware State Police are investigating the death of a man whose body was found buried in the snow in the 1200 block of Old Baltimore Pike [...]
Posted on Private Officer News on February 07, 2010 at 3:02 PM

Teacher caught trying to have sex with teen www.privateofficer.com

Memphis TN Feb 7 2010 A Memphis City School teacher is out of the classroom for a while and in jail after he’s caught trying to have sex with a 17 year old boy. The teacher is being held on a $10,000 bond. “He’s a teacher at my school,” said 6 year old Aisha, student Ford Road [...]
Posted on Private Officer News on February 07, 2010 at 2:29 PM

Texas teacher arrested on cocaine charges www.privateofficer.com

Taylor TX Feb 7 2010 Blair Dorner, 39, a teacher in Cameron ISD, was arrested early Wednesday evening on charges of driving while intoxicated (DWI) and possession of cocaine in an amount greater than four grams. Police responded to a 911 call reporting the license plate of a vehicle ?swerving all over the road.? Taylor police [...]
Posted on Private Officer News on February 07, 2010 at 2:20 PM

Experts Testify on BAC Level in Fatal DUI Trial in New Jersey

Experts believe that the man charged in a fatal DUI from 2006 may have had a BAC four times the legal limit, NJ.com is reporting. On April 20, 2006, a car hit two teenage girls as they walked down the side of a New Jersey road coming back from a movie theater. They were killed, and [...]
Posted on The DUI Blog on February 07, 2010 at 2:15 PM

Security officer arrested after shooting attackers www.privateofficer.com

New York City NY Feb 7 2010 A retired city correction officer working security at a Queens bowling alley was arrested Saturday after he shot two rowdy customers during a wild fight, police said. Michael Iavecchio was charged with two counts of second-degree assault after the confrontation just outside the AMF Bowling Center in Woodside, police [...]
Posted on Private Officer News on February 07, 2010 at 1:49 PM

Tulsa cop arrested for threatening to kill security officer www.privateofficer.com

Tulsa Okla. Feb 7 2010 Source:Tulsa World A Tulsa police officer has been placed on paid suspension following an incident at a downtown pub during which he reportedly brandished a gun and threatened to kill a security guard. Officer Thomas Fees, 33, was booked into the Tulsa Jail on complaints of pointing a dangerous weapon and carrying a [...]
Posted on Private Officer News on February 07, 2010 at 1:38 PM

Odds and Ends

Here are a few recent tidbits that deserve Grits readers' attention:Dallas constables' ongoing fiascoAt the Dallas News, Ed Timms and Kevin Krause have the story of a deputy constable with a checkered past accused of committing several felony crimes, including "unauthorized use of two motor vehicles, tampering with government records and coercing two w
Posted on Grits for Breakfast on February 07, 2010 at 1:10 PM

Top-Ten Recent SSRN Downloads

are here. The usual disclaimers apply. Rank Downloads Paper Title 1 303 Am I a Price-Fixer? A Behavioral Economics Analysis of Cartels Maurice E. Stucke, University of Tennessee College of Law, Date posted to database: January 13, 20102010 2 247...
Posted on CrimProf Blog on February 07, 2010 at 1:00 PM

DE: Showing for nighttime search warrant failed; degradation of evidence in abstract not enough

Nighttime search warrant failed because of failure to show any specifics of why there was exigency for the nighttime entry. The mere chance of ?degradation of evidence? is not enough. State v. White, 2010 Del. Super. LEXIS 27 (February 2, 2010): Here, the only facts contained in the affidavit that suggest exigent circumstances are the location to be
Posted on Fourth Amendment on February 07, 2010 at 12:57 PM

"Retired Officers Raise Questions on Crime Data "

In other words, the US News rankings are not unique. From the New York Times: More than a hundred retired New York Police Department captains and higher-ranking officers said in a survey that the intense pressure to produce annual crime...
Posted on CrimProf Blog on February 07, 2010 at 12:40 PM

9 Year old dead, mother critical at 5 star hotel www.privateofficer.com

NEW YORK NY Feb 7 2010 (WPIX) – A 9-year-old boy was found dead and his mother near death at a luxury Midtown hotel Friday, PIX News has learned. The boy was discovered lying face-up on a bed at the five-star Peninsula Hotel on 55th St. near Fifth Ave. some time before 12 p.m., police said. [...]
Posted on Private Officer News on February 07, 2010 at 12:34 PM

3 Killed, 2 Injured in Houston street racing www.privateofficer.com

HOUSTON TX Feb 7 2010 ?Three people were killed Saturday and two injured after a street racing accident, according to witnesses. It happened on the Gulf Freeway at College in southeast Houston. Police said around 2:30 a.m., two pickup trucks were racing each other when they lost control. The truck in the left lane struck a [...]
Posted on Private Officer News on February 07, 2010 at 12:29 PM

Security tackles man swinging shovel www.privateofficer.com

TULSA, OK Feb 7 2010– A man was hospitalized after attacking patrons in a Tulsa strip club with a shovel, according to police. The attack was foiled by bouncers who intervened. The man walked into Night Trips, 3902 South Sheridan Road, at about 10:25 p.m. brandishing a large shovel. Police at the scene said the man [...]
Posted on Private Officer News on February 07, 2010 at 12:18 PM

E.D.Tenn.: Drug dogs failure to alert does not nullify PC that already exists

Defense counsel was not ineffective for not moving to suppress the search of the car defendant was riding in because there was probable cause for the search. While drug dog was called in and did not alert, this does not nullify PC that already exists. Holt v. United States, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9300 (E.D. Tenn. February 3, 2010): Holt also argues th
Posted on Fourth Amendment on February 07, 2010 at 12:01 PM

D.Minn.: Defendant lacks standing to challenge HIPAA violation as to his victim's medical records

Defendant has no standing to challenge alleged HIPAA violation of his victim in producing records for trial. And, there was no violation. United States v. Prentice, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9701 (D. Minn. January 15, 2010). The officer had reasonable suspicion that defendant had guns and drugs in the car when he stopped him, and that justified asking f
Posted on Fourth Amendment on February 07, 2010 at 11:56 AM

SUPER SUNDAY

UPDATE: If you had Warren Sapp in your arrest pool, you win! Booking Info here. The Ex-Hurricane and Tampa Bay Buc (and Oakland Raider) was arrested Saturday night in a domestic dispute. Who's going to use his SB Ticket? Do they get to watch the whole game at TGK or is it lights out before it ends? SUPER BOWL SUNDAY IN MIAMI. Doesn't get any better t
Posted on Justice Building Blog on February 07, 2010 at 10:56 AM

Raiding Case Costs Raymond James $12 Million

In a case involving 20 advisers in 4 branch offices, a securities arbitration panel has ordered Raymond James Associates Inc. to pay $12.1 million to Wells Fargo Advisors LLC for alleged raiding.The award does not provide any detail of the case, but ordered 10,500,000 in compensatory damages, 1,500,000 in attorneys fees and costs. A copy of the award i
Posted on SECLaw.com on February 07, 2010 at 10:45 AM

"Record 86% of Japanese Support Death Penalty, Yomiuri Reports"

The title of this post is the headline of this Bloomberg news item. Here are the details: Japanese support for the death penalty rose to a record 85.6 percent, the Yomiuri newspaper reported, citing a poll by the Cabinet Office....
Posted on Sentencing Law and Policy on February 07, 2010 at 10:40 AM

Did Sarah Palin or any others at the Tea Party Convention talk about pot prohibition or mass incarceration?

Though I sense that everyone is still trying to figure out just what the Tea Party movement is (or isn't), I think it is safe to assert and assume that the movement is interest in promoting human liberty and concerned...
Posted on Sentencing Law and Policy on February 07, 2010 at 10:24 AM

Lesser Included Offenses: How An Experienced Criminal Defense Attorney Could Save you From a Felony Conviction

Most felonies could be charged as lesser offenses. In other words, the lesser offenses are a part of the felony because they include the same elements. Typically, the jury must be instructed on the lesser included offense. For example, the crime of felony assault includes the lesser offense of simple assault. Simple assault requires that the prosecut
Posted on Southern California Criminal Defense Blog on February 07, 2010 at 10:00 AM

What can be done to stop predators?

2-7-2010 National:'Some can be easily treated, some can't... and you've got the whole group in between,' says Fred Berlin, a professor of psychiatry at Johns Hopkins UniversityChris Hansen spoke to Dr. Fred Berlin, a professor of psychiatry at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. Berlin has over 25 years of experience working with sexual offenders.Hansen
Posted on Sex Offender Issues, News, Recidivism and Studies on February 07, 2010 at 9:42 AM

Pending Legal Actions for Hank Skinner

Henry Watkins SkinnerSet to be Executed February 24, 2010Huntsville, Texas Pending Legal ActionsHenry W. Skinner vs. Rick Thaler, Director TDCJ-CIDThis is an appeal from Mr. Skinner's inital federal habeas claimsU.S. Supreme Court, Case No. 09-7784Docket information is available online athttp://origin.www.supremecourtus.gov/docket/09-7784.htmA decisio
Posted on Texas Death Penalty Blog on February 07, 2010 at 3:29 AM

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