Criminal Defense
The presumption of innocence is king
The presumption of innocence, and the requirement of proof beyond a reasonable doubt in criminal cases, must seem to be a very foreign concept to countless criminal jurors. Hopefully Twelve Angry Men (not this 12 Angry Men) will convince more people of these critical principles of criminal justice....
4th Circuit: A known suspicious person shifting around in a car does not a lawful stop make
Yesterday, the Fourth Circuit issued a great opinion reversing a drug conviction on a finding of no reasonable articulable suspicion to stop a suspect, where the stop was mainly based on law enforcement’s being familiar with his past criminal history, believing the suspect was acting uncomfortable in seeing people he knew...
The Supreme Court retreats from Crawford on hearsay
Supreme Court’s spiral staircase. Copyright Jon Katz (photographed October 2010). Today, the United States Supreme Court substantially retreated from Crawford v. Washington, 541 U.S. 36 (2004), in determining that the Sixth Amendment’s Confrontation Clause was not offended where the state trial court allowed into evidence the victim’s dying...
Before Entering a Guilty Plea, Know How Irreversible it is
Photo from website of U.S. District Court (W.D. Mi.). When I started practicing criminal defense in 1991, the phrase “guilty plea” sounded like a dirty word, but I already knew that such pleas are a major part of the criminal “justice” system which otherwise would...
Fourth Circuit: Virginia 251 marijuana dispositions are not always convictions for immigration purposes
Today, the Fourth Circuit ruled that a marijuana disposition under Va. Code § 18.2-251 (also known as 251, which I fully discuss here) is not always a conviction for immigration purposes. Crespo v. Holder, 631 F.3d 130 (4th Cir., Jan. 11, 2011) . Crespo says: “We thus start...
The Constitution substantially limits the “lawful orders” police may make
Bill of Rights. (From the public domain.) Thanks to a listserv member for citing to a 1965 Supreme Court decision that underlines the unconstitutional overbreadth of statutes criminalizing one’s not obeying a "lawful order" of a police officer, where the statute does nothing to narrow such orders...
When a misdemeanor conviction makes home firearm possession a crime
Image from the Government Printing Office’s website. District of Columbia v. Heller applies the Second Amendment to the individual right to possess firearms for home protection. Heller, 128 S. Ct. 2783 (2008). What happens when a person possesses a firearm at home in contravention of...
Reversal for prosecutor’s vouching for the credibility of a police witness
On December 2, Maryland’s Court of Special Appeals reversed a conviction based on the prosecutor’s comments on the credibility of his police witness. Sivells v. Maryland, ___ Md. App. ___ (Dec. 2, 2010). Sivells also addressed the test for probable cause: This Court recently discussed the concept...
Verbal diarrhea from suspects even afflicts seasoned police, and gets a $10 million bond
Then-police detective Stephanie Lazarus sticks a billion feet in her mouth. Jon Katz urges suspects to assert their rights to remain silent and to refuse searches. On my blog, on the podium, and person-to-person, I do my best to spread the word for people to...
The risk of lying on a gun purchase application
Image from the Government Printing Office’s website. As long as people must fill out applications for handgun purchase background checks, people with applicable convictions and applicable pending criminal charges will insert incorrect information, be prosecuted, and, with at least some, convicted. Enter Russell Smith, who had...
