Tag Archives: Criminal Defense New Jersey
First Step Act Promised To Reform Criminal Justice & Release Those Doing Unfair Time for Drug Crimes
News reports have been dominated by news headlines of the First Step Act, which, if passed by the Senate by the end of December, would make a number of changes to the criminal justice system, including eliminating mandatory minimum sentencing for a number of drug crimes, providing funding for rehabilitation programs, and instituting a… Read More »
Civil Rights Enforcement & Education in the Trump Era
The Department of Education and Secretary Betsy DeVos have drawn a significant amount of civil rights concerns, especially when it comes to affirmative action policies, school segregation, and Title IX, the federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in all federally-funded education programs. Many feel that DeVos has effectively all but completely abandoned her civil… Read More »
Important Legal Updates For New Jersey: Summer 2018
New Jersey Makes Bold Move to Adjourn All Marijuana-Related Cases On July 24, New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal made an announcement instructing all municipal prosecutors to adjourn any marijuana-related cases until September 4 or later in order to coincide with the New Jersey State Senate’s plan to consider bill legalizing marijuana. This is… Read More »
The “Gay Or Trans Panic Defense” Could Be On The Way Out
It is a little-known fact that, today, anyone charged with assault or murder can argue that their charges should be reduced because they were simply reacting to their victim’s gender identity or sexual orientation in all but three states (California, Illinois, and Rhode Island). This criminal defense is known as the “gay or trans… Read More »
Pipeline Protesters Rely On Necessity Defense
Some of the pipeline protesters who were charged with various crimes while protesting the Dakota Access oil pipeline are relying on what’s known as the “necessity defense,” arguing that they had no choice but to commit the crimes they are being accused of in order to prevent a greater harm. In this case, the… Read More »
Nature Versus Nurture: Juror Bias Against Criminal Defendants With Mental Disorders
A new study out of the University of Missouri looks at to what extent jurors assign blame when it comes to criminal defendants with mental disorders. The study sheds light on how society assigns blame and punishment for crime based on why and how defendants acquire mental disorders. While historically, the understanding has been… Read More »
Inherent Flaws in Criminal Justice System Bleed Into Deportation Policies
The United States continues to mire itself in a complicated web overlapping immigration decisions with those of criminal justice—a criminal justice system that is “infected with racial bias”—ultimately promoting deportation policies based on criminal activity which effectively result in discriminatory policing. While Senators Richard Durbin and Lindsey Graham introduced a revamped version of the… Read More »
Federal Bill to Legalize Marijuana Introduced
On August 1st, Senator Cory Booker introduced legislation—the Marijuana Justice Act—to legalize cannabis at the federal level. The bill removes cannabis from the list of drugs covered by the Controlled Substances Act, automatically expunges marijuana use and possession, incentivizes states to change their own laws if they’ve had a disproportionate effect on low-income, African-American… Read More »
Public Corruption Charges against New Jersey and New York Officials
The case against U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey made headlines recently as attorneys asked a federal court to dismiss political corruption charges against him. The Senator’s attorneys argue that a 2016 U.S. Supreme Court decision—as well as recent decisions—narrow the scope of the federal bribery statute such that he should not be… Read More »
Using Algorithms to Sentence “Criminals”
On May 1st, the New York Times published an eye-opening article about emerging software programs that are actually sending people to prison, and the strain that this is place on the justice system. While this may sound like a chapter out of a science fiction novel, in fact, individuals have already been sentenced to… Read More »
