Monthly Archives: July 2019
New Jersey Governor Expands State Medical Marijuana Program
On July 2, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed a bill called the Jake Honig Compassionate Use Medical Cannabis Act, expanding the state’s medical marijuana program. Its main provisions increase the number of illnesses that make someone eligible to participate in the program and the amount that can be dispensed at one time from… Read More »
New Jersey State Appeals Court Clears Lower Court’s Decision, Allowing Minor Rape Suspect to Be Charged as an Adult
In July, a New Jersey state appeals court overturned a state Superior Court’s decision not to try a 16-year-old boy accused of rape as an adult reportedly because the boy comes from a “good family” and is “destined for a good college.” The suspect is accused of raping another 16-year-old who was reportedly intoxicated… Read More »
When Algorithms Determine Whether Criminal Defendants Will Spend Decades in Prison
Many people likely do not realize the significant role that criminal sentencing AI plays in our criminal justice system. What this means is that algorithms used to estimate whether a defendant is likely to commit a future crime affects sentencing and other major decisions made by prosecutors and judges, such as the possibility of… Read More »
U.S. Supreme Court Strikes Down Law That Vaguely Imposes Additional Prison Time for Crimes Committed with Firearms
On June 24, the US Supreme Court made an important decision in striking down a law that imposed additional criminal penalties onto sentences for people convicted of certain crimes that involve firearms. The court maintained that the law was unconstitutionally vague and violated citizens’ due process rights by failing to place people on notice… Read More »
New York Officially Fails to Decriminalize Marijuana
During the week of June 19, New York state lawmakers failed to reach consensus concerning the state’s proposal to legalize (i.e. decriminalize) the recreational use of marijuana. The legislation, titled the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act, would have not only decriminalized the recreational use of marijuana, but also addressed the practice of disproportionately policing… Read More »
Will New York Could Soon Decriminalize Sex Work?
Lawmakers in New York recently proposed legislation that would not only decriminalize prostitution, but also allow for criminal records related to a number of sex crimes to be expunged. Specifically, the proposed legislation– titled the “Stop Violence in the Sex Trades Act—would remove criminal penalties for these workers with the hope of increasing workplace… Read More »
New York Officially Bans ‘Gay & Trans Panic Defense’ In Homicide Cases
On June 19, New York state lawmakers passed a ban on the use of the gay and trans panic defense in homicide cases. Specifically, the legislation will prevent criminal defendants from justifying murder as a response to discovering a victim’s gender identity or sexual orientation. Historically, criminal defendants have, in some circumstances, been successful… Read More »
Only Two Percent of All Federal Criminal Defendants Go to Trial in America: Why This Should Concern You
According to new data assembled by the federal judiciary and analyzed by the Pew Research Center, trials and acquittals are becoming more and more rare over time, presenting a number of criminal justice issues. Specifically, just in fiscal year 2018, almost 80,000 people were criminal defendants and federal cases, but only two percent of… Read More »