Recent Blog Posts
Police Use Of Drones: Are Your Privacy Rights Being Threatened?
When our founding fathers wrote the United States Constitution, subsequently amended by the states, it’s unlikely that they envisioned the technological advances we’ve seen over the last few hundred years. The Supreme Court has battled with interpretations of privacy in light of sophisticated new tools like heat seeking lamps and data storage. Now, we… Read More »
Defense Attorneys’ Protest Outside Of Brooklyn Courthouse Highlights Flaws In Immigration & Criminal Justice Overlap
On November 28th, nearly 100 New York criminal defense attorneys organized a protest, making a statement against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, who arrested one of their clients on an immigration charge at the Brooklyn courthouse. For defense attorneys committed to representing their clients, every courthouse represents a safe haven that is… Read More »
U.S. Supreme Court Could Dismantle Digital Privacy Protection Under Fourth Amendment
On November 29th, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments on a case that will be monumental for determining how the Fourth Amendment protects cell phone data, or digital privacy. The case, Carpenter vs. United States, specifically poses whether the warrantless seizure and search of historical cellphone records—which reveal the location and movements of a… Read More »
TIME Addresses Ironies Of U.S. Criminal Justice System
On November 21st, TIME wrote an interesting piece on some of the ironies of our criminal justice system, particularly when it comes to who does time in prison, for what crimes, versus who does not. Specifically, the article focused on comparing 30-year-old rapper Meek Mill, who was just recently sentenced to two to four… Read More »
Too Many Women In Jail: New York’s New Record Sealing Law Provides Some Hope
According to some sources, one in four women that is incarcerated is either pregnant or has a child that is less than one year old. Jailing these women can be especially disruptive to society, as they are sometimes the threads keeping a home together. In addition, arguably, many of them also do not belong… Read More »
Probation Can Be A “Land Mine”
An Op-Ed written by Jay-Z and published by the New York Times highlights some of the problems associated with how our criminal justice system handles and punishes parole violations. The opinion follows Meek Mill, who was just recently sentenced to two to four years in prison for violating his probation. If you look closer,… Read More »
Judge Cracks Down: New York Police Eavesdropping On Criminal Suspects Without A Warrant
In an important decision protecting Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable searches, during the week of November 15th, New York Justice Martin P. Murphy (New York State Supreme Court) made a groundbreaking decision announcing that police officers first need to obtain an eavesdropping warrant to track the cellphones of criminal suspects. This officially raises the… Read More »
Decriminalization Of Marijuana In New Jersey Starting In April 2018?
Many citizens in New Jersey are excited about the recent election results, especially insofar as how they might impact certain drug offenses and charges in the state. We’ve discussed the possibility that New Jersey might legalize the recreational use of marijuana before, but since New Jersey Governor-elect Phil Murphy just specifically indicated that he… Read More »
New York Judge Issues Rule Forcing Prosecutors To Release Evidence Favorable To Defendants
In a huge victory for criminal defendants charged in New York, on November 6th, New York state’s top judge (Judge Janet DeFiore) issued a new rule requiring judges to forcefully order prosecutors to disclose all evidence that is favorable to the defendant at least 30 days before trial. This step will help to reform… Read More »
New Jersey Takes Step Closer To Criminal Justice In Earning “A” Grade For Bail Reform
A recent report card released by a national nonprofit that advocates for bail reform indicates that New Jersey’s new bail reform program is working in making progress towards criminal justice. Specifically, New Jersey earned the only “A” grade in the report based on changes that went into effect on January 1; changes which include… Read More »
