by Kent Scheidegger · Mar 19, 2024 9:19 am
This morning, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed a case of allegedly wrongful placement on the No-Fly List to go forward in FBI v. Fikre. The FBI sought to dismiss the case as moot because it had removed Mr. Fikre from the list. The Court held that this was insufficient for mootness because the FBI had not refuted the possibility he would be placed on the list again. Continue reading . . .
by Kent Scheidegger · Mar 15, 2024 2:50 pm
In 2018, Congress passed the First Step Act to water down federal sentencing law. I was critical of many provisions of the act at the time, see here, here, and here, though I did agree that some sentences were too harsh and could use a bit of moderation. Mandatory minimums were particularly under assault. I believe they serve a useful function, but some were overboard.
The previous version of 18 U.S.C. § 3553(f) had a safety valve allowing judges to let a defendant off from an otherwise mandatory minimum for certain drug crimes if all five of its listed requirements were met. The criminal history requirement was very narrow, and there is no doubt that the 2018 Congress wanted to open the door wider. But how wide? Unfortunately, the drafting of this section was sloppy, and today the Supreme Court disagreed sharply on how to read it. The case is Pulsifer v. United States. Continue reading . . .
by Kent Scheidegger · Mar 6, 2024 10:22 am
The big question in Los Angeles County is who will be the challenger against George Gascón in November. The top two in this nonpartisan election advance to the general election. At this time, the LA Times website is reporting:
George Gascón: 21.4%
Nathan Hochman: 17.7%
Jonathan Hatami: 13.4%
by Kent Scheidegger · Mar 5, 2024 4:28 pm
A California law, enacted directly by the people, provides that the crime of first-degree murder with special circumstanhe ces committed by an adult is punishable by death or life in prison with no possibility of parole. Yet Tony Hardin, who committed a vicious murder at age 25, claimed that the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment requires that he be considered for parole anyway because others who committed lesser degrees of murder at the same age are eligible for “youth offender parole” under California law. A California Court of Appeal panel actually bought that. The California Supreme Court rejected this claim in a 5-2 decision yesterday, reversing the Court of Appeal. Continue reading . . .
by Kent Scheidegger · Feb 28, 2024 3:27 pm
The U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear former President Trump’s claim of immunity and set the case for expedited briefing. Oral argument will be held during the week of April 22.
The text of the order follows:
by Kent Scheidegger · Feb 28, 2024 11:13 am
Update to yesterday’s post.The U.S. Supreme Court denied Thomas Creech’s three petitions without noted dissent. However, at 11 am MST, the Idaho Dept. of Corrections announced:
At approximately 11am, Director Tewalt, after consulting with the medical team leader, determined that the medical team could not establish an IV line, rendering the execution unable to proceed. Mr. Creech will be returned to his cell and witnesses will be escorted out of the facility. As a result, the death warrant will expire at 11:59 p.m.. The State will consider next steps. Director Tewalt and State witnesses, to include the media, will be arriving in the media center shortly for a brief press conference.
by Kent Scheidegger · Feb 21, 2024 7:53 am
This morning the U.S. Supreme Court issued its first decision in a criminal case for this term. In McElrath v. Georgia, No. 22-721, the high court unanimously reversed a decision of the Georgia Supreme Court regarding inconsistent verdicts. This is not a surprise.
Juries sometimes issue inconsistent verdicts in a single case. That is, they may render verdicts on different counts tried together that contradict each other in the facts that they necessarily require. What effect does the Double Jeopardy Clause of the U.S. Constitution have when a jury issues such a verdict in a state criminal case? Continue reading . . .
by Kent Scheidegger · Feb 16, 2024 9:07 am
Here is yet another case of a misleading claim via crude statistics. (See also this post.) This one, unfortunately was actually bought by a federal district judge, with grave implications.
Hans Bader has this post at Liberty Unyielding on a recent decision out of Richmond, Virginia.
A judge recently found that the City of Richmond racially profiles black motorists, dismissing the indictment of a black convicted felon accused of illegally possessing a gun. The judge did not find that defendant Keith Moore had been treated differently than a similarly situated-white motorist. Instead, he ruled that Richmond police stops are racially discriminatory, based on statistics showing blacks are stopped and arrested at much higher rates than whites …. Continue reading . . .
by Kent Scheidegger · Feb 12, 2024 3:57 pm
The WSJ has this editorial:
States are rethinking failed experiments in criminal-justice reform, and better late than never. Georgia is the latest to reverse a soft-on-crime policy by restoring cash bail for dozens of crimes, after dropping the requirement helped stoke a crime wave. Continue reading . . .
by Kent Scheidegger · Feb 12, 2024 9:58 am
You know an incumbent running for re-election is in deep kimchi when he (1) polls only 15% before the primary and (2) has a “disapprove” job rating from an outright majority and more than double the number who approve. The latest California Elections & Policy Poll* is available here. Continue reading . . .
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