Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Digital Commons Network™

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Robert M. Sanger

Selected Works

Articles 1 - 24 of 24

Full-Text Articles in Entire DC Network

A New Philosophy In The Supreme Court, Robert M. Sanger Aug 2018

A New Philosophy In The Supreme Court, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

This is a positive article about the soon-to-be-newlyminted United States Supreme Court. No, this is not written by a guest columnist and, yes, the present author still holds progressive views regarding criminal justice. Assuming the Supreme Court and other branches of government continue to function – even if in less than an optimal fashion – we, as lawyers, have to work with what we have. We have a conservative Supreme Court with, presumably, conservative principles, and that is with which we must work. One of the characteristics often seen in individual Supreme Court Justices is the tendency to rise above …

Go to article

Sb Lawyer, Courtroom Architecture And Human Beings.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger Nov 2017

Sb Lawyer, Courtroom Architecture And Human Beings.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

All of us who visit courtrooms have encountered some frustration with the manner in which they are designed.  I had occasion to have a brief discussion about this with a Judge form the United Kingdom which, in turn, led to researching the literature on courtroom architecture.  In this Criminal Justice column, we will explore some of the current themes (or themes that should be current) regarding what courtrooms look like, why they look that way and how we can do better.
For the purpose of this article, we will look at the broad historic trends in development of the modern …

Go to article

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger Jun 2017

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

No abstract provided.

Go to article

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger Jun 2017

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

No abstract provided.

Go to article

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger Jun 2017

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

No abstract provided.

Go to article

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger Jun 2017

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

No abstract provided.

Go to article

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger Jun 2017

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

No abstract provided.

Go to article

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger Jun 2017

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

No abstract provided.

Go to article

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger Jun 2017

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

No abstract provided.

Go to article

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger Jun 2017

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

No abstract provided.

Go to article

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger Jun 2017

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

No abstract provided.

Go to article

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger Jun 2017

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

No abstract provided.

Go to article

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger Jun 2017

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

No abstract provided.

Go to article

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger Jun 2017

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

No abstract provided.

Go to article

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger Jun 2017

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges.Pdf, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

No abstract provided.

Go to article

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges, Robert M. Sanger Jun 2017

The Forensic Community Can Educate Lawyers, Judges, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

Forensic science has made significant strides in elevating the standards for forensic analysis, reporting and testimony over the last few years. Yet, lawyers and judges lag far behind in understanding the significance of these strides. There is an attempt to educate law students in the law schools and to educate lawyers and judges through continuing legal and judicial education but it is slow in finding its way into the actual courtroom. Therefore, while there is progress at the highest levels of forensic science, a lot of "junk" science competes for the attention of jurors.

Forensic scientists can help educate the …

Go to article

The New Pcast Report To The President Of The United States On Forensic Science, Robert M. Sanger Oct 2016

The New Pcast Report To The President Of The United States On Forensic Science, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

The President of the United States requested an in-depth report from the President’s Council of Advisors
on Science and Technology (known as PCAST) in 2015 to “consider whether there are additional steps that
could usefully be taken on the scientific side to strengthen the forensic science disciplines and ensure the validity of forensic evidence used in the Nation’s legal system.” The PCAST Report was issued September 20, 2016, specifically referring to criminal court applications of forensic science. The report has implications for civil
litigators as well as criminal. It also has implications for judges, particularly those at the trial level. …

Go to article

The Academy Standards Board For Firearms And Toolmarks, Robert M. Sanger Aug 2016

The Academy Standards Board For Firearms And Toolmarks, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

This article will discuss the Academy Standards Board Consensus Body for Forensics in the area of Firearms and Toolmarks, and its role in the scheme of standards, commissions and entities doing this type of work.

Go to article

Fourteen Years Later: The Capital Punishment System In California, Robert M. Sanger Aug 2016

Fourteen Years Later: The Capital Punishment System In California, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

Fourteen years ago, the Illinois Commission on Capital Punishment issued a Report recommending 85 reforms in the criminal justice system in that state to help minimize the possibility that an innocent person would be executed. The following year, this author conducted an empirical study, later published in the Santa Clara Law Review, to determine if  California’s system was in need of the same reforms.  The study concluded that over ninety-two percent of the same reforms were needed in California. In addition, the study showed that the California system had additional weaknesses beyond those of Illinois that also could lead to …

Go to article

Comparison Of The Illinois Commission Report On Capital Punishment With The Capital Punishment System In California, Robert M. Sanger May 2015

Comparison Of The Illinois Commission Report On Capital Punishment With The Capital Punishment System In California, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

No abstract provided.

Go to article

Shredded Fish Redux, Robert Sanger Apr 2015

Shredded Fish Redux, Robert Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

The Yates case, in which certiorari had been granted to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit had been discussed in a previous column of Criminal Justice. The article was entitled “Shredded Fish” because the sea captain in Yates was prosecuted under the document shredding provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 for destroying fish. That case has now been decided by the United States Supreme Court in Yates v. United States, on February 25, 2015. The case involves the rule of lenity as well as a discussion of overcriminalization.

Go to article

The New Rules For Admissibility Of Expert Testimony: Part Ii, Robert Sanger Oct 2013

The New Rules For Admissibility Of Expert Testimony: Part Ii, Robert Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

As described in the last Criminal Justice column for the Santa Barbara Lawyer magazine, the California Supreme Court’s opinion in Sargon Enterprises v. University of Southern California, 55 Cal. 4th 747, 149 Cal. Rptr. 3d 614 (2012) made it clear that California is now, (and perhaps unsuspectingly has been for some time), a Daubert jurisdiction. This requires the trial court be the “gatekeeper” and make a determination as to the admissibility of scientific or expert testimony and to determine the limits of any testimony, if it is introduced. The Court held that there are essentially three criteria: The first criterion …

Go to article

The Requirement Of An Investigator In Public And Private Practice, Robert M. Sanger Dec 2009

The Requirement Of An Investigator In Public And Private Practice, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

Trial lawyers do everything we can to avoid IAC and support the requirements of the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution which provides that the accused has a right to counsel -- counsel that is not only present but also effective. Under Ake v. Oklahoma , the United States Supreme Court stated that the right includes the right to have experts and investigators. Since Ake, there has been much litigation, particularly in capital cases, regarding the right to have the use of such experts to do an effective job.  

The California courts have made it clear that the …

Go to article

Beyond A Reasonable Doubt -- Human Dignity And Respect, Robert M. Sanger Dec 2005

Beyond A Reasonable Doubt -- Human Dignity And Respect, Robert M. Sanger

Robert M. Sanger

Essay on the Role of the Criminal Defense Lawyer. Criminal defense lawyers are often asked, "How can you represent "those" people?" The article contends that the answer is that the defense lawyer's job is to stand up for the dignity of the individual client and demand respect from the system for that client.

Go to article