Criminal Law Commons^™

How Bad Arrests Lead To Bad Prosecution: Exploring The Impact Of Prior Arrests On Plea Bargaining, Besiki Luka Kutateladze, Victoria Z. Lawson

Cardozo Law Review

Arrests and arrest records play an important role in the criminal justice system. Police agencies customarily use suspects' prior record for investigative purposes, and courts use this information to set bail. Yet many arrest practices, and particularly stop-and-frisk, have long been criticized for disproportionately targeting young black and Latino men, and for their overall negative effect on communities of color. Not surprisingly then, arrest practices have received much attention, including among legal scholars and social scientists. However, what effect a prior arrest record has on other decision points, including prosecutorial decision making, is relatively unknown. In particular, we have a …

The Degradation Of Civil Society And Hyper-Aggressive Policing In Communities Of Color In New York City, Donna Lieberman, Kara Dansky

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Never Ending Tale: Racism And Inequality In The Era Of Broken Windows, Jonathan Oberman, Kendea Johnson

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Delusional Disorder: Treatment And The Restoration Of Adjudicative Competence, Martin Kassen

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Delusional disorder has long been recognized in the psychiatric nomenclature, however, low prevalence rates and prevailing clinical views about the seemingly refractory nature of delusional disorder have restricted data on clinical treatment outcomes for this illness. Similar perspectives have been noted in forensic settings where minimal data is available to guide standards of care for incompetent to stand trial (IST) delusional pretrial defendants. Rationale. While the factors explicated in Sell provide guidelines for the involuntary medication of defendants found IST, numerous questions are left unanswered regarding the restorability of pretrial delusional detainees. The proposed study investigated the competency restoration rates …

Duty Of Candor In The Digital Age: The Need For Heightened Judicial Supervision Of Stingray Searches, Andrew Hemmer

Chicago-Kent Law Review

This Note explores the constitutional implications of the use of a device known as the “Stingray” in criminal investigations. This device masquerades as a cell phone tower and forces all cell phones within a considerable range to connect to it, transmitting data and allowing law enforcement to ascertain the location of each cell phone. The use of Stingrays raises important Fourth Amendment concerns that have been brought to light most significantly by the 2008 federal prosecution of Daniel Rigmaiden. This Note argues that Stingray use constitutes a Fourth Amendment search and that a new standard of warrant requirements is needed …

Florida's Stand Your Ground Regime: Legislative Direction, Prosecutorial Discretion, Public Pressures, And The Legitimization Of The Criminal Justice System, Mary Elizabeth Castillo

Journal of Legislation

This note seeks to examine the tripartite relationship between legislative delegation, prosecutorial discretion, and public pressures in the context of Florida's "Stand Your Ground" regime. In the context of high profile criminal cases, a prosecutor faces significant public and political pressures that may influence her exercise of discretion in that case. Ultimately, Castillo argues that when a prosecutor succumbs to these pressures, it undermines her expertise, experience and exercise of discretion, and undercuts the legitimacy of the criminal justice system as a whole.

What's Going On In Our Prisons?, Michael B. Mushlin

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

Additional governmental oversight is urgently needed to truly change the culture of a system that holds 53,000 inmates across 54 prisons in New York State. What goes on inside these prisons is largely hidden from view, and there is little accountability for wrongdoing. The State Legislature should follow the A.B.A.’s guidance and establish a monitoring body with unfettered access to prison facilities, staff, inmates and records in announced or unannounced visits.

Is The American Criminal Jury System In Criminal Trials Worthy Of Export To Iraq?, Mohammed J. Ailan

Law Student Scholarship

The American criminal jury system has a long, ancient history. It went through several stages throughout history until it became a sophisticated institution for educating the American people about the law in their country. Jury duty is one of the privileges of U.S. citizenship. This thesis shows how the criminal justice system currently works in the United States. This paper discusses issues such as the hung jury, the capital jury, checking abuses of power, and jury nullification. This thesis focuses on other countries that have recently adopted the criminal jury system, such as Spain and Russia, after they adopted democracy. …

Drawing An Adverse Interest Against The Accused For Refusal To Answer Questions, Emily Sherwood

War Crimes Memoranda

No abstract provided.

Youthful Offenders And The Eighth Amendment Right To Rehabilitation: Limitations On The Punishment Of Juveniles, Martin R. Gardner

Nebraska College of Law: Faculty Publications

To understand the potential scope of the Court's implicit conclusion that the punishment of adolescents is unconstitutional unless a meaningful opportunity for rehabilitation is afforded, it is necessary to carefully distinguish and clarify the distinction between the conflicting concepts of punishment and rehabilitation. I therefore begin Part I by analyzing this distinction. Since the logic of the Court's decisions impacts the punishment of adolescents in both the juvenile and criminal justice contexts, I contrast the two systems in Part II by tracing the development of the juvenile court movement from its original rehabilitative origins towards an increasingly punitive model, dispensing …

How Criminal Law Can Help Save The Environment, Rena I. Steinzor

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Muscle Memory And The Local Concentration Of Capital Punishment, Lee B. Kovarsky

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Maryland's Medical Marijuana Law: Transactional And Ethical Perspectives For Real Estate Practitioners, Nicole M. Lacoste Folks, Lawrence F. Haislip, Matthew L. Kimball

University of Baltimore Journal of Land and Development

The congruence between Federal and state laws relating to marijuana, 2 which has existed for generations, is unraveling. In recent years a number of states have reduced or eliminated criminal penalties for the possession or use of small amounts of marijuana;3 twentythree states have established a state law exception for medical marijuana; 4 and Colorado, Washington, Alaska and Oregon now authorize the retail and personal growth, sale and possession of marijuana as a matter of state law.5 Maryland has lately joined the list of states purporting to create exceptions or safe harbors for those wishing to engage in the manufacture, …

Voluntary Disclosure Fostering Overenforcement And Overcriminalization Of The Fcpa, Karen E. Woody

Scholarly Articles

Professor Peter Reilly’s article, Incentivizing Corporate America to Eradicate Transnational Bribery Worldwide: Federal Transparency and Voluntary Disclosure Under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, 67 Fla. L. Rev. 1683 (2015), challenges the notion that voluntary disclosure of potential Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) violations to the government is always the best course of action for a company. In a world where whistleblowers can receive a bounty for information provided to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC),2 self-reporting is a critical, high-pressure decision that each company must undertake when faced with potential FCPA liability.

This Article takes a broader look at …

Extracurricular International Criminal Law, Mark A. Drumbl

Scholarly Articles

This article unpacks the jurisprudential footprints of international criminal courts and tribunals in domestic civil litigation in the United States conducted under the Alien Tort Statute (ats). The ats allows victims of human rights abuses to file tort-based lawsuits for violations of the laws of nations. While diverse, citations to international cases and materials in ats adjudication cluster around three areas: (1) aiding and abetting as a mode of liability; (2) substantive legal elements of genocide and crimes against humanity; and (3) the availability of corporate liability. The limited capacity of international criminal courts and tribunals portends that domestic tort …

Enhancing Judicial Institutions: Enhancing Economic Development, Stephane Alia Haisley

Duke Law Master of Judicial Studies Theses

Since the 1980s, scholars and development banks have recognized the link between judicial institutions and economic growth. This thesis proposes to explore the role of judicial institutions in the performance of economies and questions whether enhancing judicial institutions can result in enhancing economic development in developing countries. Since the 1990s development banks have explored the role of judicial institutions in the quest for economic development. Both the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have done this through the pursuit of judicial reform efforts in countries with ailing economies. The focus has been on improving the efficiency of the …

Punishing Property Offenders: Does Moral Correction Work?, Sharona Aharony-Goldenberg, Yael Wilchek-Aviad

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Criminal Defense Clinic, Legal Clinic Program

Course Descriptions and Information

This clinic focuses on the representation of indigent clients charged with misdemeanor criminal offenses in county courts in the Ninth Judicial Circuit of Florida. Students will represent low-income clients charged with misdemeanor criminal offenses from the surrounding community as well as those defendants appointed by the court who qualify for free legal services.

Public Defender Externship, Legal Clinic Program

Course Descriptions and Information

Students represent indigent clients through various Public Defender offices in Central Florida in all phases of the criminal justice system under the direct supervision of Assistant Public Defenders.

Prosecution Externship, Legal Clinic Program

Course Descriptions and Information

The Prosecution Externship offers students the opportunity to practice criminal law as a certified legal intern under the direct supervision of an on-site supervising Assistant State Attorney. The student extern observes and participates in a range of prosecutorial duties, namely: recommending appropriate charges for new cases; negotiating pleas; drafting and arguing pre-trial motions; and participating in trials.

Criminal Defense Clinic, Legal Clinic Program

Clinical Programs Brochures

The Criminal Defense Clinic is one of five in-house clinics offered by the College of Law. The Clinic combines hands-on trial experience with an educational seminar component tailored to developing criminal litigation skills. The Criminal Defense Clinic focuses on the representation of indigent and low-income clients charged with criminal offenses, both misdemeanor and felony cases, in Orange and Osceola County. The Clinic’s goal is to make the student-attorney competent and prepared to represent a criminal defendant from arrest to the resolution of his/her case, and all things in-between.

Prosecution Externship Clinic, Legal Clinic Program

Clinical Programs Brochures

Students have the opportunity to work with federal and state prosecutorial agencies. For students interested in working at a state agency, students will be placed in one of nine State Attorney's Offices. Additionally, students may work at the Statewide Prosecutor's Office of the Attorney General's Office. The Prosecution Clinic also provides students with the unique opportunity to work with federal agencies, namely: U.S. Attorney's Office and the Office of the Chief Counsel for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Office.

The Exceptional Circumstances Of Johnson V. United States, Leah M. Litman

Michigan Law Review First Impressions

Johnson v. United States held that the “residual clause” of the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA) is unconstitutionally vague. Since Johnson was decided six months ago, courts have been sorting out which of the currently incarcerated defendants who were sentenced under ACCA’s residual clause may be resentenced. Determining who can be resentenced in light of Johnson requires courts to answer several questions. For example, does the rule in Johnson apply retroactively to convictions that have already become final? And can prisoners who have already filed one petition for postconviction review—review that occurs after a defendant’s conviction has become final— file …

Indefinite Detention, Deadly Conditions: How Brazil's Notorious Criminal Justice System Violates The International Covenant On Civil And Political Rights, Layla Medina

American University International Law Review

No abstract provided.

The New Corporate Gatekeeper, Peter J. Henning

Law Faculty Research Publications

No abstract provided.

Criminal Law Ii: Youth Justice (Volume Ii): 2015-16, Ronda Bessner

Osgoode Course Casebooks

Course Number 2240

"I Plead The Fifth": New York's Integrated Domestic Violence Courts And The Defendant's Fifth Amendment Dilemma, Rhona Mae Amorado

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Probable Cause Revisited, William Ortman

Law Faculty Research Publications

No abstract provided.

The Price Of Silence: How The Griffin Roadblock And Protection Against Adverse Inference Condemn The Criminal Defendant, Kelsey Craig

Vanderbilt Law Review

In 1965, the Supreme Court held in Griffin v. California that the Fifth Amendment privilege against compelled self-incrimination prohibits judges and prosecutors from pointing to a defendant's failure to testify as substantive evidence of guilt. This doctrine assumes that such a prosecutorial or judicial "adverse comment" compels a negative inference-that the defendant is hiding something. The Griffin Court held that this assumption amounts to an unfair penalty on a defendant's invocation of a constitutionally protected right. This doctrine, however, makes a dangerous misstep in additionally assuming that the prohibition of adverse comment and the administration of limiting instructions curtail a …

Ready, Fire, Aim: How Universities Are Failing The Constitution In Sexual Assault Cases, Tamara Rice Lave

Articles

This Article looks critically at the procedural protections American universities give students accused of sexual assault. It begins by situating these policies historically, providing background to Title IX and the different guidelines promulgated by the Department of Education. Next, it presents original research on the procedural protections provided by the fifty flagship state universities. In October 2014, university administrators were contacted and asked a series of questions about the rights afforded to students, including the standard of proof right to an adjudicatory hearing, right to confront and cross examine witnesses, right to counsel, right to silence, and right to appeal. …