Criminal Law Commons^™

Johnson V. State Of Nevada, 131 Nev. Adv. Op. 58, Joseph Meissner

Nevada Supreme Court Summaries

The Court heard an appeal from a sentence and conviction following a jury trial of one count of conspiracy to commit robbery, two counts of robbery, and one count of battery with intent to commit a crime. Affirmed.

Polygraph Admission Through Compulsory Process, Timothy J. Walsh

Akron Law Review

Polygraph evidence is included within the broad category of expert testimony, yet it is treated quite differently from other forms of expert testimony. If admissible at all for the defense, polygraph evidence almost always requires the stipulation of the prosecution for it to be admitted into court. Such a requirement vests solely, within the hands of a prosecutor, the ability to eliminate that proof which may be necessary for the defendant to effectively prove his innocence. Furthermore, in some jurisdictions a defendant cannot even place his faith in the sympathy of a prosecutor. Instead, a rule bars him from proving …

Ohio Supreme Court Symposium

Akron Law Review

During the 1981-1982 term the Ohio Supreme Court rendered 250 written opinions on a wide range of topics from wiretapping to the liability of landlords for injuries. In several cases, individuals gained significant legal rights in dealing with business and others. In addition, there were some significant changes in the law governing municipal sovereignty and immunity. This symposium will not attempt to cover all decisions of the Ohio Supreme Court, but rather to highlight some of the major decisions which affect Ohioans.

The Business Papers Rule: Personal Privacy And White Collar Crime, John S. Applegate

Akron Law Review

The first step in this endeavor will be the development of a definition of white collar crime which adequately accounts for the difficulty in combatting it. The next step will be to examine individually the two competing goals law enforcement and privacy - to try to get a sense of the requirements of each. This will lead into a discussion of the conflict between the goals. The article will then move on to consider several unsatisfactory resolutions of the conflict, making that the basis for sketching out the necessary specifications of a good solution. Finally, the "business papers rule" will …

An Introductory Examination Of The Racketeer Influenced And Corrupt Organizations Act,, David E. Morris

Akron Law Review

This comment will attempt to serve as an introduction to RICO, addressed to those with little or no knowledge of either its provisions and intricacies, or its potential usefulness and adaptability as a prosecution tool. The recent criticism of RICO by the American Bar Association will also be reviewed, as well as the ABA's proposed amendments to RICO. Finally, the state RICO statutes will be discussed. The advantages they offer states currently without any substantive laws dealing directly and primarily with organized and white-collar crime will be examined.

Sixth Amendment, Televising Trials, Chandler V. Florida, Paul A. Patterson

Akron Law Review

The Supreme Court recently handed down a unanimous decision dealing with the respective rights of the press and defendants in regard to the televising of criminal trials. The case, Chandler v. Florida, while explicitly stated to be consistent with the Court's earlier decision in Estes v. Texas, has expanded the realm of media coverage of criminal trials beyond what apparently was permissible under Estes. The Court attempted to balance the competing constitutional guarantees of freedom of the press and the sixth amendment right to a fair trial. It held that while the presence of television cameras in …

The Need For Judicial Restriction On The Use Of Drug Detecting Canines, William R. Pomeroy

Akron Law Review

The purpose of this comment is to examine these issues, outline the conflicting positions, and attempt to forecast the direction the courts may take in their effort to bring some harmony to this unsettled (and to some, unsettling) area of law. Few people would attempt to deny law enforcement officials the use of this highly effective and relatively unintrusive law enforcement tool. Yet there are those who fear that the unsettled questions concerning limits on the use of this tool may lead to serious abuse, and who raise the specter of unlimited government intrusion should this type of investigatory activity …

Entrapment In Ohio, Margaret Barker

Akron Law Review

Police commonly pose as drug buyers, conspirators in bribery schemes, prostitutes, burglars, and receivers of stolen property in order to apprehend criminals. Does police involvement in these crimes constitute entrapment? Not necessarily. Entrapment, as distinguished from mere deception, occurs when the police, in order to prosecute a crime, induce a person to commit a crime which he would not ordinarily commit. A defendant who has been entrapped is entitled to an acquittal. This seems simple enough, but police, defendants, prosecutors, defense attorneys and judges have discovered that fine lines separate permissible and impermissible police activity. It is not easy, therefore, …

Admissibility Of Scientific Evidence: Voice Spectrography, Linda C. Ashar

Akron Law Review

In State v Williams, the Ohio Supreme Court addressed for the first time the issue of admissibility of voice analysis as identification evidence. The court ruled that expert testimony and exhibits based on voice spectrography analysis are admissible if they are relevant and will assist the trier of fact. Williams also pronounces how Ohio courts should evaluate the admissibility of scientific evidence.

Capital Punishment Of Children In Ohio: "They'd Never Send A Boy Of Seventeen To The Chair In Ohio, Would They?", Victor L. Streib

Akron Law Review

This article presents first an overview of the national legal environment and actual executions in American history and then a focused, in-depth analysis of Ohio as a reasonably representative American jurisdiction. Each of the nineteen verified and documented Ohio cases are examined in some detail to determine, so far as is possible, the reasons they were selected for capital punishment. The cases are discussed within the context of the legal environment existing at the time they were decided.

Interstate Agreement On Detainers And The Rights It Created, William A. Meadows

Akron Law Review

Prior to 1984, the Interstate Agreement on Detainers (lAD) generated very little concern. However, under a theory recently put forth by defense attorneys for accused serial killer Alton Coleman the IAD could provide a mechanism which would interfere with the execution of the death penalty.

This article will explore this issue in detail, but before doing so, a discussion of the workings of the IAD is appropriate in order to better appreciate the consequences of this theory. This article will first explore the effects of the detainer process and the events which led to the development of the IAD. Second, …

The Writ-Writers: Jailhouse Lawyers Right Of Meaningful Access To The Courts, John F. Myers

Akron Law Review

This comment will focus on the evolution of jailhouse lawyers, the rights they possess and the problems they face in a system that continually seeks to limit their activities

Using Microcomputers And P/G% To Predict Court Cases, Stuart S. Nagel

Akron Law Review

The purpose of this article is to analyze a microcomputer program that can process a set of (1) prior cases, (2) predictive criteria for distinguishing among the cases, and (3) the relations between each prior case and each criterion in order to arrive at an accurate decision rule. Such a rule will enable all the prior cases to be predicted without inconsistencies, and thereby maximize the likelihood of accurately predicting future cases. To illustrate the program, this article uses five substantive fields, including the predicting of cases dealing with religion in the public schools, legislative redistricting, housing discrimination, international law, …

Does The "One-Party Consent" Exception Effectuate The Underlying Goals Of Title Iii?, Thomas C. Daniels

Akron Law Review

Title III is an attempt to balance two purposes - protection of private citizens and control of organized crime. 9 Because of these diametric purposes, discussion of all aspects of Title III is beyond the scope of this comment. The first section of this comment will discuss the Supreme Court's past and present position on the use of electronic surveillance. The remainder of the comment will trace the development of the "one-party consent" exception as codified in Title III, analyzing its continued validity and applicability to private unauthorized electronic surveillance.

The Ineffective Assistance Of Counsel Quandry: The Debate Continues Strickland V. Washington, Susan K. Vanburen

Akron Law Review

In recent years, dissatisfied criminal defendants have increasingly resorted to claims alleging actual ineffectiveness of counsel as a vehicle for challenging their convictions. Prior to Strickland v. Washington, the Supreme Court had not delineated the "proper standards" for reviewing claims of actual ineffectiveness of counsel. The lack of a national standard for assessing defense counsel's performance, as it relates to the constitutional requirement, generated extensive deliberation by lower courts and commentators. Faced with a deluge of actual ineffectiveness claims, the lower courts were forced to formulate standards to distinguish effective from ineffective assistance. However, the ensuing diverse standards employed …

Imposing Punitive Damage Liabiliity On The Intoxicated Driver, Martin A. Kotler

Akron Law Review

It is important to keep in mind throughout this discussion that awareness and acknowledgement of the existence of a problem, even a very serious problem, should not make us overreact and thereby accept an unworkable solution in our zeal to do something. The imposition of punitive damages is, for the most part, just such an unworkable solution. More specifically, I will attempt to demonstrate that, with the possible exception of the case of the recidivist, non-alcoholic defendant, the imposition of punitive damages simply cannot be justified. That being the case, we must look elsewhere for a solution to an admittedly …

Escobedo And Miranda Revisited, Arthur J. Goldberg

Akron Law Review

Shortly before the close of the 1983 term, the Supreme Court of the United States decided two cases, U.S. v. Gouveia and New York v. Quarles, which in effect overruled Escobedo v. Illinois and undermined Miranda v. Arizona.

Children's Testimony In Sexual Abuse Cases: Ohio's Proposed Legislation, Deborah Mahusky

Akron Law Review

Legislatures are attempting to reduce the trauma to the child, and, at the same time, to increase convictions.

This legislation is often in the form of permitting videotaped pretrial statements and depositions to be admitted into evidence. Additionally, some legislatures are permitting testimony of the child at depositions or at trial to take place in a separate room from the defendant, the judge, the jury and the general public through the use of closed circuit television or monitors. However, this legislation may present an encroachment of sixth amendment guarantees.

Section I of this comment will discuss whether or not the …

Death Row Conditions: Progression Toward Constitutional Protections, Nancy Holland

Akron Law Review

Beginning with recapitulation of the quest for the meaning and scope of the eighth amendment, this comment will review both the evolution of judicial scrutiny and the constitutional limitations of criminal incarceration and will also analyze the narrow body of case law affecting the quality of life on America's death rows.

The Relevance Of Culpability To The Punishment And Prevention Of Crime, R. J. Spjut

Akron Law Review

It follows that if a legal system may fairly punish only a person who culpably violated the law, a preventive restraint like self-defense is also fair only when it is used against a person whose offense or imminent offense is culpable. Such measures as punishment and prevention are justified because "a person who violates the order of fairness, which can be described as a system of rights,forfeits certain of his own rights." The forfeiture theory implicitly associates A's loss of rights with his deserts and suggests some analogy with punishment. Finnis' argument both makes explicit the analogy and shifts attention …

Ohio's "Sacred Seal Of Secrecy": The Rules Of Spousal Incompetency And Martial Privilege In Criminal Cases, Wilson R. Huhn

Akron Law Review

In the remainder of this essay the rules of spousal incompetency and marital privilege are compared and contrasted, the history of the rules in Ohio is traced, the underlying justifications for the rules are discussed, and a pitch is made for repeal of both rules, substituting the single rule of spousal immunity described above.

The Constitutional Right Of The Indigent Facing Involuntary Civil Commitment To An Independent Psychiatric Examination, Scott F. Uhler

Akron Law Review

The recently established constitutional right to an independent psychiatric examination for a criminal defendant, when the defendant's sanity is at issue,' has not been extended to the involuntary civil commitment process However, for the following reasons, the right should be so extended.

First, the interpretation of due process in the involuntary commitment procedure, as construed by lower federal courts and state courts to require an exam, shows greater uniformity and logical cohesiveness than that defined by applicable Supreme Court decisions. Second, the area of juvenile adjudication presents great similarity of purpose to civil commitment, yet the due process protections deemed …

The Ohio Supreme Court's Move Toward Quality Control Of Court-Appointed Counsel For Indigent Defendants Charged With Capital Offense Crimes, George J. Ticoras

Akron Law Review

This comment outlines the law in Ohio concerning court-appointed representation of indigent defendants in capital offense cases. A brief look at Ohio's "pre-C.P.Sup.R. 65" period provides the proper backdrop in which to examine C.P.Sup.R. 65's relation to the Ohio Public Defender's Regulations and the impact this rule may have throughout the State.

Winking Through The Blindfold: What Motivates The White-Color Criminal?, Paul E. Fiorelli

Akron Law Review

Many legal scholars have discussed different facets of white-collar crime. The question of whether the offending individual or the corporation should be punished to deter white-collar crime has been discussed. There have also been articles dealing with whether monetary fines, or prison terms, act as more effective sanctions. This article will attempt to identify and analyze the motivations and different character traits exhibited by many white-collar criminals and offer some suggestions to attempt to decrease the incidence of white-collar crime.

Mental Sanity And Confessions: The Supreme Court's New Version Of The Old "Voluntariness" Standard, Alfredo Garcia

Akron Law Review

Although the voluntariness standard has not been entirely superseded by Miranda v. Arizona because it is applicable to confessions obtained through police coercion, in spite of compliance with Miranda's technical requirements, it has receded into relative obscurity in the wake of Miranda. In Colorado v. Connelly, however, the United States Supreme Court confronted a novel case which neatly juxtaposed questions relevant to the voluntariness test with issues arising from Miranda's dictates. This article will examine the issues raised in Connelly, critique the Court's application of both the voluntariness standard and Miranda to the facts of Connelly, …

Existence Of A Suicide Pact As A Complete Defense To A Survivor's Criminal Liability: State V. Sage, Diana M. Keating

Akron Law Review

Can one who encourages another's suicide through a suicide pact be absolved of criminal liability? The Ohio Supreme Court answered this question in the affirmative in State v. Sage. The court held that a suicide survivor's proof that another's death resulted from a mutual suicide pact acts as a complete defense to criminal liability. Not since 1872 has the Ohio Supreme Court discussed criminal liability for suicide pact members who aid and abet another's suicide. The Sage court did not differentiate between classic suicide pacts where each member agrees to commit suicide, and suicide-murder pacts where one person agrees …

The Sentencing Legacy Of The Special Court For Sierra Leone, Shahram Dana

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Bad News: Privacy Ruling To Increase Press Litigation, The Florida Star V. B.J.F., Mary Ellen Hockwalt

Akron Law Review

This note analyzes the history and precedent upon which the Court relied in reaching Florida Star's "harsh outcome." Next, the note discusses how the Court, by refusing to extend its holding beyond the facts of the case and give broad Constitutional protection to publications of truth, failed to provide lower courts with any guidance in deciding future invasion of privacy actions. Finally, the note examines the Court's balancing test: weighing the privacy interests of a crime victim against the newspaper's freedom to print truthful information.

Wiggins V. State: Receiving A Fair Trial Under The Specter Of Aids, Charles Zamora

Akron Law Review

Wiggins v. State presented two unique issues: (1) whether it was proper to authorize courtroom security personnel to use prophylactic apparel while escorting a defendant merely suspected of having acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), and (2) the extent to which this handling procedure impacted the jury.

This Note will analyze the Wiggins decision, emphasizing the court's reasoning as it pertains to the following: (1) the guarantee of a fair and impartial jury trial for defendants either having or being suspected of having AIDS; (2) the permissible exercise of discretion by the trial judge in authorizing precautions during the course of the …

State V. Stewart: Self-Defense And Battered Women: Reasonable Perception Of Danger Or License To Kill, Barbara A. Venesy

Akron Law Review

First, this Note explores the criminal justice system's ineffective response to wife abuse, the law of self-defense, and the impact of battered woman syndrome on the doctrine of self-defense. Then, the Note evaluates the Kansas court's denial of self-defense instructions in view of its previous holdings on quantity of evidence and imminent danger. The remainder of the Note analyzes the unfounded fear that the battered woman syndrome could become an independent form of self-defense and sanction unnecessary self-help. The Note concludes that successful use of battered woman syndrome testimony ensures the woman's right to act in self-defense and restricts only …