Yesterday, the Supreme Court of the United States reversed Evangelisto Ramos’s 2016 murder conviction, which had been handed down by a split jury (see Ramos v. Louisiana). The court overturned its own 50-year-old precedent and ruled that the requirement that a jury’s vote for conviction of a “serious offense” be unanimous (set by the Sixth… Read More
Know your rights
One of the exceptions to the warrant requirement under the Fourth Amendment is the inventory search An inventory search is a warrantless search of a lawfully impounded vehicle conducted by the police. The purpose of an inventory search is not to look for evidence of a crime. It’s for the police to determine the contents… Read More
Habeas CorpUS? Habeas Corp-them!
DOJ seeks new emergency powers amid coronavirus pandemic.
Wait, what about sex offender registration obligations?
Here is a link to the notice that went up on the Oregon State Police website with advice for people who have imminent reporting obligations. https://www.oregon.gov/osp/Docs/SOR_Web_Announcement.pdf TLDR: Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, as of March 23rd, 2020, ALL sex offender reporting for registration will be taken by phone. There will be NO in-person registrations until… Read More
How the coronavirus pandemic is upending the criminal justice system
In case you were wondering….