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Would you believe it? Two reversals in two weeks! Two! The Appellate Court yesterday reversed a conviction on the grounds that a Motion to Suppress should have been granted on an issue, apparently, of first impression in Connecticut.
We conclude [...]
Posted in criminal law principles, ct legal news, ct state law, evidence, fourth amendment on Nov 14th, 2007
The big news of the weekend thus far, for me at least, has been the announcement by the NYCLU that it is filing suit in New York, alleging Constitutional violations by the State for its failure to provide adequate resources to public defenders.
From the press release:
“Every day, in courtrooms throughout the state, New Yorkers [...]
Posted in pd system, sixth amendment on Nov 12th, 2007
Veteran’s Day edition!
Governor Rell is opposed to the $260million proposal to build new prisons, which was covered here.
This NYT piece considers whether suspension of parole is an Ex-Post Facto violation. Norm covers the CT angle, while Scott has the New York perspective.
Indignant Indigent has a great post on why it is ineffective not to raise [...]
Posted in jumpstart on
Say two thirds of those polled in this latest Quinnipiac University poll. There you go legislators.
Only 35 percent of voters support a so-called “third strike” law where a person convicted of three violent felonies automatically is sentenced to life in prison, while 63 percent say sentences should be decided on a case-by-case basis.
Oh thank God.
There [...]
Posted in cheshire, ct legal news, prison overcrowding, proposed legislation on Nov 7th, 2007
After being denied a new trial in State court, Michael Skakel is now going straight to federal court. His attorneys filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus (not petition for new trial as the Courant first reported), raising essentially the same failed claims from his direct appeal to the Connecticut Supreme Court.
I’m not sure [...]
Posted in ct legal news, habeas on
Yesterday, the CT Supreme Court issued State v. Randolph [pdf], reversing a murder conviction. The Court agreed with the defendant that he should not have been tried together for two separate offenses. Here is the standard for severance in Connecticut:
The defendant bears a heavy burden of showing that the denial of severance resulted in substantial [...]
Posted in ct state law, evidence on Nov 5th, 2007
It’s Monday. Have you set your clocks back one hour?
The topic du jour is snitching, so let’s start off with the Windypundit’s exploration of the snitching debate from an economics perspective.
Speaking of economics, Grits has this absolutely terrific post on why economic theory doesn’t apply to plea bargaining.
Corrections Sentencing follows up on Grits’ post and [...]
Posted in jumpstart on
Finally some good news on the criminal justice reform front. Mike Lawlor, co-chair of the Judiciary Committee, is also on the State Risk Assessment Board, which is charged with - you guessed it - assessing the risk of the state’s registered sex offenders. Lawlor wants to streamline the registry so as to provide more relevant [...]
Posted in ct legal news, ct state law, sex offenders on Nov 2nd, 2007
The Courant has this article today, seeking to make much of the under-utilized persistent felony statutes in Connecticut. All it does, instead, is underline the need for more rehabilitation programs.
Meet Richard D. Halapin Jr., a small-time career burglar and thief who earlier this year broke into his sister’s home and stole the family’s jewelry - [...]
Posted in ct legal news, ct state law, inmate issues, prison overcrowding on Nov 1st, 2007
Stan Simpson has this fine piece in the Courant today, urging legislators to learn from the State’s past and resist the urge to simply expand prisons as a solution to reforming the criminal justice system.
The last time the state went on a massive prison expansion escapade, it spent $1 billion to build 12 new prisons [...]
Posted in cheshire, ct legal news, inmate issues, prison overcrowding on Oct 31st, 2007