July 2016 - Federal Criminal Law Center

Photo Arrays and How They Can Lead to Wrongful Charges

Posted by Marcia Shein
On July 22, 2016
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eyewitness identification, photo arrays

Eyewitnesses play a crucial role in a police investigation of a crime. Arguably, they play too crucial of a role, especially when you consider recent scientific evidence that suggests eyewitnesses are far from perfect and are often outright unreliable sources of evidence. Methods of Eyewitness Identification One way that law enforcement uses eyewitnesses is through […]

Posted by Marcia Shein
On July 19, 2016
0 Comments
confirmation bias, criminal defense attorney, eyewitness testimony

Contrary to what they would like you to believe, police are not everywhere. Instead, they need to rely on other people to investigate crime and make eyewitness identifications. Unfortunately, this process is often fraught with complications because science has shown, time and time again, that eyewitness identifications and eyewitness testimony is far from reliable. However, […]

Posted by Marcia Shein
On July 13, 2016
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exclusionary principle, Police Misconduct, Search And Seizure

Just recently, the Supreme Court of the United States made a monumental decision that can affect your constitutional rights, guaranteed to you under the Fourth Amendment. Unfortunately, when it comes to your rights, the Supreme Court decision is not good news. Utah v. Strieff The case, Utah v. Strieff, started back in December of 2006. […]

Posted by Marcia Shein
On July 12, 2016
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jury selection, supreme court, voir dire

A good thing to remember about the criminal justice system in the United States is that it is based on the adversarial system. This makes it like a football game. The two different teams are supposed to do everything that they can, within the rules, to score more points than the other side. It is […]

Posted by Marcia Shein
On July 11, 2016
0 Comments
exclusionary rule, Police Misconduct, Search And Seizure

We have previously discussed the recently decided case by the United States Supreme Court, Utah v. Strieff. This case will likely be seen in years to come as a monumental blow to the Fourth Amendment, which protects all U.S. citizens from unreasonable searches and seizures. Here, we will discuss the implications of this decision for […]

Posted by Marcia Shein
On July 9, 2016
0 Comments
Federal Crime, mental disability, sentencing, supreme court

The Supreme Court of the United States recently issued a list of the cases that it will hear in the upcoming term. Among the cases that it will hear are two death penalty cases coming out of Texas. Not only does it look like Texas is about to take a beating by the Supreme Court, […]

Posted by Marcia Shein
On July 7, 2016
0 Comments
Murder, race, sentencing, supreme court

In their recent listing of cases that they will be hearing in the upcoming term, the Supreme Court of the United States showed that they were taking on a pair of death penalty cases from the state of Texas. The choice of these cases shows an increasing focus on the death penalty by the Supreme […]

Photo Arrays and How They Can Lead to Wrongful Charges

The Unreliability of Eyewitnesses: Confirmation Bias

Utah v. Strieff Impinges Your Constitutional Rights

Racial Discrimination on Juries: Foster v. Chatham

How Utah v. Strieff Will Impact Your Daily Life

Supreme Court to Weigh in on State Determination of Mental Disability

Ineffective Assistance of Counsel Case Makes it to the Supreme Court