U.S. Attorney General Jefferson Beauregard Sessions says America is embroiled in a “multi-front battle” against violent crime, vicious gangs, an opioid epidemic, and threats from terrorism. He blames an erosion of the family, discipline, and respect for the rule of…
CRIMINAL JURISDICTION
Criminal Jurisdiction:
A Criminal Law Blog from a Defense Perspective
2017
Category: Constitutional Law | Criminal Law
With a population of less than 21,000 people, Worth County, Georgia is hardly a speck on the nation’s map. But, thanks to Worth County Sheriff Jeff Hobby, the county finds itself at the center of a major legal controversy after…
2017
Category: Sex Crimes | Sex Trafficking
Prostitution has been called the world’s oldest profession. As it does with everything, time has sown changes in the sex industry.
While many sex workers still walk the streets, many now conduct their business out of massage parlors.…
2017
Category: Uncategorized
With an end of DACA, the Trump administration has turned its attention to undocumented immigration enforcement: increasing the use of private prisons in Texas to house detained undocumented immigrants, targeting businesses that hire undocumented immigrants, and a litany of other…
2017
Category: Sex Crimes | Sex Offender Registry | Sexual Assault
With more than 105,000 registered sex offenders, the State of California recently took a bold step toward inserting some rationality into its sex offender registration program. Bloomberg News reported on October 10, 2017 that Governor Jerry Brown had signed legislation…
2017
Category: Appeals | Criminal Justice Reform
In the heyday of his career as an “expert” for unscrupulous prosecutors around the state, Keith Pickett enjoyed a star witness status—the Hound Dog Handler, as he was called, sent many people to prison, some of whom were innocent, for…
2017
Category: Human Trafficking | Sex Crimes | Sex Crimes Against Children | Sex Trafficking | Sexual Abuse
Crimes against children, especially sex offenses, receive more significant law enforcement attention that other criminal offenses. Texas is on the precipice of establishing a special unit specifically designed to handle child sex and human trafficking cases.
Last month Texas…
2017
Category: Sex Crimes | Sexual Abuse
Under Texas law, a person who commits two or more acts of sexual abuse against a child younger than 14 years of age, during a period that is 30 days or more, can be tried and convicted for “continuous sexual…
2017
The Texas Penal Code § 49.04 prohibits the driving of a motor vehicle while intoxicated. Section 49.01(2)(A) defines intoxication as “not having the normal use of mental or physical faculties by reason of the introduction of alcohol, a controlled substance,…
2017
As of September 1, 2017, the State of Texas had 90,616 registered sex offenders.
Sex offender registration has been around a long time in Texas—since 1991, in fact. The state legislature has continually amended or tweaked these programs ever…