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Category: Appeals | Criminal Law | Federal Criminal Law | SCOTUS
The Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees a criminal defendant the right to effective assistance of counsel at both the trial and appellate level. A defendant raising an ineffective assistance claim in a post-conviction proceeding must meet a two-prong…
The Preamble of the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct for a lawyer’s responsibility for their “client’s position under the rules of the adversary system.”
That responsibility has no gray area. In the criminal arena, a lawyer must represent each…
Category: Federal Criminal Law | SCOTUS | terrorism
In the wake of the September 11, 2001 terror attack on the Twin Towers in New York City, America was besieged with fear, suspicion, and hostility towards Muslims and anyone associated with the Islamic faith. Not even the nation’s First…
Category: Constitutional Law | SCOTUS
“Equal justice under law,” by its own admission, is the core constitutional purpose of the U.S. Supreme Court. In fulfilling this purpose, the nine justice tribunal must ensure “the American people the promise of equal justice under law and, thereby,…
Category: Criminal Justice Reform | Police Misconduct | SCOTUS
This past May, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, and Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas told the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee that white supremacists are “the greatest domestic security threat” in the United States.
That assertion is welcome but long overdue, given…
Category: Criminal Law | Juvenile Criminal Law | SCOTUS
According to the Sentencing Project, there are more than 206,000 people serving life sentences in the United States—6,000 of whom are women. More than 53,000 of those life sentences are without the possibility of parole. In addition to these life…
Category: Criminal Justice Reform | Prosecutorial Misconduct | SCOTUS
Curtis Flowers was tried six times for the murders of four people in the small northern Mississippi town of Winona. The murders at the local Tardy Furniture Store occurred on July 16, 1996. The 26-year-old African-American Flowers was arrested for…
Category: Appeals | Death Penalty | SCOTUS
Defending a person charged in a serious criminal case, under the best of circumstances, is a difficult task and an extraordinary professional responsibility. Defending a death penalty case under any circumstance is much more arduous and requires years of commitment…
Category: Constitutional Law | SCOTUS
As we pointed out in a March 2019 post, the Framers of this nation’s Constitution expressly recognized the fundamental right to a trial by jury by its inclusion in the Sixth Amendment. The intent of the Framers that a jury…
Category: Constitutional Law | SCOTUS
On April 6, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an 8-1 opinion by Justice Clarence Thomas that gives law enforcement greater discretionary latitude in stopping motor vehicles.
On April 28, 2016, Deputy Mark Mehrer was on routine patrol when he…
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