If you are facing criminal charges, there may be circumstances when a change of venue is appropriate. What are those situations, what are the benefits of such a change, and what are the procedures to get a change of venue? When is a Change of Venue Request Appropriate? There is…
If you have been charged with the distribution of fentanyl, you will be facing tougher penalties in the State of California this year. The change in the law was precipitated by the increase in fatalities related to fentanyl overdoses. Fentanyl’s Use A synthetic opioid, fentanyl has proved to be fatal…
We all know that a warrant has many purposes: a search warrant entitles law enforcement to search specific persons or property; an arrest warrant identifies someone who will be going to jail. But what is a reverse warrant, and how does it impact you? The fact of the matter is…
Swatting—or placing false calls requesting emergency assistance– is illegal, according to the FBI. These harassing and deceptive emergency calls send response teams to various locations with claims that an emergency is underway. Although the prank calls send SWAT teams and others to a scene where nothing unusual is occurring, officers…
Anyone who has watched courtroom drama on TV has heard of double jeopardy—the 5th Amendment protections against being tried twice for the same crime. But there is a qualification here — separate prosecutions are permitted when state and federal governments prosecute separately for the same crime. In fact, two different…
A new fingerprint study is in—and plenty of scientists and forensic experts are taken aback: it claims to turn previous understandings about fingerprints upside down and to revolutionize fingerprint analysis in police work. How significant is this study? The Old Mode of Analysis Analysts in the fingerprint business have focused…
Who hasn’t seen videos of police manhandling citizens who were allegedly involved in criminal activity? Such accounts, usually recorded by interested onlookers, have informed the public of the unnecessary use of force by officers across the country. Imagine how little we would know about Rodney King, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice,…
Law enforcement relies on artificial intelligence (AI) in making determinations related to investigating, charging, sentencing, and even releasing offenders across the country. More and more, AI algorithms are incredibly complex and their pathways are secretive. That has led to the use of opaque technologies, otherwise known as black boxes. What…
There is a social contract between law enforcement and the communities in which they work, requiring transparency and trust. But that can be extremely difficult to achieve. Practical Implications Roughly half of Americans say they have a declining perception of police and other law enforcement agencies primarily because of what…
We have many federal agencies that are tasked with protecting the public. Outfits, including the DEA, FBI, ATF, and Federal Marshals all share that mandate. In the course of their work, however, they have been responsible for more than 150 fatalities and 80 injuries over a period of just five…