U.S. v. Grier, 449 F.3d 558 (3rd Cir. June 6, 2006) (Judge Fisher)
U.S. v. Staten, 450 F.3d 384 (9th Cir. June 7, 2006) (Judge Berzon)

In the Commentary to § 6A1.3 of the Guidelines, the Sentencing Commission has stated that it “believes that the use of a preponderance of ...

In this case, a sharply divided Supreme Court held that evidence seized by police officers in violation of the venerable “knock-and-announce” rule can be used at trial despite the constitutional violation. Writing for a 5 to 4 majority, Justice Scalia argued that the connection between the entry (which Michigan conceded ...

In 1983, Clarence Hill, the petitioner in this case, was convicted of the first degree murder of a police officer; and he was sentenced to death. After a series of unsuccessful challenges to his conviction and sentence in both the Florida and Federal courts, Gov. Bush finally signed Hill’s death ...

A defendant may not prospectively waive the application of the Speedy Trial Act; and when a district court makes no findings to support an "ends of justice" continuance under 18 U.S.C. § 3161(h)(8), harmless-error review is not appropriate.

In this decision, a unanimous Supreme Court did held that the protections ...

Here the Court addressed for the first time the impact of DNA evidence on habeas cases holding that a death row inmate has made a sufficient showing on his claim of innocence based on new evidence so that his case could proceed in federal habeas court.

In this narrow and ...

In this sentencing decision, the First Circuit somewhat amplified its approach to post-Booker sentencing as set forth in U.S. v. Jiménez-Beltre, 440 F.3d 514 (1st Cir. March 6, 2006) (en banc). This appeal involves a defendant who was twice given the same sentence near the top of the range set ...

U.S. v. Grier, 449 F.3d 558 (3rd Cir. June 6, 2006) (Judge Fisher)
U.S. v. Staten, 450 F.3d 384 (9th Cir. June 7, 2006) (Judge Berzon)

In the Commentary to § 6A1.3 of the Guidelines, the Sentencing Commission has stated that it “believes that the use of a preponderance of ...