This is one of those rare cases in which the Court holds that a prosecutor is not entitled to a summary judgment, on the grounds of either absolute or qualified immunity, in an action for damages against him. The facts are a bit dotty.

The plaintiff in this case was ...

United States v. Wilson, 81 F.3d 1300 (4th Cir. 1996)
United States v. Basket, 82 F.3d 44 (2nd Cir. 1996)

Both of these cases deal with Rule 11 of the Fed.R.Crim.P. in the context of attempts by the defendants to withdraw their guilty pleas. In affirming both convictions, the decisions ...

Here the Court held that if the court defers acceptance of the plea or the plea agreement, the defendant may withdraw his plea for any reason or for no reason, until the time that the court does accept both the plea and the agreement.

This case casts dramatic new light ...

QUOTE OF THE WEEK - While Punch and Jurists frequently pokes fun at the tendency of the courts to quibble over hair-splitting profundities that produce the pedantic but plastic justice that often prevails, we are not alone in that criticism. This week, Judge Shadur of the Third Circuit joined the ...

In 1992, Alexander Artway was released from prison after serving seventeen years for a sex offense. He settled in New Jersey, secured employment and got married. In 1994, the New Jersey legislature enacted Megan's Law which required Artway to register with local law enforcement officials and required community notification that ...

Here the Court concluded that the registration provisions of Megan's Law did not constitute "punishment" under the Ex Post Facto, Bill of Attainder and Double Jeopardy Clauses.

In 1992, Alexander Artway was released from prison after serving seventeen years for a sex offense. He settled in New Jersey, secured employment ...

One of the issues raised in this case was the use of a gun enhancement under U.S.S.G. § 2D1.1(b)(1). The defendant argued that the Supreme Court's decision in Bailey v. U.S., 133 L.Ed.2d 472 (1995) impacts the application of § 2D1.1(b)(1) because the Supreme Court construed the term "use" to ...

This case casts dramatic new light on a defendant's right to withdraw a guilty plea before he is blind-sided by the contents of the presentence report; and it presents some interesting questions about the interplay of U.S.S.G. § 6B1.1(c) and the procedures outlined in Rules 11(e) and 32(e) of the ...

The Court reasoned as follows: "The relationship is not one of employment; prisoners are taken out of the national economy; prison work is often designed to train and rehabilitate; prisoners' living standards are
determined by what the prison provides; and most such labor does not compete with private employers. . ...

Here the Court held that if the court defers acceptance of the plea or the plea agreement, the defendant may withdraw his plea for any reason or for no reason, until the time that the court does accept both the plea and the agreement.

This case casts dramatic new light ...

This is another of the many cases involving the El Rukns street gang from Chicago - one of the most outrageous examples of prosecutorial misconduct - and subsequent cover-up - in the annals of American criminal law.

In this questionable decision the Court held that the district court did not ...

This case points out a subtle nuance to § 5K2.0 - and its relationship to § 3B1.3 (abuse of position of trust). In this case, the district court imposed an upward departure on the defendant (a lawyer) under § 2J1.2 on the grounds that he was an officer of the ...

In affirming the denial of a safety valve sentence reduction the court noted that the burden of proof is greater than for acceptance of responsibilty because it requires the defendant to disclose all relevant conduct as well.

In this case, even though the PSI Report stated that the defendant "may ...