The defendant in this case argued on appeal, inter alia, that the district court had erred by excluding testimony regarding his training and experience in the Coast Guard Auxiliary as habit evidence under Federal Rule of Evidence 406. Rule 406 provides: "Evidence of the habit of a person or of ...

In a case of first impression, Judge Politan of the D.N.J. ruled that the FBI did not need a wiretap order to attach a keystroke-recording device to a reputed mobster’s computer in order to decipher the password needed to gain access to encrypted files thought to contain evidence of criminal ...

There are numerous provisions in the Federal sentencing laws that define a fair and just sentence as one which reflects the seriousness of the offense, promotes respect for the law, and provides just punishment for the offense. (See, e.g., 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)(2)(A)). Consistent with such mandates, one would think ...

This case is noted as a rare example of a published decision dealing with the burdens of proof required to overcome the statutory presumption against bail release in drug cases where the defendant faces a penalty of ten years or more in prison. The basic provision of the Bail Reform ...

This case involved the appeal of the defendant, Barbosa, who was convicted for possession with intent to distribute more than 50 grams of cocaine base and sentenced to 21 years in prison. At trial, there was a dispute as to whether Barbosa, a "swallower," intended to transport heroin or cocaine ...

In this case, the appellant, George R. Banks, was convicted of having committed 13 murders and he was sentenced to death in a Pensylvania state court. After exhausting his state remedies, he applied for habeas relief from the District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania; and when that court ...

In this high-profile case, a divided panel from the Second Circuit ordered a new trial for two black men who had been convicted in Federal court of civil rights violations in the fatal stabbing of a Hasidic Jew during four days of civil rights violence that shook the Crown Heights ...

The Supreme Court granted certiorari in this case to resolve a Circuit split concerning the constitutional adequacy of the means employed by Government to provide notice to federal prisoners of their right to contest the administrative forfeiture of their property. In 1986, the petitioner in this case pled guilty to ...