Former Texas prosecutor Charles Sebesta has been disbarred due to his acts in a case against Anthony Graves, who spent 18 years in prison, 12 of those years on death row. Graves was convicted of setting a fire that killed six people. There was no physical evidence that linked Graves to the crime. Another man who …
Category: National Legal News
Supreme Court decision in Montgomery v. Louisiana
With the United States Supreme Court decision in Montgomery v. Louisiana, making Miller v. Alabama retroactive, the Court held that states must hold re-sentencing hearings or extend parole eligibility to juvenile homicide offenders who were sentenced to mandatory life in prison. In Justice Kennedy’s words, “The opportunity for release will be afforded to those who demonstrate the truth …
PA Judge Who Sold Juveniles to Jails Gets 28 Years in Prison
A judge in Pennsylvania judge was convicted of sending kids to juvenile detention in return for cash. His sentence was for 28 years after it was determined he took over 1 million dollars in bribes, reported by NPR. The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania threw out over 4000 cases that took place between 2003 and 2008. It was …
Santae Tribble cleared in 1978 murder based on DNA hair test
Santae Tribble was convicted of killing a cab driver in 1978 because of a supposed matched hair in a stocking cap. The killer was wearing a stocking cap that was obtained by the police, and after DNA tests it was determined one hair was Tribble’s. After 28 years he finally was exonerated due to findings in July …
Supreme Court Takes On Racial Discrimination In Jury Selection
The Supreme Court is addressing race discrimination in the selection of jurors. Prospective jurors normally are questioned by the prosecution and defense lawyers. They typically are removed “for cause,” which means they are unable to be impartial. Both sides also have the ability to remove jurors without stating a reason, but sometimes a reason for removing …
Law removing felons’ voting rights is upheld
In 2013 Kelli Jo Griffin of Montrose tried to cast her vote on a city election and was charged with perjury for registering to vote as a felon. In 2008 she obtained a felony for cocaine delivery. The jury determined in 2013 that she made an honest mistake when registering to vote. A policy that was established in …
Officer’s alleged lies may jeopardize DWI cases
A Dallas police sergeant is being accused of perjury over a drunk driving case in 2012. On July 6th, 2012 officer Baker pulled over a civilian after he allegedly ran a red light. After getting pulled over Baker conducted several field sobriety tests and arrested the civilian after several failed tests. The footage from Baker’s …
Supreme Court Says Use Of Lethal Injection Drug Is Legal
Last Monday, on a 5-4 vote, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that the lethal injection used in Oklahoma does not violate the Constitution’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment. The dispute was over the drug called midazolam, which is the first drug used in the lethal injection cocktail to make the inmate unconscious. Inmates were arguing …
John Oliver on the Issues With Bail
John Oliver has some great insights on how courts treat bail in the U.S. …
Supreme Court Ruling Regarding Required State of Mind for a Crime
In Elonis vs. United States (decided 6-1-15), the US. Supreme Court held that criminal statutes require the actual mens rea or state of mind of the Defendant to be considered, not that of the alleged victim or that of a reasonable person. Furthermore, in a criminal case, it isn’t enough that a person knows what they are …
For the First Time Ever, a Prosecutor Will Go to Jail for Wrongfully Convicting an Innocent Man
In Texas, former prosecutor and judge Ken Anderson pled guilty to intentionally failing to disclose evidence in a case that sent an innocent man, Michael Morton, to prison for the murder of his wife. When trying the case as a prosecutor, Anderson possessed evidence that may have cleared Morton, including statements from the crime’s only eyewitness that Morton …
Supreme Court: Judges Are Not for Sale
No more personal solicitation of donations for judges in 30 states. The Supreme Court upheld a Florida rule that prohibited judges from personally asking for donations. Naturally this caused criticism as some believed that the ruling was too vague, but also too narrow in some regards. Though these points were valid, the ruling was designed to eliminate …