What’s it All About? Let’s talk about “defunding” or “abolishing” the police. First, nobody is suggesting immediately disbanding all “law enforcement” and leaving a vacuum. But, there is a problem; in fact, there are multiple problems, with the role of police in American society. The Abolition Movement (which may need a better name) proposes to […]
Presumption of . . . Guilt!
Conviction by Headline: how to we stop the automatic presumption that someone who is arrested for a crime is guilty. Resurrecting the presumption of innocence.
What’s the Law: COVID-19 Edition
Void for Vagueness: It makes sense that if a law is too vague for someone to know what is or is not allowed, that’s not fair. The legal term for “fairness” is “due process.” A law that is too vague to know what it covers can be found to be “void for vagueness.” Similarly, laws […]
COVID-19 Forces Bail Reform
Incarceration Nation: Three statistics to start this off: 1) Roughly 2.2 million Americans are behind bars on any given day; 2) With 4.4% of the world’s population, the US incarcerates 25% of the world’s prisoners; 3) One-third of them have not been convicted of the crime for which they’re being held. Pretrial Detention: That’s right: […]
Not Guilty
Why I Take Cases to Trial Steve was charged with felony DWI. After two jury trials, and a prosecution that lasted over two years, he was acquitted. Here’s his story: Steve had had three prior DWIs which resulted in two things: 1) he had ignition interlock in his car (so he couldn’t start the car […]