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.
Arrest
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 […]
“Because DWI . . .”
The Only Explanation Some Minnesota appellate court decisions and statutes can only be explained with a shrug and quietly mumbling “because DWI.” Due process (the legal term for “fairness”) is routinely abandoned in DWI law in ways that is not tolerated in other areas of law. Chief among these is the admissibility of breath tests […]