My two petitions for writs of mandamus challenge the Justice Department's violation of the Crime Victims' Rights Act and argue for substantive "public interest" review of prosecutors' dismissal motions.
... but does so reluctantly, calling the objections to the dismissal "compelling" and castigating the Justice Department for its failure "to secure the necessary accountability to ensure the safety of the flying public."
Next week, if the Supreme Court decides to reach the merits in the U.S. v. Ellingburg case, it should recognize that restitution to crime victims serves compensatory rather than penal purposes.
The Court granted cert to review whether criminal restitution under the Mandatory Victim Restitution Act is "penal" in character. But the defendant was ordered to pay restitution under a different statute.
The Justice Department and Boeing are trying that dubious maneuver, which eviscerates the requirement in the federal rules that judges must approve dismissal motions.
After Vance Boelter allegedly targeted Democrats in an attack, some conservatives jumped to claim that he was actually on the left. Why?
Yes! Funding crime victims' rights initiatives is a useful measure for ensuring that the criminal justice system focuses on protecting victims, which should always be a high priority.
When a murderer kills a victim, including a child, the murderer has directly and immediately eliminated the victim's ability to earn income. The only remaining issue is to reasonably estimate the size of that loss.
The Court follows my argument that the purpose of a rape shield hearing is to ... well ... shield rape victims.
Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg should explain whether Boeing continues to plan to plead guilty to conspiring to defraud the FAA, or whether it will attempt to shirk its responsibility for the deadliest corporate crime in U.S. history.
Boeing has no defense to the charged crime of defrauding the FAA. Rather than go through a pointless trial with a preordained result, it should plead guilty straightaway.
Efforts to expand and amplify victims' voices in criminal proceedings are justified and likely to continue into the future.
The modern crime victims' rights movement has been remarkably successful in inserting the victim's voice into criminal justice processes.
The victims' rights movement is rooted in America's long tradition of private prosecution, in which crime victims were able to initiate and pursue their own criminal prosecutions.
Billy Binion speaks to Sister Helen Prejean about her activism to end the death penalty, as depicted in her book Dead Man Walking.
The court "grant[s] victims access to non-evidentiary pretrial proceedings from their homes and offices by Zoom and telephone, as well as access to livestreamed video and audio feeds of evidentiary and trial proceedings in courthouses across the United States and other secure, monitored locations around the world."
Judge O'Connor agrees with the 737 MAX crashes victims' families that the deal's proposed corporate monitor provision "marginalizes" the court and raises other concerns.
Twenty years ago to the day, the CVRA took effect ... changing the legal culture in federal criminal cases.
My op-ed in The Hill discusses the problem of prosecutors confessing "error" where none exists.
I have argued to Judge Reed O'Connor that he should reject the proposed "binding" plea deal because it obscures the relevant facts and fails to hold Boeing accountable for killing 346 people. A decision is expected soon.
You don't promote acceptance by locking people up for victimless crimes.
While the data is far from perfect, if the overall trend holds, violent crime could be back to pre-COVID levels by the end of the year.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott takes a tactic from the progressive prosecutors he says he opposes.
Dexter Taylor is now a "violent felon," even though his hobby was victimless.
In data from over 200 cities, homicides are down a little over 19 percent when compared to a similar time frame in 2023.
The ruling has nothing to do with #MeToo. It is about ensuring a fair trial—a principle that applies no matter how unsympathetic the defendant.
Criminal justice advocates say the evidence doesn't back up Republicans' claims that Louisiana's landmark 2017 reforms are to blame for violent crime.
Amid fear of rising crime, let's take a careful and deliberate approach—lest innocent people lose their rights and property.
The bills would classify police and correctional officers who kill people on the job as crime victims.
My new co-authored article reviews 168 victim impact statements from the Larry Nassar sentencing hearing and concludes that these statements show a victim voice at sentencing can improve justice.
Stop enabling thieves by owning stuff.
In my Supreme Court amicus brief for the victim's family in Oklahoma v. Richard Glossip, I argue that the Oklahoma Attorney General's unfounded confession of "error" should not dictate the case's outcome.
After an array of botched and unsuccessful executions, the state's Department of Corrections says its ready to start executing inmates again.
Meg Garvin, John Yoo, and I argue to the California Supreme Court that L.A. District Attorney George Gascon is not free to ignore the commands of California's Three Strikes Law.
Today's oral argument in Counterman v. Colorado--the "true threats" case--highlights the importance of protecting stalking victims from objectively threatening communications.
The Appellate Court of Maryland rules that the rights of the victim's family must be respected in any process that could vacate Mr. Syed's conviction—an important precedent that crime victims' rights are enforceable.
In rebuking the legislation, the president showed that he may not know what's in it.
The families argue that they should have been given an opportunity to confer with prosecutors under the Crime Victims' Rights Act before Boeing's deferred prosecution agreement was finalized.
While expressing great sympathy for the victims' families, Judge O'Connor concludes that no remedy is available for the Justice Department's failure to enforce the families' right to confer under the Crime Victims' Rights Act.
The article explains how the federal Crime Victims' Rights Act and other crime victim protections contain a broad definition of the term "victim."
"Under the new rule, the State would have been able to prolong the botched execution process indefinitely," the Equal Justice Initiative wrote in a press release.
The Arizona Supreme Court becomes the first state Supreme Court to thoroughly incorporate crime victims' rights in its rules of criminal procedure. Others should follow.
While the pause comes as a relief to those opposed to the death penalty, Ivey's full-throated defense of the practice makes it clear that she seeks only a temporary pause in executions, not an end to the policy.
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