Short Circuit: A Roundup of Recent Federal Court Decisions
Waste and distraction, unclean hands, and defamation on Twitter.
Criminal Justice
The Lingering Stench of Marijuana Prohibition
People with pot records continue to suffer, even in places where their crimes are no longer crimes.
Van Jones Praises Conservatives on Criminal Justice Reform: 'You Are Stealing My Issue!'
Overall, CPAC attendees seem enthusiastic about criminal justice reform.
Homeland Security and Florida Cops Spied on Chinese Massage Workers for Months but Still Couldn't Find Evidence of Human Trafficking
Nine women face felony prostitution charges and hundreds of their customers have been arrested. Florida says it's the real victim.
Waco Biker Massacre Prosecutions Continue to Fall Apart as Last Set of Original Indictments Dismissed
Special prosecutor involved in dropping charges says, "I do have a very serious problem as a lawyer with the wholesale charging of people without an investigation" in the case.
Kamala Harris Won't Denounce Federal Law That Harms Sex Workers, but May Support Decriminalizing Prostitution
"I think that we have to understand though that it is not as simple as that."
California Wants Transparency From Trump, but Won't Release State Police Records
Xavier Becerra conceals bad behavior by cops in his state, and even threatens journalists attempting to expose them.
Will One of Arizona's More Vocal Drug Warriors Get a Seat on the State's Supreme Court?
Years after the state legalized medical marijuana, Maricopa County's top attorney served as a barrier.
Michigan May Stop Police From Seizing Property Without Getting a Conviction First
Reports show Michigan police seize cash and cars from hundreds of people who are never convicted of a crime. Momentum is building to stop it.
'No Allegations of Human Trafficking' and 'Women Could've Walked Out' In Florida Massage-Parlor Prostitution Stings
Authorities are walking back big claims about an international human-trafficking ring involving Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
Please Don't Help the Alabama Authorities Catch This Escaped Drug Dealer
Dyron Rashad Primus is serving 15 years for synthetic marijuana charges. That's absurd.
Brett Kavanaugh Flunks His First Test as an Originalist
Unlike Thomas and Gorsuch, Kavanaugh stayed mum on originalism in a major constitutional case.
Patriots Owner Robert Kraft's Bust Is Being Billed as a Human Trafficking Bust, but It Looks More Like Ordinary Prostitution
It's also part of a larger national attack on massage parlors and sex workers.
'Social Justice'–Touting Bill Weld Has Kind Words for Fellow Ex-Prosecutors Kamala Harris and Amy Klobuchar
The possible presidential contender has come a long way since his tough-on-crime speech at the 1992 Republican National Convention, but he's still emphasizing his U.S. attorney past.
Philadelphia Reduced Use of Cash Bail and the Sky Didn't Fall
Defendants aren't being ordered to pay for their freedom, and they're still coming back for court appearances.
Phony Houston Drug Warrant Prompts FBI Investigation and Review of 1,400 Cases
Lying to justify a search that killed two people could be a capital crime.
HBO's "The O.G. Experience" Turns Prison Art into a Political Statement
Pop-up art exhibition in New York focuses attention on the need for criminal justice reform.
Supreme Court Rules that Excessive Fines Clause Applies to States and Constrains Civil Asset Forfeiture
The decision in Timbs v. Indiana is a significant step forward for property rights and civil liberties, though a key issue remains to be resolved by lower courts.
Supreme Court Delivers Unanimous Victory for Asset Forfeiture Challenge
The Eighth Amendment prohibition against excessive fines and fees applies to states as well, SCOTUS rules, opening a new way to challenge outlandish forfeitures.
How the Feds Are Using Civil Asset Forfeiture to Threaten Free Speech
Sex, publishing, and quasi-legal theft collide in the Backpage prosecution.
Reacting to Deadly Raid, Houston Police Chief Promises to Restrict No-Knock Warrants
Art Acevedo also said police entering homes will soon start wearing body cameras.
Houston Narc Who Lied to Justify a Deadly Drug Raid Had Been Accused of Perjury
"I don't have any indication it's a pattern," Police Chief Art Acevedo says.
C.I. Whose Heroin Buy Led to a Deadly Houston Drug Raid Does Not Seem to Exist
An application for a warrant to search a narcotics officer's cellphone reveals that police have been unable to identify the informant.
Trump Wants To Raid an Asset Forfeiture Black-Box Fund To Build His Border Wall
"Exactly what sources and what individuals this money comes from is obscure, and it's obscure because that's the way the federal government wants it."
Michigan Governor Pardons Drunk Driver, Leaves Thousands of Prisoners Waiting for Their Second Chance
Gov. Rick Snyder's clemency record could have been a lot better.
Wyoming State Senator Invokes Jesus Dying to Defend Death Penalty
There's so much wrong with her argument.
Spending Bill Ignores Promised Funding for Major Criminal Justice Reform Passed Last Year
The FIRST STEP Act was supposed to get $75 million to fund reentry programs and job training. That's missing from the budget bill being voted on Thursday.
South Carolina Lawmakers Introduce Asset Forfeiture Reform Bill After News Investigation Reveals Abuses
South Carolina would become the fourth state to abolish the practice of seizing property without a criminal conviction.
Marijuana Activist Who Live-Streamed Meeting With Congressional Staffer Charged With 'Illegal Wiretap'
Rep. Andy Harris's (R-Md.) office refuses to say whether the congressman supports prosecution of the young activist.
Last Year Saw 'Furthest-Reaching Attempt to Censor Online Speech' Since the 1990s, Say FOSTA Challengers
As the lawsuit against FOSTA hits appeals court, three essays about the law that everyone should read.
ACLU Releases Model Legislation To Unlock the 'Black Box' of Prosecutor Secrecy
"They're the most powerful player in the criminal justice system. It's really important to know how they use that discretion behind closed doors."
'Sex Offenders Are Not Second-Class Citizens,' Says Judge While Nixing Alabama Rules on First Amendment Grounds
The decision rejects driver's licenses labeled "CRIMINAL SEX OFFENDER" and a broad demand for reports on internet use.
Gitmo Preps for an Upgrade
This monument to the war on terror is still open, and it's costing taxpayers a fortune.
Here Is What Police Found (and Didn't) After Deadly Houston Drug Raid
The search warrant inventory does not include any evidence of drug dealing.
The SUV That's About To Change Asset Forfeiture Rules Nationwide
The future of civil asset forfeiture law in the United States now revolves around a single Land Rover.
The Supreme Court's Recent Religious Liberty/Death Penalty Decision is Bad -- But Not Quite as Bad as Many Think
The justices were wrong to reject a religious discrimination claim in a case where a person sentenced to death was not allowed access to a Muslim cleric at the moment of death. But the decision was not the result of anti-Muslim bigotry.
Watch Glendale Cops Taser a Man 10 Times, Handcuff Him, Pull His Pants Down, and Taser His Groin Area
"I have never seen anything like this before... this is beyond the pale."
The Chemists and the Cover-Up
Sloppy forensics, drug skimming, and prosecutorial misconduct forced Massachusetts to throw out 47,000 convictions.
Houston Cop Involved in Deadly Drug Raid Relieved of Duty Due to 'Ongoing Questions'
The questions reportedly relate to a search warrant affidavit that described drugs and a gun police never found.
N.C. Mom Says SWAT Team 'Terrorized' Her 6-Year-Old Autistic Son
"My son with autism was forced out of the home with military-style rifles aimed at him and made to sit on the cold, wet ground for over an hour."
The Execution of Domineque Ray
Some troubling uncertainties in a case of troubling allegations of religious discrimination
Supreme Court Rejects Stay of Execution for Alabama Inmate After Imam Not Allowed in Chamber
The Alabama prison allows a Christian chaplain in the execution chamber to pray with death row inmates, but it refused to let an imam inside.
Cops Say Cindy McCain Didn't Catch Toddler Trafficker at Airport
Plus: Lionel Shriver on cultural erasure and Stormy Daniels on strip-club labor laws
Trump Decries Unjust Crack Sentences but Wants to Repeat the Mistake With Fentanyl
Reducing the thresholds for mandatory minimums in fentanyl cases will produce more injustices like the ones the president highlighted last night.
