Just another showing that the world of Post-Conviction Relief is difficult.  It is always better to make every effort to get everything right the first time. A12-0310        Jermaine Ferguson, petitioner, Appellant, vs. State of Minnesota,...

Yet another opinion from the SCt, this time addressing a situation that is fairly solid in civil law (at least I remember studying something similar way back in law school).  It's unfortunate that the State doesn't need to expressly address the Federal claim, but...

The Supreme Court is on a roll with criminal decisions this week.  Here is the latest and greatest: Henderson v. United States (6-3 Opinion by Justice Breyer on February 20, 2013. Dissent by Justice Scalia with Justices Thomas and Alito...

Here is an interesting decision from the U.S. Supreme Court.  Double Jeopardy applies if the Judge grants a directed verdict of acquittal for an element the prosecution failed to prove, that it didn't have to prove.  That's an interesting way of looking at...

Not a big surprise on this one.  I think it was fairly unlikely that the U.S. Supreme Court was going to hold that Padilla (the case holding that defense attorneys must inform their clients of possible deportation) would be retroactive.  There are too many...

Here is a recent decision from the U.S. Supreme Court. It looks like everybody makes mistakes, even drug-detection dogs.  Good news for the police, even if the dog is wrong, you can use that for probable cause.  Bad news for citizens, if the dog is wrong,...