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Russell A. Spatz
Surprise! You've got a misdemeanor on your record. How could this possibly happen without prior knowledge? Well, in Florida, up until recently, it was in fact possible.Judge Ends Practice of Surprise MisdemeanorsFrederick Lauten, the chief judge of Florida's Ninth...
A twelve-year-old girl in Fairfax, VA is facing charges in juvenile court after posting a series of emojis in an Instagram post that implied a threat to her school. Emojis, the small pictures used to punctuate texts and social media posts, are a hallmark of smartphone...
Since the first Conviction Integrity Unit (CIU) was established in Dallas in 2007, the country has seen a rise in the establishment of these bodies. CIUs are intended to be an independent reviewer of previous cases that may be wrongful convictions.In its 2016 study,...
Should Apple make a way for law enforcement to access their iPhones? That question continues to play out in the courts, and could have a far-reaching effect on technology and privacy laws in the United States.New York says noIn a recent state case, a federal judge in...
The juvenile justice system in Florida continues to be a hot topic. In December, the Juvenile Justice Bill received a lot of attention and now a ruling from earlier in 2015 is making a stir by creating a backlog of cases in courtrooms throughout the state. In the...
Most people know that sleep deprivation can cause lapses in judgement and cognitive impairment. But false imprisonment? A recent study focused on how sleep deprivation can contribute to innocent people admitting to crimes they haven't committed.Military and police...
The subject of wrongful convictions seems to be on most people's radars. With the runaway popularity of documentaries such as Netflix's "Making a Murderer," there has been a surge of interest in exonerations and the justice system. While no judicial system is perfect,...
Recently, an anonymous jury was used in the high profile case of William Porter. Porter was the first of the Baltimore police officers charged in the death of Freddie Gray to stand trial. While there is precedent for using anonymous juries in certain instances, the...
Recently, the Supreme Court ruled that Florida's death penalty sentencing procedures are in violation of constitutional rights. The court heard the case of 37-year old Timothy Hurst, who was convicted of murder and sentenced to death in in 1998. Decisions must be made...
On December 1, 2015 the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee took a hard look at Florida's direct-file laws and their effects on the lives of juvenile offenders. In the last five years, 12,000 juvenile offenders have ended up in Florida's adult criminal justice system...