NEWSBRIEFS
TOPICS
In The Courts
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July - August 1998
Tenth Circuit Rules Against Leniency in Exchange for Testimony
Supreme Court Limits Criminal Forfeiture
New Jersey High Court Restricts Asset Forfeiture
Parts of "One Strike" Housing Policy Struck Down
SPECIAL REPORT: Federal Judges Who Criticize the "War on Drugs"
November - December 1997
Evidence in DEA Agent's Murder Case May Be Tainted
Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Crack Sentencing Disparity Case
Jury Deadlock in Trial of Lawyers Alleged to Serve Cali Cartel
Hemp Seed Prosecution in Hawaii Ends in Mistrial
September - October 1997
Arizona Mother Charged with Murder of Newborn; Breast Milk Allegedly Tainted with Heroin and Methadone
August 1997
Ohio Judge Throws Out Drug Evidence, Says Trooper May Have Used "Profiling"
Actor Carroll O'Connor Successfully Defends Slander Suit Brought by Cocaine Distributor of His Late Son
July 1997
2nd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Condemns Jury Nullification
Supreme Court to Consider Forfeiture Case
Drug Courts Provide Effective Alternative to Incarceration, Report Says
Drug Cases Piling Up While Federal Judgeship in Texas Remains Vacant for Two Years
Texas Judge Trades Leniency for "Donations"
May - June 1997
Protecting "Unborn Child" of Drug User by Arresting Mother Rejected by Wisconsin High Court
Gangster Disciples Leader Convicted
Teacher's Firing for 1974 Marijuana Misdemeanor Upheld
March - April 1997
Holdout Juror in Drug Case, Laura Kriho, Found in Contempt of Court, Fined $1200
January 1997
Illinois Supreme Court Invalidates Part of State's No-Knock Statute
U.S. Court of Appeals Upholds Crack Offender's Sentence
Maine Teenager Sues Town, Police Chief for Using Her as a Drug Informant Against Her Parents
December 1996
Consensual Drug Searches During Traffic Stops Upheld by Supreme Court
Colorado Contempt Case Highlights Attack on "Jury Nullification" Power
Libel Suit by L.A. Deputy Criticized in Fatal Donald Scott Drug Raid Denied by California Appeals Court
Ninth Circuit to Decide if Drug Deportation Law Retroactive
November 1996
Drug Taxes and Prosecution Are Double Jeopardy, Says Texas High Court
Mexican "Gulf Cartel" Leader Juan Garcia Abrego Convicted on U.S. Drug Charges
October 1996
Mexican Doctor Can Sue in DEA Case, Says 9th Circuit Court
September 1996
Mandatory White House Drug Testing Struck Down
Pregnant Women Who Take Drugs Can Be Prosecuted for Child Abuse Rules South Carolina Supreme Court
Supreme Court Upholds Use of Traffic Stops as Pretext for Drug Searches
Summer 1996
Brooklyn, NY is Home to Nation's Largest Drug Court; California Legislature Considering Drug Courts
U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Civil Forfeiture in Two Drug Cases
Allegations of Race Bias in Crack Prosecutions Requires More Proof, Supreme Court Rules
F. Lee Bailey Relinquishes Claim to Drug Dealer's Securities
May 1996
Supreme Court Hears Landmark Forfeiture Cases, Rules on Double Jeopardy and Conspiracy, Hears Arguments About Automobile Searches and Traffic Stops
Court Denies Noriega New Trial
April 1996
Supreme Court Rejects Innocent Owner Forfeiture Defense, Hears Arguments in Sentencing Cases
Miami Jury Acquits Pair of Major Cocaine Trafficking Charges; Jury Foreperson Cites Use of Informants
F. Lee Bailey Ordered to Jail for Contempt for Refusing Surrender of Drug Dealer's Assets
Subway Bomber Who Asserted Prozac® Defense Convicted
March 1996
Judge Cites Police Abuse and Corruption, Throws Out Seized Drug Evidence and Confession, Incites Controversy About the Exclusionary Rule
9th Circuit Court of Appeals Rules Religion May Be Defense to Marijuana Possession
11th Circuit Court of Appeals Upholds Georgia Law Mandating Drug Tests for Political Candidates
Man Asserts Prozac® Defense at Bombing Trial
February 1996
Supreme Court to Hear Double Jeopardy Forfeiture Cases
Supreme Court Upholds "Total Weight" Scheme for LSD Sentencing, Rules Sentencing Commission Amendments Should Not Apply to Mandatory Minimums
Supreme Court Hears Arguments on Double Jeopardy in Conspiracy Cases
Sentencing Commission Seeks Public Comment on Cocaine Sentencing; Will Not Propose Amendments in Current Cycle
Undercover Agents' Urging of Defendants to Cook Powder into Crack Cocaine Is Not Sentence Entrapment; Crack Cocaine Mandatory Minimum Is Not Cruel or Unusual Punishment, DC Circuit Court of Appeals Rules
Utah Supreme Court Rules That Using Gun and Choke Hold to Force Defendant to Spit Out Drugs is Unacceptable
January 1996
Supreme Court Rules on Gun "Use" During Drug Offense, Hears Arguments in Sentencing, Forfeiture Issues
December 1995
Supreme Court Decides Forfeiture Case, Hears Arguments on Alcohol Advertising, Gun Use in Drug Crimes
Tenth Circuit Says Thermal Imaging Is a Search, Contrary to Other Circuits
Second Circuit Upholds Downward Departure That Allows Defendant to Enter Drug Treatment Program
November 1995
Supreme Court Preview: LSD Sentencing, Innocent Owner Forfeiture, Liquor Advertising Scheduled in Current Term
Supreme Court to Rule in Drug Paraphernalia Case
Court Rules Baltimore Can Ban Cigarette and Alcohol Billboards
Second Circuit Rules LSD 0.4 mg/dose Formula Inapplicable to Mandatory Sentencing
Iowa Court Finds Driver's License Cannot Be Revoked Ex Post Facto
October 1995
Alaska Court Rejects DWI Double Jeopardy Argument
September 1995
Supreme Court Ducks Issues in Kimberlin Case (The Dan Quayle Marijuana Case), Sends It Back to Court of Appeals
April 1995
Defendant Must Know Weight of Drugs to Be Convicted on Criminal Sale Charges, New York Court of Appeals Rules
Court Rules Police Promise of Immunity in Exchange for Information Is Worthless
March 1995
Supreme Court Rules in Exclusionary Rule Case
Court Makes Strong Statement About Racial Bias/Crack Cocaine Cases
December 1994
Report Shows One-Third Violate Pretrial Release
November 1994
Forfeiture: Courts Split on Definition of Excessive Punishment
Settlement in Pennsylvania Traffic Stop Suit
Intention Not Sufficient Grounds for Forfeiture, Court Rules
Supreme Court Rules that No Action is Required to Prove Drug Conspiracy
Court Cuts Sentence for Entrapped LSD Defendant
Manual Written By Oakland Drug Court Founder
September-October 1994
Recent Rulings on Forfeiture
Crack Cocaine (Defined as Cocaine Base) is Cocaine; Higher Sentence is Impermissible
Congress Not Racially Discriminatory in Crack Sentences; Eighth Circuit Reverses Judge Cahill in Clary
Sobriety Test Ruled a 'Search'
Seizure of Colombian Ships Ruled Improper
Watergate Veteran Hired to Represent Florida Sheriff's Department
ACLU Files Suit Against Illinois State Police
TV Tag-Alongs on Raids Violate Fourth Amendment
August 1994
Judge Rules That DEA Agent Unfairly Manipulated Cocaine Case to Obtain Harsher Prison Sentence
Crack Cocaine Sentences Invalidated by Federal Court in Georgia: There Is No Difference Between Cocaine Base and Cocaine
July 1993
Supreme Court Rules Drugs May Be Seized in Weapons Frisk
Texas Court Rules Drug Seizure at Roadblock Illegal
Supreme Court Overturns Ban on Ritual Animal Sacrifice
New York Appeals Court Reduces Drug Sentence as "Unduly Harsh"
Universality of Cocaine-Tainted Cash Means Presence of Cocaine on Cash in Your Wallet Is Not Probable Cause
More Judges Conclude Drug War Is Lost Cause
June 1993
High Court Invalidates Ringleader's Challenge of Illegal Stop of Courier
Federal Judge Halts Random Searches of Chemical Company Customers by DEA
California Municipalities Move Towards Treatment-Based Drug Courts
New York's Top Court Says Treatment Programs May Not Exclude Pregnant Women
April 1993
Montana Punished Marijuana Dealers Unconstitutionally With Drug Tax, Court Says
January 1993
U.S. Supreme Court Rules Police May Be Sued in Unlawful Evictions
U.S. Kingpin Who Staged Murders To Be Freed for Role as Informant
Noriega Accorded POW Status