Articles Posted in Worth the Read

Putting the war in Afghanistan on trial Holly Lewis reports from the court-martial of war resister Victor Agosto, who won even before his trial for refusing to deploy to Afghanistan began. (She saw more of the summary court-martial than his lawyer did.) August 10, 2009 Through the looking glass THE MORNING sun beat down on…

Here’s the trial lawyers guide to those difficult to read, hard to interpret, and impossible to reconcile appellate decisions. Attribute Everything Mysterious To ‘Quantum Flux’ A reading of Gabriel Fournier’s The Eclipse Of Infinity reveals that the new science-fiction novel makes more than 80 separate references to “quantum flux,” a vaguely defined force the author…

We previously noted the serious allegations against attorney Paul Bergrin for alleged racketeering, witness tampering, and murder. Stunning development David Kocieniewski, Lawyer’s Ways Spelled Murder, U.S. Is Charging, NY Times, 20 May 2009. In June Mr. Bergrin plead not guilty to these charges, according to NJ.com. Sarah Rice, The Star-Ledger Mr. Bergrin has had a…

The following is the breakdown of sexual assaults involving midshipmen reported at the Naval Academy from 2001 to 2006, according to an analysis of documents: 49 cases of mids accused of sexual assault. 11 cases were dropped when alleged victims declined to participate in an investigation, leaving 38 cases to be investigated. Of those 38,…

His true name remains unknown; he was called Kid by the military personnel at San Carlos Reservation in the southern Arizona Territory where he served with the US Army as an Indian scout intermittently from 1882-87. He became known as Apache Kid only after he was court-martialed on charges of desertion and mutiny following a…

(NEW RELEASE) Trial Tactics, Second Edition A compilation of high profile criminal cases, practice tips, legal analyses, and cautions that prepares defense counsel, prosecutors and judges to do outstanding work at trial and assists them in ensuring that justice is done each day in every court throughout the land. The text provides excellent statutory, case…

Don’t Panic! Rehearings and DuBays Are Not the End of the World

The Naval Criminal Investigative Service is concluding a pilot program of recorded suspect interviews. From experience viewing this video-recorded interviews all of the military services should adopt the practice. Thomas P. Sullivan has put together a wonderful publication which documents the history and current status of recorded suspect interviews not just in the United States…

For those of us who do read crime noir novels for entertainment, here is an interesting perspective. This all quote from Law.com: Legal Blog Watch. Cloak-and-Dagger Justice Perhaps it was a dark and stormy night when Scott W. Stucky was sworn in as a judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces.…

Ted Sampsell-Jones, Making Defendants Speak, (Download PDF) 93 Minn. L. Rev. 1327 (2009). First, as a matter of constitutional criminal procedure, the Supreme Court should overrule . . . (you’ll be surprised what he suggests here). Second, as a matter of evidence law, courts should abandon the Gordon v. United States test for Rule 609,…