Recent Blog Posts
Studies Show That There is Little To No Deterrent Value of the Death Penalty on the Commission of Homicides
What is the purpose behind punishment? What is the effect that punishment has on the way that our criminal justice system works? These are some of the questions that are currently reevaluating the way in which our society sentences many charged criminal defendants. According to a new study, however, the deterrence factor on some… Read More »
Jury Nullification: The Criminal Justice System’s Best-Kept Secret
There are many protections in the criminal justice system that were originally conceived so as to ensure that no matter how large the system grew, the people and society would be the checks and balances on the system. It is the reason why the system touts the mantra “innocent until proven guilty” and why… Read More »
Right to Makeup Artist to Cover Up Facial Tattoos?
When you are a criminal defendant at your own criminal proceedings, there are many things that you must decide that will affect the ultimate outcome of your case. Though you have an attorney advising you, it will be up to you to decide if you want to take a plea deal, go to trial,… Read More »
Face-Mapping and Sketching from DNA
The advancement of technology largely goes hand in hand with solving an issue that currently has no solution. In the area of criminal investigations, there have been significant innovations that were created to help make sense of clues left behind at a crime scene that otherwise could not be pieced together. Much of the… Read More »
Florida Passes Bill to Protect Privacy from Private, Public Operators of Drones
Privacy law in the last few decades has been altered and changed so often in an attempt to keep up with the technological trends and progress that society sees. Unfortunately, there is a significant disconnect between the privacy scope that the law covers and the actual invasions of privacy that occur in our everyday… Read More »
Florida: Leader in Most Number of Juveniles Charged As Adults in the United States
The fate of juveniles in the criminal justice system in Florida has been up in the air for ages; with an adult, there is a certain consistency in the way in which the criminal justice system deals with them. Juveniles and their cases, however, are unpredictable where the juvenile who is currently in the… Read More »
Religious Expression and the Criminal Justice System: Where the Line is Drawn Between an Act Being a Protected Ritual and a Crime
Religious freedom is one of the fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution. The ability to worship (or not worship) in the way that one believes is right for oneself is held paramount in the United States. Generally, the religious freedoms debate only comes up as associated with free speech and expression; largely when there… Read More »
Florida Extends Statute of Limitations for Rape Cases from Four Years to Eight Years
Sexual assault can be a traumatic experience for a survivor. It is equally traumatic when the offender of the assault is known to the victim, which generally occurs in about 80 percent of all sexual assaults and thus may retraumatize the victim every time she or he comes into contact with her/his assailant. The… Read More »
Modus Operandi (MO) Evidence: Is it Fair to Peg Similar Crime Scenes to One Person?
In criminal proceedings, there are rules of evidence that exist so that the criminal justice system can attempt to be as balanced as possible, and ensure that criminal defendants are given the utmost opportunity to show their innocence. The Federal Rules of Evidence provides limitations, rules, and boundaries so that criminal defendants are able… Read More »
Insurance Coverage Denials Leave Acquitted Defendants Without Insurance
There are many issues that need to be resolved when one has been accused of a crime. There are the preparations that need to be made upon arrest (everything from getting an attorney, to posting bail, receiving a hearing date, etc.), preparations that need to be made for the criminal proceedings that are about… Read More »