Eve Brensike Primus, Disaggregating Ineffective Assistance of Counsel Doctrine: Four Forms of Constitutional Ineffectiveness. 72 STANDFORD L. REV. x (2020). For years, experts have blamed Strickland v. Washington’s lax standard for assessing trial attorney effectiveness for many of the criminal justice system’s problems. But the conventional understanding of Strickland as…
Court-Martial Trial Practice Blog
Mostly predictable
Anyone raising a UCI motion must be familiar with the Third Army cases and those that follow. United States v. Thomas, 22 MJ 388 (C.M.A. 1986), cert. denied, 479 U.S. 1085 (1987); see also United States v. Levite, 25 MJ 334 (C.M.A. 1987). Checkout United States v. Newbold, 45 M.J. 109 (C.A.A.F. 1996). Apparently…
Briggs and Collins meet the Supremes
Military music will now be played before the U.S. Supreme Court. Grants in Briggs and Collins.
Right to silence and the presumption of guilt
A British article worth reading because it has application here. Akorede Omotayo, The Right to Silence – or the presumption of Guilt The right to silence is thought by many Judges and academics to be a constitutional right; which preserves Viscount Sankey’s presumption of innocence in Woolmington . For this reason,…
Dubay hearing on United States V. Scott. not very productive
United States v. Scott., ordering a Dubay hearing. I could not find a subsequent opinion on the ACCA website, which could mean the Dubay hearing produced nothing noteworthy and the court proceeded to affirm the findings and sentence. CAAF has granted the following issue: No. 19-0365/AR. U.S. v. Jason A.…
Searching lawyers
We have had a number of military cases of the years involving searches of lawyer “files” or other materials. Here is an interesting opinion from the Fourth Circuit about “taint teams.” The Fourth is not generally known as a defense friendly court. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion 31 October…
Searching car computers
I’ve had several cases of serious and fatal car wrecks. In the process the investigators have “searched” the car’s onboard computer. There’s is quite a bit of information than can be retrieved to evaluate such things as speed, acceleration, and braking, that can aid in a prosecution. So, here is…
Forensic science?
Kate Judson knows too well that science and criminal justice can often be at odds. After working as a public defender in New Mexico, the attorney spent seven years with the Innocence Network consulting on child abuse cases involving shaken baby syndrome. For years, the diagnosis had been used to…
Prosecutorial discretion–WTR
American Prosecutors’ Powers and Obligations in the Era of Plea Bargaining. Darryl K. Brown [University of Virginia School of Law]. I. Introduction American prosecutors are generally understood to have a lot of power, and that power is often the subject of criticism. But whether American prosecutors’ power is problematic depends on…
Striking testimony–ah–RCM 914
On Wednesday the CAAF granted: No. 19-0411/AR. U.S. v. Norman L. Clark, Sr. CCA 20170023. On consideration of the petition for grant of review of the decision of the United States Army Court of Criminal Appeals, it is ordered that said petition is granted on the following issues: I. DID…