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Vacated or Exonerated
Calif. Justices Toss Death Verdict Over Juror Bias Claim
The California Supreme Court has tossed the conviction and death sentence of a man found guilty of murdering his mother and a police chief, saying the trial court failed to investigate defense claims that a juror was biased.Convictions
Ohio Man First To Be Convicted Under Anti-Revenge Porn Law
An Ohio man who sent to numerous women harassing messages that included nude images of the victims, both real and artificial intelligence-generated, became the first person to be convicted under a 2025 federal law targeting revenge porn, according to a Thursday announcement from the U.S. Department of Justice.Verdicts
Mich. Jury Awards $307M To Ex-Inmate Over Denied Surgery
A Michigan federal jury has awarded more than $300 million in a suit accusing a prison healthcare provider of refusing to approve a now former inmate's surgery, which forced him to defecate uncontrollably into a bag fastened to his stomach for more than two years.Rulings and Settlements
Full 4th Circ. Rejects Sentencing Case, But Concerns Raised
A group of judges in the Fourth Circuit have called for rethinking circuit precedent about whether oral pronouncements made at in-person sentencing hearings should have more weight than written judgments, saying existing case law creates a "tangled web of inconsistencies."NY Appeals Court Orders Review Of Black Juror's Elimination
A man convicted of selling drugs in Schenectady County, New York, is entitled to have the trial court review his challenge to the dismissal of a Black juror, a New York state appeals court has unanimously found.Public Defender Exempt From Records Law, Colo. Panel Says
Colorado's public defender's office is not a "criminal justice agency" subject to the Colorado Criminal Justice Records Act, a state appellate panel ruled, reversing a statutory penalties award entered against the office.Dad Of 16's Confession In Plot To Kill Biological Parents Stands
A father of 16, convicted of plotting to kill the biological parents of his five adopted children, cannot have his initial confession disregarded, a Second Circuit panel said Friday, finding that even though he wasn't read his Miranda rights for two hours, he was speaking freely when he acknowledged his plan.Immigration
NY Group Says ICE Quotas Lead To Warrantless Arrests
Latino New Yorkers accused the Trump administration of executing an unconstitutional policy of racial profiling and warrantless arrests amid its crackdown on illegal immigrants, telling a New York federal court that underlying the policy is an arrest quota from the top.DOJ Calls Immigrant Legal Aid Wasteful In Budget Push
Tucked into the Trump administration's budget request for fiscal 2027, the U.S. Department of Justice is trying once again to take an ax to a program that provides legal assistance to noncitizens.'Liberty' Rationale Takes Hold After 5th Circ. Detention Ruling
A recent Fifth Circuit ruling has led a number of district court judges in that circuit to lean on a different rationale for rejecting the Trump administration's detention of unauthorized immigrants without bond: their "liberty interest."Habeas Orders Sharpen As Due Process Concerns Mount
Federal judges are issuing increasingly detailed, critical and decisive orders for habeas relief in immigration cases, stepping in as what immigration experts say is a last resort check on a system viewed as having crumbling due process safeguards.New Cases
Colo. Sheriff Sued Over Mistaken Identity Jail Hold
A Colorado sheriff and others have been hit with a state court lawsuit alleging his jail illegally detained a man for nearly three weeks after jail officials mistakenly identified him as a different man who has the same first and last names and was subject to a warrant from another county.--Editing by Alex Hubbard.