566 U.S. 463 (2012) A 2012 United States Supreme Court opinion in which the Court held that federal courts of appeals have the authority to raise, sua sponte, a forfeited timeliness defense to a habeas petition. However, since the State deliberately had waived its statute of limitations defense, the Court held that the Tenth Circuit abused its […]
Articles Tagged: criminal procedure
Affirmative Defense
“An affirmative defense is a defense that does not negate the elements of the plaintiff’s claim, but instead precludes liability even if all of the elements of the plaintiff’s claim are proven.” Hernandez v. County of Monterey, 306 F.R.D. 279, 283 (N.D. Cal. 2015). In asserting an affirmative defense, a defendant does not necessarily deny […]
Ballew v. Georgia
Citation: 435 U.S. 223 (1978). One-Sentence Takeaway: A criminal trial by a five-person jury violated the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments, as juries smaller than six diminish the reliability of verdicts and the representativeness of community viewpoints. Summary: A 1978 U.S. Supreme Court opinion in which the Court held that a state could not conduct a criminal trial with […]
Atkins v. Virginia
536 U.S. 304 (2002). One-Sentence Takeaway: Imposition of death penalty on a mentally retarded defendant violates the cruel & unusual punishment clause of the Eight Amendment. Summary: Atkins and an accomplice abducted the victim, robbed him, forced him to take money out of his ATM, and then shot the victim eight times which caused the victim’s death. […]
Arizona v. Hicks
480 U.S. 321 (1987) One-Sentence Takeaway: Police officers’ movement of stereo equipment to view serial numbers during a lawful plain-view search of an apartment constituted an additional search requiring probable cause under the Fourth Amendment, as it was not supported by any reasonable suspicion of criminal activity. Summary: After a bullet was fired through Hick’s […]
Arizona v. Evans
514 U.S. 1 (1995). One-Sentence Takeaway: Evidence seized in violation of the Fourth Amendment need not be suppressed when the unconstitutional arrest has resulted from clerical errors by court personnel. Summary: Defendant was arrested during a routine traffic stop after the patrol car’s computer incorrectly indicated that there was an outstanding arrest warrant for the driver. That […]
Albernaz v. United States
Citation: 450 U.S. 333 (1981). Summary: Defendants were convicted of conspiracy to import marijuana and conspiracy to distribute marijuana. The foregoing convictions were pursuant to statutes that were parts of different sub-chapters of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970 — namely 21 U.S.C. § 963 (conspiracy to import) and 21 U.S.C. § 846 (conspiracy to […]