Evans v. Michigan, USSC No. 11-1327, 2/20/13 United States Supreme Court decision, reversing People v. Evans, 491 Mich. 1, 810 N.W.2d 535 (2012) A trial judge entered a directed verdict of acquittal in favor of Evans after concluding the state had not provided sufficient evidence of a particular element of the offense. A state appellate… Read more
OT 12
Florida v. Harris, USSC No. 11-817, 2/19/13 United States Supreme Court decision, overruling Harris v. Florida, 71 So. 3d 756 (2011) In a unanimous decision addressing the question of when a drug-sniffing dog’s alert constitutes probable cause, the Supreme Court overturned the Florida Supreme Court’s requirement that the state produce records of the dog’s reliability in… Read more
Bailey v. United States, USSC No. 11-770, 2/19/13 United States Supreme Court decision, reversing and remanding United States v. Bailey, 652 F.3d 197 (2d Cir. 2011) The Court holds it was not reasonable for police to seize an individual incident to the search of the individual’s residence when the individual was not in the “immediate… Read more
Smith v. U.S., USSC 11-8976, 1/9/13 United States Supreme Court decision, affirming United States v.Moore, 651 F.3d 30 (D.C. Cir. 2011) Conspiracy – burden of proof on defendant’s claim of withdrawal Petitioner’s claim lies at the intersection of a withdrawal defense and a statute-of-limitations defense. He asserts that once he presented evidence that he ended his… Read more
Ryan v. Gonzales, USSC No. 10-930; Tibbals v. Carter, USSC No. 11-218, 1/8/13 United States Supreme Court decision, reversing In re Gonzalez, 623 F.3d 1242 (9th Cir. 2010), and reversing and remanding Carter v. Bradshaw, 644 F.3d 329 (6th Cir. 2011) These two cases present the question whether the incompetence of a state prisoner requires suspension… Read more
