242 | Eve Primus: The Hollowing Out of Miranda Rights, and What we Can Do About it

Today, Hunter is joined once again by University of Michigan Professor of Law Eve Primus. So far, Eve and Hunter have discussed Public Defender Systems, Structures, and how Law Schools can do better at getting students interested in Public Defense. […]

248 | Scarlett Lewis: After Her Son was Murdered at Sandy Hook, One Mother’s Fight to Reduce Violence by Choosing Love

Today, Hunter sat down for a powerful conversation with Scarlett Lewis. Scarlett’s son Jesse Lewis was one of the children murdered in the Sandy Hook school shooting. In the wake of this tragedy, Scarlett grappled with the grief, sadness, and […]

As States Criminalize LGBTQ+ People, How can Lawyers Fight Back? w/Richard Saenz

In just this past year, there have been over 400 anti-LGBTQ+ bills proposed in state houses around the country. Many have no hope of passing, but some will end up creating new was to criminalize and ostracize already vulnerable members […]

Assistant Federal Public Defender

  THE POSITION: The Federal Public Defender Office for the Districts of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island is hiring an experienced trial attorney to be full-time Assistant Federal Public Defender (AFPD) in its Boston, Massachusetts office. The successful applicant […]

Brown v. United States:  Removal of drug from federal schedules after state offense doesn’t preclude liability under ACCA

By Greg Mermelstein, Deputy Director & General Counsel, Missouri Public Defender            A state crime counts as a “serious drug offense” under the Armed Career Criminal Act it if involved a drug that was on the federal schedules when a […]

Campos-Chaves v. Garland:  In absentia removal orders cannot be rescinded if noncitizen received any notice to appear

By Greg Mermelstein, Deputy Director & General Counsel, Missouri Public Defender Holding Dissent

Culley v. Marshall:  Separate preliminary hearing not required in forfeiture cases, but five justices suggest other forfeiture challenges

By Greg Mermelstein, Deputy Director & General Counsel, Missouri Public Defender            Due process does not require a separate preliminary hearing to determine whether the Government may retain property before a pending forfeiture hearing, the U.S. Supreme Court held May […]

Garland v. Cargill:  ATF exceeded statutory authority in banning bump stocks

By Greg Mermelstein, Deputy Director & General Counsel, Missouri Public Defender            The ATF lacked statutory authority to ban bump stocks because they do not meet the statutory definition of “machine guns” the U.S. Supreme Court ruled June 14 in […]

McIntosh v. United States:  Failure to comply with Rule 32 requiring preliminary order of forfeiture before sentencing does not bar forfeiture

By Greg Mermelstein, Deputy Director & General Counsel, Missouri Public Defender            Even though Rule 32.2 requires a district court to enter a preliminary order of forfeiture before sentencing, failure to do so does not bar the court from ordering […]

Thornell v. Jones:  Federal courts cannot ignore weighty aggravating evidence in applying Strickland prejudice standard

By Greg Mermelstein, Deputy Director & General Counsel, Missouri Public Defender            The Ninth Circuit improperly ignored the weight of aggravating evidence in finding that a death-sentenced defendant was prejudiced under Strickland’s standard for ineffective assistance of counsel, the U.S. […]