Diaz v. U.S.:  Expert testimony on “most” people’s mental state does not violate Rule 704(b) – Jackson and Gorsuch suggest ways for defense to use or limit ruling

By Greg Mermelstein, Deputy Director & General Counsel, Missouri Public Defender            Expert testimony that “most” drug couriers know they are transporting drugs does not violate Rule 704(b)’s prohibition on testimony about a defendant’s mental state, because the expert testimony […]

DIRECTOR, FEDERAL CAPITAL HABEAS PROJECT

The Federal Capital Habeas Project (“§ 2255 Project”) is seeking a new Director. The Project was created to identify, assist and consult with counsel for federal death- sentenced prisoners pursuing post-conviction remedies. The § 2255 Project recruits and recommends counsel […]

Erlinger v. U.S.:  Juries, not judges, must decide if prior convictions happened at separate times

By Greg Mermelstein, Deputy Director & General Counsel, Missouri Public Defender            The Sixth Amendment right to a jury trial requires that juries, not judges, decide if prior convictions happened at separate times to trigger lengthier prison terms under the […]

First NAPD National Family Defense Conference: A Resounding Success

Renee Brodsky, Assistant Training DirectorStephanne Thornton, Social Work Training & Resource Coordinator  The National Association for Public Defense (NAPD) successfully hosted its inaugural national conference dedicated to family defense: “Defending Families, Protecting Futures.” Held in Seattle, WA, from September 11-13, […]

Fischer v. United States:  Sarbanes-Oxley obstruction statute requires destruction of documents or records; doesn’t apply to general conduct of “January 6” defendants

By Greg Mermelstein, Deputy Director & General Counsel, Missouri Public Defender            The federal statute making it unlawful to “otherwise” obstruct an official proceeding applies only to destruction of documents, records or objects, not to the conduct of the “January […]

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 […]

Giving Tuesday – Fund For Justice

If you prefer donating through Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1GgH6kePWn/ The NAPD Fund for Justice will be funding scholarships for defenders and defender staff for leadership and skills programs, technical assistance to local defender programs on issues such as reducing workloads, obtaining […]

Gonzalez v. Trevino:  Fifth Circuit too narrowly applied “Nieves exception” to bar retaliatory arrest claim

By Greg Mermelstein, Deputy Director & General Counsel, Missouri Public Defender            The Fifth Circuit too narrowly applied the “Nieves exception” to bar a retaliatory-arrest claim where the plaintiff was able to show objective evidence that similarly situated people were […]

How a Person Can Get Evicted for being the Victim of a Crime too Many Times w/Alex Kornya

Today, Hunter is joined once again by Alex Kornya to discuss the intersection between the criminal and civil legal systems. Last time, Alex detailed how fines and fees abuse people in the criminal and civil legal systems, and today, Alex […]

How the Junk Science “Excited Delirium” Shields Cops From Accountability w/Rachel Kincaid

Today, Hunter is joined by Professor Rachel Kincaid to talk about her recent law review article about the junk science excited delirium. Through her research, we can trace how this science steeped in racism has been able to infect the […]

Investigator

Join Michigan’s State Appellate Defender Office (SADO) as an Investigator working statewide to represent people as they appeal their felony convictions. We focus on our clients as people and actively work to challenge injustices and disparities in the criminal legal […]

Kousisis v. U.S.:  Wire-fraud conviction for fraudulent inducement doesn’t require victim suffer pecuniary loss

By Greg Mermelstein, Deputy Director & General Counsel, Missouri Public Defender            Making a materially false statement to obtain money or property violates the federal wire fraud statute even if the victim – who receives goods or services in return […]

Martin v. U.S.:  Supreme Court rejects Eleventh Circuit’s approach to Federal Tort Claims Act

By Greg Mermelstein, Deputy Director & General Counsel, Missouri Public Defender The “law enforcement proviso” in the Federal Tort Claims Act does not override the “discretionary-function exception” in the statute, the Supreme Court held June 12 in Martin v. United […]

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 […]

NAPD & PDAP’s Unpacking Microaggressions Training Packs a Big Punch

An Event Review Brittany Gail Thomas (BGT), Esq., DEIJ Coordinator  “What is a microaggression?” “How do I avoid committing/causing microaggressions?” “What can leaders of public defense offices to do promote inclusion and reduce microaggressions?” “I mean no disrespect but [. […]

NAPD Welcomes Mary Hotovy Membership & Core Staff Resource Coordinator

NAPD extends a warm welcome to Mary Hotovy, our new Membership and Core Staff Resource Coordinator. Mary brings with her over twenty years of dedicated experience in government and non-profits. Throughout her diverse career, Mary has always defined herself as […]