Category: Criminal Defense

In December 2012, Katie Couric reported on two highly emotional stories, in which innocent victims lost years of their lives in prison for crimes they did not commit. The case of Thomas Kennedy sounds so outrageous it might be the stuff of a soap opera. Unfortunately, it is all too real. Kennedy, a Washington State scrap yard worker, was accused of raping his then 11-year-old daughter, Cassandra. Kennedy and

Recent legislative actions and court proceedings have brought the right to bear arms and self-defense into the national limelight. Most people live with the understanding that they have the right to own a gun and to defend themselves with it if the need arises. It’s important to note, however, that these laws aren’t all encompassing, and they even vary depending on which state a person calls home. Without knowing the

Typically, a warrant is required to search inside of a home or in the area immediately surrounding and associated with a home (an area known, legally, as the curtilage of the home).  However, there can be exceptions to that general rule.

 

One situation where a warrant is not needed to search a home is where what is known as “exigent circumstances” exist.  Exigent circumstances are an exception to the

In Marshall v. People, the Colorado Supreme Court addressed the admissibility of lab reports in DUI and DUID cases.

In that case, the prosecution had sought to admit the lab test results performed by a technician who was not actually present at trial.  They sought to admit those reports through the technician’s supervisor, Cynthia Burbach.  The reports were in fact admitted over the objection of the defendant and his

An affirmative defense is essentially a legal justification for having committed a crime; that is, the defendant admits to having committed the crime, but raises a defense that if true would excuse him from criminal liability.  Once the defense raises sufficient evidence of an affirmative defense, it is up to the prosecution to disprove that affirmative defense, along with all of the charges, beyond a reasonable doubt.

 

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