Courts

By Ken Wallentine for Lexipol Thomas v. City of Harrisburg, 88 F.4th 275 (3rd Cir. 2023) A municipal police officer and a probation officer saw Terrelle Thomas, along with another man, leave a bar and get into a vehicle as passengers. The police officer conducted a traffic stop and noted Thomas [...]

Seventh Circuit United States v. Hays, No. 22-3294 (7th Cir. 2023) In this case, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit reviewed an appeal related to a Fourth Amendment issue involving a warrantless search of a vehicle. The defendant, Charles Hays, was stopped by the police [...]

By Jenna Curren for Law Enforcement Today On Friday, January 12th, U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle ruled that a United States law prohibiting people from possessing firearms while inside of a post office goes against their constitutional rights. According to Fox News, Judge Mizelle, an appointee of former President [...]

As part of an ongoing effort to improve public access to court information through the Missouri Courts website, the judiciary has launched a new feature making the Supreme Court of Missouri rules and court operating rules available in a searchable, mobile-friendly, more accessible format. From the new Court Rules landing [...]

U.S. Sentencing Commission Seeks Comment on Proposals Addressing the Impact of Acquitted Conduct, Youthful Convictions, and Other Issues Today the U.S. Sentencing Commission voted to seek comment on several proposals that would, among other things, limit the federal courts’ consideration of acquitted conduct and youthful convictions under the federal sentencing [...]

This report uses new analytical techniques and newly available data to determine if the demographic differences in sentencing observed in prior reports continued to persist during the latest five-year study period. Introduction In August 2023, the United States Sentencing Commission identified as one of its final priorities "the “[c]ompilation and [...]

By Ken Wallentine for Police1.com Law Enforcement and the Law The appellate court began its analysis by noting that a charging vehicle can be a deadly weapon This article was featured in Lexipol's Xiphos newsletter, a monthly legal-focused law enforcement newsletter authored by Ken Wallentine. Subscriptions are free for public safety officers, [...]

The lesson of both this case and the Byrd decision is that officers should ask any suspect who is not named in the contract about their control and authority to operate the car. By Ken Wallentine for Lexipol   UNITED STATES V. MONTALVO-FLORES, 2023 WL 5521062 (3RD CIR. 2023)   Officers arrested Christopher [...]

By Ken Wallentine for Lexipol Baker v. City of McKinney, 2023 WL 6619477 (5th Cir. 2023) Police were looking for Wesley Little, who was on the run with a 15-year-old girl. Little had successfully evaded police on a wild chase behind the wheel of a fast Corvette. He drove to Vicki Baker’s [...]