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Point of Law

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Articles

Point of Law: The Limits of Electronic Searches

Can an individual be prosecuted for despicable criminal conduct based on evidence obtained in violation of the United States Constitution? Ultimately, the Ninth Circuit judges wrote, “In the circumstances of this case (United States v. Holcomb, 23-469 (9th Cir. 2025)), respect for the Constitution and the rule of law requires an answer of “no.”

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Newsby Staff WriterNovember 25, 2014

Video: Darren Wilson Explains Justified Use of Force in Ferguson Testimony

In grand jury testimony released Monday, Ferguson, Mo., Police Officer Darren Wilson said that he felt he was authorized to use force against Michael Brown Jr. after Brown punched him twice in the face.

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Newsby Staff WriterNovember 18, 2014

Cleveland Pays $3 Million to Settle Suit Over Deadly Police Chase, Shooting

The city agreed to pay $1.5 million each to the families stemming from the settlement of a federal lawsuit. Attorneys will receive 40 percent of each family's settlement, or $600,000. In total, lawyers will take in $1.2 million of the $3 million Cleveland will pay out.

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Newsby Staff WriterNovember 14, 2014

New Bill Would Require NYPD to Get Suspect's Search Consent

Members of New York City's City Council are introducing a bill that would force police officers to get written or audio permission from a suspect before they could conduct a search.

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Articlesby Devallis RutledgeNovember 11, 2014

The 5 Biggest Search-and-Seizure Myths

Ever since the U.S. Supreme Court made the Fourth Amendment exclusionary rule binding on the states in the 1961 decision in Mapp v. Ohio, thousands of published decisions from state and federal courts have applied the exclusionary rule to thousands of searches and seizures. It's no wonder the 50-year tidal wave of exclusionary decisions has left confusion and misunderstanding in its wake. Here are five areas of the law that seem to suffer the most in translation.

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Articlesby David GriffithNovember 4, 2014

Sued for Shooting a Dog

Your biggest fear in a dog shooting lawsuit is punitive damages. While compensatory damages are likely to be covered by your employer, punitive damages are probably coming out of your pocket.

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Articlesby David GriffithNovember 4, 2014

Planned Operations and Dogs

Some SWAT teams have become very adept at using non-lethal tools to neutralize the threat presented by dogs. Retired Cleveland SWAT entry team leader Robert O'Brien says that long before the Hells Angels case and its nearly $2 million in settlements his SWAT team always considered the presence of dogs in its planning. O'Brien's tool of choice for getting the dogs out of the way was the fire extinguisher.

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Newsby Staff WriterNovember 3, 2014

Ohio Cop Killer's Death Sentence Upheld

The Ohio Supreme Court unanimously upheld Ashford Thompson's aggravated murder conviction for the 2008 slaying of a Twinsburg, Ohio, police officer, but split 4-3 in deciding that the death penalty was appropriate.

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Articlesby Devallis RutledgeOctober 28, 2014

The 5 Biggest Miranda Myths

Some myths that have sprouted from Miranda have shown so much inertia that the Supreme Court has had to keep coming back to try to knock them down. Here are five of the most persistent.

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Photo Galleriesby Staff WriterOctober 7, 2014

Less-Lethal Weapons 2014

From ECWs, to sprays, to impact munitions, these less-lethal devices provide options for gaining compliance from individuals and crowds.

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Newsby Staff WriterOctober 7, 2014

SCOTUS Hears Case on Officer's Mistaken Traffic Stop That Led to Cocaine Bust

The Supreme Court opened its new term Monday pondering whether a police officer's misunderstanding of the law can justify a traffic stop that led to the seizure of illegal drugs.

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