Insights
SCoVA Addresses Elements of Duress Defense
On July 14, 2016 the Supreme Court of Virginia, in Edmonds v. Commonwealth of Virginia adopted the Court of Appeals's formulation of the duress defense found in Buckley v. City of Falls Church, 371 S.E.2d 827, 827-28 (1988) and reiterated in Humphrey v. Commonwealth, ...
Military Appellate Courts address “gross negligence” in the handling of classified materials in the 1995 case of United States v. Roller
In 1991, Marine Corps Sergeant Rickie L. Roller was an intelligence specialist responsible for “code word” and other classified materials that came into the intelligence division at Headquarters, USMC, in Washington D.C. Like many other intelligence analysts, he...
Air Force Colonel argues that military adultery law discriminates against heterosexuals
Here is a link to an interesting case that is developing out of Schriever Air Force Base. Air Force Colonel Eugene Marcus Caughey has been charged with a laundry list of charges that includes rape, conduct unbecoming, and adultery. Yes, adultery. Unlike most civilian...
Can a Parrot Testify?
Last Thursday in the remote county of Newaygo on the western side of Michigan, Glenna Duram was charged with the murder of her husband Martin Duram. Local police found the couple shot in their house. Martin had been shot and killed and Glenna was shot in the head but...
The Supreme Court opens the door for unfounded police stops
Just two days ago, the Supreme Court of the United States opened the door to widespread unfounded police detentions with its decision in Utah v. Strieff. Justice Sotomayor, in a dissent joined by Justice Ginsburg, put her concerns bluntly and up front. She wrote:...
SCoVA affirms grant of Habeas Writ when conviction leads to loss of protected status
In the recent case of Clarke v. Galdamez, a closely split Virginia Supreme Court upheld the grant of a habeas writ to Mr. Galdamez due to his attorney's failure to correctly inform him of the adverse consequences that taking a guilty plea would have on his immigration...
The Virginia Supreme Court Addresses Trial in Jail-issued Clothing
On June 2nd, the Virginia Supreme Court issued its opinion in Wilkins v. Commonwealth of Virginia, 2016 WL 3094565 (Va. June 2, 2016). Mr. Wilkins assigned as error the question of whether “the trial court erred by allowing the jury [trial] to proceed when the...
Parking pass hanging from rearview mirror leads to felony drug convictions
Just last month in Mason v. Commonwealth of Virginia, 2016 WL 2586178, the Supreme Court of Virginia upheld a Terry stop based solely on the officer's observation of an opaque 3 by 5 parking pass hanging from the rearview mirror of the car. The case is quite...
