Forfeiting a Miranda Issue by Not Objecting & The Wearing of Facemasks and the Right to Confrontation.
If not objected to at trial, argument about a possible Miranda violation is forfeited on appeal: Witnesses at trial being required to wear facemasks during a pandemic does not violate the Sixth Amendment right to confrontation.
Medicinal Marijuana and the Due Process Clause
There is no “substantive right,” under federal law, to use marijuana for medicinal purposes. The use of marijuana for medicinal purposes, being contrary to a prior Ninth Circuit case decision and not a “substantive right,” remains illegal under federal law. Its continuing illegality under federal law does not violate the...
Use of a Patrol Unit’s Digital In-Car Video System (“DICVS”) in a Police Disciplinary Proceeding
Neither LAPD’s internal rules and regulations nor P.C. § 632 (illegal eavesdropping) prevent the use of a patrol vehicle’s in-car video system recordings in subsequent departmental disciplinary proceedings, at least where the recordings are unintentional and/or show egregious misconduct. A police supervisor informally...
An In-Custody Suspect’s Reinitiation of Interrogation after Repeated Invocations
An in-custody suspect’s reinitiation of questioning after repeated invocations of his rights to silence and to the assistance of counsel may be found from the circumstances and need not be express.
Illegal Detentions and Observations
Observations made during an illegal detention, leading to the recovery of an illegal firearm, requires the suppression of both the observation and the firearm.
The Private Search Doctrine and Computerized Hashing Technology
The “Private Search Doctrine” does not legitimize a law enforcement officer’s warrantless opening and viewing of e-mail attachments that have already been determined as child pornography through a computerized hash identification system.
Questioning criminal suspects who are not in custody does not require a Miranda advisal or waiver.
A Beheler admonishment, telling a suspect that he is not under arrest and is free to go, at least under the right circumstances, avoids the need to Mirandize a criminal suspect before questioning him.
Detaining Passengers in a Lawfully Stopped Vehicle.The Proof Requirements for Aggravating Circumstances
Passengers may lawfully be required to remain in a vehicle during a lawful traffic stop. In the penalty phase of a capital murder cases, aggravating circumstances need not be unanimously agreed upon by the jurors, nor is proof beyond a reasonable doubt required to find an aggravating circumstance to be true.
Interrogating Minors and Beheler Admonishments
The fact that a criminal suspect is a minor is a factor to take into consideration when attempting to take the custody out of an interrogation by telling the suspect he is not under arrest.
Officers Kneeling on an Arrestee’s Back and Civil Liability
An officer kneeling on an armed arrestee’s back for a limited time in order to facilitate the handcuffing of the arrestee, while preventing him from reaching for a knife, does not prevent the officer from claiming qualified immunity from civil liability.