Month: December 2018

Miami Expungement Program Gives Second Chance

A program started last year in Miami-Dade has helped over 600 local residents have their criminal records sealed or expunged. Sealed cases are closed and can only be reopened with a court-ordered subpoena. Expunged cases are erased completely. A …

Sheriff Hopes Pink Chain Gang Will Deter DUIs

A sheriff in Arizona is hoping a new tactic will act as a deterrent to driving under the influence—those who are convicted on charges of DUI will end up on a chain gang, wearing pink, and conducting burials for …

NJ Governor To Sign Law Abolishing Death Penalty

The governor of New Jersey is expected to sign a bill approved by the state legislature to abolish the death penalty. Once signed into law, New Jersey will be the 14 states without capital punishment. The state has not …

19,500 Convicted Crack Offenders Await Commission Decision

Approximately 19,500 federal inmates serving time on crack cocaine-related charges could see a reduction in their sentences if the U.S. Sentencing Commission decides to make recently implemented punishment guidelines of drug possession retroactive. The commission made new guidelines effective November 1, …

Nation’s Busiest Crime Lab Reviewed after Mistakes

A New York state official has asked the district attorney of Queens to consider criminal charges against four former employees of the New York Police Department’s crime lab because of mistakes made in 2002 that could have skewed …

Nonviolent Felons Must Submit DNA

Collecting DNA samples from nonviolent drug offenders is not a violation of privacy rights, a federal court of appeals ruled late last week. A panel of three judges decided the case in a 2-1 vote. Dissenting Judge Betty …