Voters in Oregon may see a 2020 ballot initiative to decriminalize psilocybin mushrooms. Psilocybin, sometimes referred to as “magic mushrooms” or just “shrooms” are a type of natural hallucinogenic drug. What Would the Law Do? This law would reduce most criminal penalties for psilocybin manufacture, delivery, use, and possession. The law would also allow licensed…
Continue reading ›Firearms charges can be some of the most serious types of charges. Especially convictions for felony-firearm, which carries mandatory terms of years in prison. The case of People v. Parkmallory discusses a case involving firearms charges. The Case Parkmallory was charged with felon in possession of a firearm and felony-firearm. The allegations in the case…
Continue reading ›Governor Whitmer signed a civil asset forfeiture reform bill today, limiting the ability of police officers to keep property they seize when an arrest is made. Under the new law, police will not be able to keep property under $50,000 unless the person is convicted of a crime. Why is this important? Nearly 1,000 people…
Continue reading ›Voters in Denver passed a law decriminalizing the use of “magic mushrooms.” What the Law Says Denver voted to effectively decriminalize mushrooms. Technically, the vote means the police department will make the enforcement of laws regarding mushrooms as the lowest department priority. Are Magic Mushrooms a Major Legal Problem? Let’s look at the numbers. The…
Continue reading ›This Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals case establishes a right of an accused to cross examine an accuser in a university sexual misconduct case where credibility is an issue. It is an important legal development for misconduct cases. Why is that important legally? Because credibility is an issue in basically all these cases. Universities are…
Continue reading ›The Michigan Court of Appeals in People v. Kavanaugh decided a great case for Fourth Amendment rights in Michigan. What Happened in the Case? The police pulled over Kavanaugh’s vehicle on I-96 on the west side of the state. The officer’s reason for pulling the vehicle over was a poorly fixed license plate and Kavanaugh’s…
Continue reading ›Effective March 27th new cyberbullying laws have been implemented in the state of Michigan. A rise in the use of social media has moved traditional bullying to the world of computers. The new law seeks to deter that behavior. What is Cyberbullying? Cyberbullying includes one or more of the following: Communicating through social media the…
Continue reading ›Felony-firearm is the offense of carrying a firearm during the commission of a felony. The penalties are steep. Penalties for a Felon-Firearm Conviction A felony-firearm conviction results in a mandatory minimum incarceration of two years in prison. A second felony-firearm conviction results in a mandatory minimum of 5 years imprisonment. A third or subsequent conviction…
Continue reading ›The governor of California has suspended the death penalty, at least for the time he is in office. Currently, there are 737 inmates on death row in California. This is the largest amount of prisoners on death row for any state in the country. The prisoners will not be executed on death row during the…
Continue reading ›Michigan is moving closer to reforming civil asset forfeiture following arrests. In Michigan, the police may keep seized property during an arrest. This has become a tool for funding police departments. Currently, police can keep seized property even when the person is not charged with a crime or is later found not guilty. The new…
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