To continue with our cruel and sadistic drug war is the daily crime. The only way out is to decriminalize all drugs, treat, repair and, somehow, atone for lawmakers’ and the judicial system’s half-century assault on their own citizens.
justice
Why the State Attorney Opted To Drop Sexual Assault Charge on Ex-Commissioner’s 20-Year-Old Son
Stephen Connor Brady, 20, was charged with statutory rape after an 18-year-old woman he knew accused him of assaulting her in November. The State Attorney’s Office dropped the charge when it found that inappropriate behavior may have been misinterpreted.
Yes, Your Car Can Be A Weapon, Florida Supreme Court Rules, Altering ’95 Definition
The Supreme Court made the somewhat-unusual move of backing away from a 1995 decision, which said a weapon must be “commonly understood to be an instrument for combat.”
Attorney Calls For Gag Order on Sheriff Staly in Eric Cooley Case, Claiming Prejudicial Words
Palm Coast Attorney Josh Davis wants a court to muzzle Sheriff Rick Staly in the case of alleged domestic violence involving Flagler Beach City Commissioner Eric Cooley. The sheriff is having none of it.
Low, $500 Bond For Sex Offender’s Re-Arrest Raises Sheriff’s Eyebrows–and Unravels
Bleak Case Through Court Maze
Tavares Calloway was 21 when he was charged with the statutory rape of a 15-year-old girl. Probation violations landed him in prison for 3 years. He’s been rearrested again on a violation weeks after his release.
Judge Boots Victim’s Rights’ Proposal Known as “Marsy’s Law” Off the Ballot, Citing Deceit
A judge found fault with what was left out of the ballot title and summary, and that the proposal would not explain to voters how it would affect the rights of people accused of crimes.
Judge Will Decide Whether to Remove Victim’s Rights Proposal From November Ballot
Lawyers opposing the measure known as Marsy’s Law say it restricts the constitutional rights of those accused of crimes while misleading voters about its intent.
Defense Calls For Judge Craig To Be Disqualified From Dorothy Singer Murder Trial Following String of Startling Statements
Dorothy Singer is on trial Monday for allegedly murdering her husband Charles in West Flagler last year, but the defense claims the judge has made a series of statements that betray favoritism for the state.
Judge Craig Is Out, Judge Perkins Is In As Flagler’s Felony and Civil Benches Again Flip
Circuit Judge Terence Perkins will replace Dennis Craig, who’s headed back to Volusia, becoming the sixth judge in eight years to preside over Flagler County’s felony court.
Why Is Judge Craig Looking to Crucify Maria Howell?
Twice prosecutors and the defense agreed to a deal in the molestation case involving Maria Howell. Twice Judge Craig rejected the deal. The case is now headed for trial.
Gov. Scott Defends Plan to Appoint Three Supreme Court Justices in Last Days In Office
Those three members — justices R. Fred Lewis, Barbara Pariente and Peggy Quince — are part of the court’s more-liberal majority, and some advocates are worried that Scott, a Republican, could tip the balance of power on the bench on his final day in office.
In a Blow to Business, Supreme Court Bans Workers Comp Limits on Attorney’s Fees
The ruling stemmed from a case in which an attorney was awarded the equivalent of $1.53 an hour in successfully pursuing a claim for benefits for a worker injured in Miami.
Right to an Attorney Often a Myth as Public Defenders Are Overworked and the Poor Bullied to Plea
There is a lack of funding for public defense in every state, and people charged with low-level misdemeanors, often poor minorities, suffer the most as public defender offices focus their few resources on felony cases.
Florida Justices: Cops May Not Keep Lawyer From Client Even in Voluntary Interviews
While a murder suspect was being voluntarily interrogated before he confessed, his lawyer appeared at the sheriff’s office but cops wouldn’t let the lawyer see his client.
Rethinking Restrictions on Food Stamps and Welfare Benefits for Drug Felons
The bans on welfare and food stamps assistance apply only to drug felons, in accordance with a 1996 federal law, unless states choose to waive them.
Legal Aid For Poorer Floridians Diminishing, Commission Starts Work on Seeking Fair Fix
With Gov. Scott opposed to moire funding, the 27-member Florida’s Commission on Access to Civil Justice will have to figure out how to provide additional funding for civil legal aid without simply asking for money from state legislators.
Cruel and Unusual: 2 Inmates Who Murdered as Juveniles Challenge Their Life Sentences
Two inmates serving life in prison for murders committed as juveniles are challenging their sentences based on a 2012 US Supreme Court ruling that bans mandatory life sentences for juveniles.
From Heroes to Suspects and Back Again: All Charges Dropped For European Village Saviors
The three young Palm Coast residents who stopped an Uzi-yielding assailant at European Village in March spent the next six months fighting bogus charges that they’d provoked a fight at Finn’s bar in Flagler Beach. All charges have been dropped.
Florida Justice Barbara Pariente’s Crusade: Jurors Need Help Understanding that Eyewitness Testimony Is Unreliable
Justice Pariente noted that the Innocence Commission analyzed wrongful convictions and highlighted eyewitness misidentification, which has been a factor in 75 percent of convictions later exonerated through DNA evidence nationally.
Eric Holder Takes on the “War on Drugs,” Mandatory Sentences and Epidemic Imprisonment Rates
Attorney general Eric Holder on Monday delivered a seminal speech outlining a plan to revamp federal drug policy and incarceration rates of non-violent and elderly offenders, and urging Congress to review mandatory sentencing in light of a “war on drugs” that has not worked. The full speech.
Emergency Lawsuit Charges Law Fast-Tracking Death Row Inmates Is Unconstitutional
The suit alleges that the law, which goes in effect July 1, would violate the separation of powers by imposing obligations on lawyers that conflict with judicially-determined rules, and that it would alter the court’s authority to govern capital post-conviction litigation and would violate due process and equal protection.
Scott Signs Fast-Track Execution Bill, Making 13 Death Row Inmates Immediately Eligible
In signing the so-called “Timely Justice Act,” Scott went against the tide of calls, letters and emails urging him to veto it. As of Thursday, his office had received 447 phone calls, with 438 opposed to the bill; 14 letters, with 13 opposed; and 14,571 emails, with 14,565 opposed.
Van Poyck, Third Florida Inmate Executed This Year, Leaves Stark Word Trail Behind
William van Poyck had spent nearly 26 years on death row after his conviction in 1987 in the murder of a prison guard. He spent many of those years writing books and maintaining a public blog, which chronicled in the last weeks his last days on death row. Excerpts are included.
Fast-Track Kill Bill Aside, Scott Speeds Death Warrants, Slating 3 Executions in 26 Days
Gov. Rick Scott is not waiting to sign a bill that would accelerate the pace of capital-punishment executions in Florida. The death warrants he’s signed since April lead to the fastest-paced series of executions since four inmates were killed in March 1998, when Lawton Chiles was governor.
Bill Speeding Up Executions in Florida Passes Despite Disturbing Rate of Exonerations
Florida lawmakers gave final approval to fast-tracking executions and reducing Death Row stays, with supporters saying they want justice for victims’ families — but critics warning about executing innocent people, 24 of whom have been exonerated in Florida since 1976.
The Death Penalty Comes to Flagler Beach: Saturday Workshop Takes On “Broken System”
The workshop between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. Saturday, March 23, at Santa Maria Del Mar’s Community Hall, will feature former death row inmates Herman Lindsey (exonerated in 2006) and Seth Penalver (2012), along with several other death penalty experts and advocates for the repeal of Florida’s capital punishment.
Georgia’s Killing of Troy Davis: A State-Sponsored Miscarriage of Justice
Troy Davis’s execution at 7 p.m. Wednesday is an extreme example of why the death penalty system is broken, barbaric, and should be abolished.