The State of Alabama prevailed in the Supreme Court today in a challenge to its procedures for civil forfeitures, but two concurring justices fired a warning shot about harsh procedures. The case is Cully v. Marshall, No. 22-585. In the two cases at issue, people loaned their cars to people who used them to carry drugs. Alabama law provided for forfeiture of cars used to commit drug crimes but also provided an “innocent owner” defense. In both cases, the state initiated a forfeiture proceeding less than two weeks after the seizure. The owners took a long time to assert their innocent-owner def ..read more

The Federalist Society has a discussion titled Rogue or Righteous? Debating the Role of Prosecutors in Today’s Legal Landscape, set for tomorrow, May 9, in Miami with live video online. The program begins at 6:30 EDT. The panel includes: Zack Smith from the Heritage Foundation, author of Rogue Prosecutors: How Radical Soros lawyers Are Destroying America’s Communities. Steve Talpins, Chief Assistant State Attorney, Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office Dan Tilley, Legal Director, ACLU Florida The post Rogue Prosecutor Event Online Tomorrow appeared first on Crime & Consequences ..read more

A report released yesterday by WalletHub ranked California as the best state in the country for police officers. The report compared training, salaries and job hazards among the states to establish the ranking.  However, the surveyors did not actually take the time to talk to police officers. Josh DuBois of KTLA reports that the state’s police officer associations are having none of it. “We don’t see any of these metrics in this ‘study’ but that is the reality law enforcement officers face in California,” he added. The unions also took issue with the report’s findings on officer compensa ..read more

Another example of the effect of reducing the consequences for criminal behavior is playing out across America.  Over the past several years, as part of the progressive criminal justice reform movement, the penalties for drunk driving have been reduced.  Like commercial burglary, shoplifting, simple assault and drug dealing, drunk driving is considered a “low level” crime in most states.  Scott Calvert of the Wall Street Journal reports that while the number of fatal accidents involving drunk drivers are the highest in 20 years, arrests for drunk driving have plummeted. “Though ..read more

In New York City, under District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a repeat offender who randomly attacks women is more than likely going to be released without bail just a few hours after his arrest.  The charge against him is likely to be dropped, or if he is convicted he will be sentenced to probation.  Bragg, who was elected with financial support from pro-criminal socialist George Soros, considers most assaults which do not involve weapons as non-violent crimes.  In late March New York’s ABC affiliate reported on multiple random attacks of women including a man who punched a 27-year-ol ..read more

Kevin Fagan reports for the San Francisco Chronicle: Hello to the city, goodbye to your luggage. That was U.S. Senate candidate Adam Schiff’s rude introduction to San Francisco’s vexing reputation for car burglaries Thursday when thieves swiped the bags from his car while it sat in a downtown parking garage. The heist meant the Democratic congressman got stuck at a fancy dinner party in his shirt sleeves and a hiking vest while everyone else sat in suits. Not quite the look the man from Burbank was aiming for as he rose to thank powerhouse attorney Joe Cotchett for his support in his bid to r ..read more

California’s “Racial Justice Act” adopted by the Legislature and signed into law three years ago is the logical result of decades of a national indoctrination campaign by race hustlers and the major media.  The narrative driving that campaign is that the American criminal justice system is systemically racist, intentionally singling out blacks for arrest, prosecution, and sentencing, while allowing other races who commit similar crimes to go unpunished or be subject to lesser punishment.   As proof of this, they cite state and federal crime data that indicates that blacks are disprop ..read more

New York’s highest court reversed the conviction of the notorious Harvey Weinstein today, on the ground that evidence of other crimes was admitted beyond the limits allowed under New York’s landmark precedent in People v Molineux, 168 N.Y. 264 (1901). The court divided 4-3, with two judges recused and the replacements in the majority. That is, a majority of the court’s regular judges participating in the case voted to affirm. Evidence of other crimes by the defendant is not admissible to prove his propensity to commit similar crimes, but it may be admissible for other purposes, such as impeach ..read more

The Alameda County Registrar of Voters announced last week that the recall effort against District Attorney Pamela Price had turned in enough signatures to force a vote. Natalie Hanson of Courthouse News Service reports that that campaign had turned in over 123,000 signatures to meet the 73,000 requirement to hold a special election. Price was elected in 2022 with major support from progressive billionaire George Soros, who has contributed millions over the past several election cycles, to elect racist, pro-criminal activists to district attorneys offices across the country.  Manhattan’s ..read more

Proposition 47, a 2014 California ballot measure that decriminalized theft and drug dealing, may be significantly revised when voters go to the polls this November 5.  Evan Simon of the California Globe reports that the Californians for Safer Communities Coalition has turned in 900,000 signatures to the Secretary of State to put the “Fix Proposition 47” initiative on the ballot. This is more than enough to meet the state’s 547,000 signature requirement to qualify the measure.  Since Proposition 47—called “The Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act” by its pro-criminal sponsors, including ..read more