Amber Gordon, Attorney at Law

https://www.latimes.com//justified-or-despicable-the-twist

For the first time, the US Supreme Court on Monday heard arguments surrounding a 34-year-old law on computer hacking -- examining how the terms of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act mean everyday activities like browsing Instagram on a work computer could be interpreted as a federal crime. https://cnet.co/3oy4ihN

California has a number of new laws taking effect in 2021. https://www.latimes.com//new-2021-california-laws-covid-/

As the use of geofence warrants has grown, so have controversies surrounding them. Defense attorneys argue they’re unconstitutional, and prosecutors say their use is a valid and valuable crime-solving technique. https://bit.ly/3gDr5WV

Equal Justice for all? https://www.latimes.com//jump-out-boys-win-appeals-after-s

A growing number of police departments are using facial recognition technology, but many view it as flawed technology that has the potential to cause serious harm. https://cbsn.ws/39sOJ6J

In prisons around the country, COVID-19 outbreaks have followed transfers of prisoners or prison workers. Many state prison systems had reduced or limited the number of prisoners they moved due to the pandemic, but some lifted those restrictions by September, worrying families of prisoners and correctional officers who work in the prisons. https://bit.ly/3nFV5UC

Police agencies from Hawaii to New York have used drones for years, but mostly in simple, manually flown ways. But the latest drone technology is raising civil liberties concerns, especially as drones gain the power to track vehicles and people automatically. https://nyti.ms/38oMjnv

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to decide whether an officer can enter a garage without a warrant when in pursuit of a misdemeanor suspect. https://bit.ly/34npBeV

There is nothing quite as horrific as violence for sport by the very people who have sworn to protect society.

There are few things as revealing as a person's search history, and police typically need a warrant on a known suspect to demand that sensitive information. But a recently unsealed court document found that investigators can request such data in reverse order by asking Google to disclose everyone who searched a keyword rather than for information on a known suspect. https://cnet.co/3iSOu64

There were 145 offenders released in 2019 about five times more than the year before, when 24 people were granted release, according to a report by the U.S. Sentencing Commission. https://cbsn.ws/2GZxrSx

Police dogs bite thousands of Americans each year, including innocent bystanders, police officers, even their own handlers. And there is little oversight, nationally or in the states, of how police departments use them. https://bit.ly/2SwRHgR

Nationwide, jail populations plunged by about 25% between March and June, according to a recent analysis. https://bit.ly/3lode7Z

A person who is formally accused of a crime is generally entitled to certain evidence and information about the prosecution's case. This typically happens before trial, through a process called "discovery." But the prosecution's duty to disclose this material is usually ongoing, and doesn't end when a trial has begun. #CriminalLaw

Police and prosecutor misconduct that distorted evidence or undercut innocence contributed to 54% of false convictions that later resulted in exonerations, according to a report released Tuesday. https://bit.ly/32K5hDv

A growing number of states and localities are exploring new ways to reduce or eliminate reduce or eliminate pretextual or pretext traffic stops. In a pretext stop, an officer pulls over a motorist for a minor traffic or equipment violation and then uses the stop to investigate a more serious crime. https://bit.ly/2Z3FQdO

Police increasingly ask Google and other tech firms for data about who was where, when. Two judges ruled the investigative tool invalid in a Chicago case. https://bit.ly/3lV8kR0

This article goes back a bit, but is still true today.