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Criminal Law
Criminal justice is administered primarily at the state and county level. The vast majority of incarcerated people in the United States are in county and state custody. Constitutional challenges in state courts usually focus on the rights of defendants and incarcerated people.
These cases can address criminal procedure and due process, search and seizure, the right to counsel and a jury trial, criminal jury rights, the right against self-incrimination, bail and excessive fees and fines, admissibility of evidence, sentencing, the death penalty, police misconduct, prison conditions, and habeas.
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Massachusetts Breaks New Ground in Limiting Youth Punishments
A series of State Court Report essays analyze the broader implications of the ruling.
Massachusetts Looks to International Sources to Inform ‘Evolving Standards of Decency’
In declaring life without parole unconstitutional for people under 21, the state’s high court cited sentencing practices in Canada and the United Kingdom.
Massachusetts Rejects Harmful Federal Standard for Evaluating Whether Punishment Is Unconstitutional
The state supreme court’s decision outlawing life without parole for people aged 18 to 20 is notable for both its outcome and the test it used to get there.
Massachusetts Reminds Youth Defense Attorneys to Consider State Constitutions
By holding that life without parole sentences are unconstitutional for anyone under 21, the Massachusetts high court goes far above the federal floor.
Scholarship Roundup: That’s a Wrap on 2023
New publications on state public law focus on topics ranging from constitutional conventions to criminal sentencing.
2023’s Most Significant State Constitutional Cases
Over a dozen academics, practitioners, and thought leaders weigh in on the most notable state constitutional cases of the year.
What Is ‘Punishment’? How State Courts Can Fix a Destructive Flaw In Eighth Amendment Case Law
Courts should consider prison conditions and collateral consequences — not just prison time — when reviewing whether punishment is excessive under state constitutions.
Governor DeSantis vs. Prosecutorial Discretion
Florida is one of several places where prosecutors are being targeted because of their charging decisions.