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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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Who Has the Authority to Prosecute People Accused of ‘Voter Fraud’ in Florida?
A Florida appellate court is set to determine whether a statewide office created in the 1980s by constitutional amendment to combat organized crime can prosecute someone accused of voting while ineligible.
A Primer on Advocating Independent State Constitutional Remedies
State supreme courts shouldn’t reflexively embrace federal approaches to remedying violations of constitutional rights.
New York’s Top Court Leaves Questions Unanswered on Discovery Laws
The court’s opinion offered guidance on prosecutors’ responsibilities under major criminal justice reform, but precise contours remain unclear.
The Spirit of Aloha vs. the Second Amendment
Quoting the TV show The Wire, the Hawaii Supreme Court observed, “The thing about the old days, they the old days.”
State Constitutional Obligations: Access to Courts, Remedies, and Rights in Civil and Criminal Cases
Transcript of panel from Symposium: The Promise and Limits of State Constitutions
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.