Criminal Law Library Blog

“Bergen County, NJ, jail inmates who want to brush up on their legal defense online can do so now from their cells, a move that officials say is a first nationwide, says The Record of Hackensack, NJ. Jail officials have begun rolling out the first batch of 80 laptops – each about the size and heft of a large hardcover novel – to some of the 1,000 inmates who occupy the near-capacity lockup. About $100,000 has been spent so far from an account funded by profits from items purchased from inmates, such as toothpaste and candy bars, to buy the $1,200 notebooks and install wireless connections”.

“The primary reason for the move is safety. “There’s a risk each time you open a cell door,” said Bergen Sheriff Leo McGuire, “and our library was getting too busy.’ Before, inmates who wanted to use the Westlaw research service had to file into the jail’s law library, where 12 computers are crammed into the same space as guards and stacks of legal texts. ‘We should remember that in most cases, the individuals [in jails] aren’t guilty, so they’re still on trial,’ said Edward Barocas of the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey. ‘They should be afforded their research time, no matter how they get it.’ Fred Wilson of the National Sheriffs Association said it was the first he had ever heard of such a move. ‘Knowing the sheriff, he’s completely investigated any dangers in giving prisoners those pieces of equipment,’ Wilson said. ‘ think it’s interesting. It’s an innovative idea.’ ”

The Record of Hackensack (NJ)

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APELLATE DIVISION THIRD DEPARTMENT Criminal Practice Murder Conviction Reduced to Manslaughter; Despite Recklessness Depraved Indifference Not Shown

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Qualcomm Cites Client Confidentiality in Discovery Mess The Recorder

In a case marred by discovery errors, Qualcomm’s trial counsel are in a place no lawyers want to be. The Day Casebeer Madrid & Batchelder and Heller Ehrman lawyers face the prospect of individual sanctions and possible State Bar discipline for their mistakes in a San Diego patent case. But they have yet to explain to the judge how those discovery blunders came to pass. That’s because Qualcomm has told the magistrate judge in the case that such an explanation would violate attorney-client privilege.

Source: Crime and Justice News, August 16, 2006.

San Jose may lose its claim to be the “Safest Big City in America,” says the San Jose Mercury News. An analysis of preliminary 2006 FBI crime data – the same data analyzed by the private Morgan Quitno firm – shows San Jose lagging compared with its rankings in previous years in some of the six key crime categories used by some to proclaim the safest and most dangerous cities in the country. San Jose officials are worried about losing a distinction that ends up on brochures touting San Jose as a good place to live and work, and is the subject of bragging at police chiefs’ conferences.

Mayor Chuck Reed called the title “at risk.” Police Chief Rob Davis admitted that his department is “concerned” it might lose the honor it has enjoyed for six years. “Honolulu may edge you out as the least life-threatening city,” said University of California- Berkeley criminologist Frank Zimring. FBI data shows San Jose has the fourth lowest murder rate in the country. The primary reason behind San Jose’s apparent slide is the city’s spike in property crimes, including a 25 percent jump in auto thefts last year. Zimring noted an award from a private company with its own motives could be considered suspect. “It’s a little like the Good Housekeeping Seal of approval that advertisers used to pay for,” he said.

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Thursday, August 16, 2007

Source: eWeek.com, Wireless and Mobile Update, August 16, 2007.

HarperCollins Publishers says it will make digital book content available for Apple’s iPhone.
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NASSAU COUNTY Real Property Court Finds RPAPL §713(5) Inapplicable to Evict As Premises Never Acquired Through Foreclosure

Datta v. Dasrath-Mark

SUFFOLK COUNTY Real Property Court Finds Credence to Homeowner’s Arguments; Vacates Judgment of Foreclosure, Sale of Property

Kevin Williams, resident of a San Francisco public housing development, cited the case of a surveillance camera that caught a shooter on tape, but police said the footage was blurry and unsuccessful in helping detectives solve the case. “The police can’t solve a crime. How are the cameras gonna do it?” asked Williams, 50. “It’s a waste of taxpayers’ money.” Most residents interviewed said they are happy to have any sort of crime-fighting device in their neighborhoods, but agreed the cameras are not the way to fix a spike in violent crime.

The news from a Board of Supervisors Public Safety Committee meeting that the cameras have been ineffective in helping solve homicides was far from new to some residents who live in developments owned by the federal San Francisco Housing Authority. Housing Authority Director Gregg Fortner argues the cameras were never put on the sites to solve homicides, but rather to deter people from committing all types of crimes. “People are missing the point,” Fortner said. “Safety cameras are there for crime prevention which is something you can’t measure. The more hearings we have, the more attention that is brought to them and the more people find ways to get around them.” There are 178 cameras on 26 of the 53 public housing sites.