Friedman Legal Solutions, PLLC

Criminal Appellate & Post-Conviction Services

NACDL Ethics Opinion: 2255 Waivers Are Unethical

For years, federal criminal defendants have been forced to give up their right to appeal in order to accept a federal deal. Prosecutors have lately been pushing for waivers of 2255 (post-conviction motions) as well. There has been huge push back. In October, the National Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys issued an ethics opinion condemning this practice. The ethics opinion is a wealth of resources and a great place to start the research on the subject.

American Constitution Society Releases a Blue Print for Reinvigatoring the Pardon Power

The American Constitution Society for Law and Policy is an organization formed around the Jeffersonian interpretation of the constitution which states that it is a living document. They count amongst their ranks made appellate and Supreme Court jurists. They just released a fascinating document arguing for the reinvigoration of the pardon process. The principle author of the document is Margaret Colgate Love - one of our nation’s foremost authorities on presidential pardons.

Interesting Miller Developments in Massachusetts

Professor Berman has an interesting article on his blog about how Massachusetts is planning on dealing with the Miller problem. Under the bill, they will extend juvenile court jurisdiction to age eighteen. The juvenile court could sentence a defendant into adult court or even give him/her natural life, but the assumption is that the juvenile court would have better experience how to deal with a juvenile.
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