The federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) could be considered a harsh law by any standards. For the offense of "accessing a computer and obtaining information," you could be sentenced to up to 5 years in federal prison on a first offense.
If you violate a site's terms of service, are you a criminal?
Study: The FBI's blue jean wear mark analysis is not reliable
Over the last year, the nonprofit investigative newsroom ProPublica has published a series of articles that called into question whether some forensic techniques produce reliable results. One of the techniques questioned is the matching of wear marks along the seams of blue jeans. Now, a leading forensic image analyst and a postdoctoral researcher have published a study finding that the technique produces limited evidence at best.
Federal First Step Act has brought over 2,400 reduced sentences
The federal First Step Act was passed in late 2018 in an effort to reverse course on some overly harsh sentences that had been passed down over the last several decades. It also allowed for the early release of terminally ill people and passed a variety of reforms to the federal prison system.
Judge: FBI must say whether it monitors social media activity
Have you ever wondered if the government is monitoring your Facebook or Instagram? They are.
At border and airports, agents need suspicion to search devices
If you have been annoyed at having your smartphone searched at the airport, you'll be interested to hear this. It turns out that agents need reasonable suspicion that you're involved in something illegal before they can perform such a search.
There are far, far too many things that are federal crimes
Do you know how many federal crimes are on the books? Neither do we. In fact, nobody does.
Can DEA agents search people on Amtrak?
The next time you ride Amtrak, you may encounter an agent from the Drug Enforcement Administration asking you to allow a search of your belongings. Don't consent -- especially if you have something to hide.
Federal judge rules the terrorism watch list unconstitutional
There are approximately 1.16 million people labeled "known or suspected terrorists" on the FBI's terrorism watch list. While most of them are from foreign countries, about 4,600 people on the list as of 2017 were U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents -- and many of them are completely innocent.
ABA, NACDL urge Congress to fully fund federal First Step Act
The American Bar Association's (ABA's) House of Delegates and the National Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys (NACDL) have just passed a unanimous resolution urging Congress to fully fund the federal First Step Act and to make it retroactive.
Over 1,000 federal prisoners' sentences reduced by First Step Act
As we discussed on this blog last December, the First Step Act was a bipartisan reform law that promised relief for federal defendants and prisoners in several areas. The Act was expected to be especially helpful to minority defendants, as minorities have traditionally been sentenced more harshly than whites for equivalent crimes. The first major overhaul of the federal criminal justice system in decades, the First Step Act was signed into law by President Trump on Dec. 21, 2018.
