December 1995 -- Bail is a Constitutional Right: Clinton Plan to Force Drug Tests on Everyone Arrested is 'Orwellian,' Criminal Defense Bar Declares
Washington, DC, December 15, 1995 -- "Forced drug testing of every citizen who's arrested raises troubling Fourth Amendment questions, and it's a blatant violation of the Eighth Amendment," declared Robert Fogelnest, president of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL), today in response to President Clinton's announcement that he will order drug testing as a condition of bail for all federal arrestees. --more--

October 1996 -- CJA Update: Funding -- The Fine Print
Washington, D.C., October 1996 -- Before leaving town to politick at home, Congress pulled several all-nighters and passed a $600 billion monster appropriations bill (six overdue bills in one) which the president signed in time to keep the government from crashing on October 1st. As for a $5 raise for the CJA panel attorneys whose approved rate increases have been postponed since 1988, "funding for this purpose has not been provided." Thus sayeth the Conference Report, which is not a binding law, see In re North, 50 F.3d 42, 46 (D.C. Cir. 1995), but is considered literal gospel by the Judicial Conference entrusted with actually spending the money. -- more --

May 1998 -- NACDL Responds to President Clinton's International Crime Strategy
Washington, DC, May 12, 1998 -- "As the President points out, crime is a global problem. In the international arena, the United States must lead by example, encouraging other nations to emulate our respect for individual and human rights, fairness, and due process of law, while respecting their sovereignty." -- more --

March 1998 -- Leaders of Nation's Three Largest Criminal Justice Groups Cite Pending Senate Juvenile Crime Bill As Fatally Flawed
Washington, D.C. -- As the Senate's Youth Violence, Judiciary Subcommittee gets set to tinker with a minor state record-keeping mandate in S.10 ("Violent and Repeat Juvenile Offender Act of 1997"), other dangerous provisions in the bill have provoked unprecedented opposition from criminal justice leaders who usually find themselves on opposite sides of the bar on policy issues. -- more --

September 1997 -- House Votes to Reimburse Unfairly Accused Citizens
Washington, D.C., September 26, 1997 -- "The House of Representatives scored a victory for all Americans yesterday by voting to reimburse citizens' legal fees in defending themselves against unjust or wrongful charges," said Gerald Lefcourt, President of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL). The House action benefits not only citizens who are forced to expend thousands of dollars defending themselves against false criminal charges, but it will save taxpayers monies as well by discouraging ill-considered prosecution based on little or no evidence of wrongdoing," he added. -- more --

March 1997 -- Rush to Judgment By Congress Undermines Separation of Powers and Independent Judiciary
Washington, D.C., March 30, 1997 -- Recent actions by Congress, and threats by Congressional leaders, to limit the Constitutional powers of federal judges "undermine America's cherished independence of the judiciary," Judy Clarke, President of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers said in a letter to Chief Justice William Rehnquist (Clicking Here For Letter), in his capacity as head of the U.S. Judicial Conference, which oversees the federal courts. -- more --

January 1997 -- Stop Courts from Inflicting Punishment for Unproven Crimes
Washington, D.C., Jan. 7, 1997 -- In the wake of yesterday's high-handed U.S. Supreme Court decision requiring federal judges to punish defendants even for crimes for which the jury found them not guilty, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers called on Congress and the U.S. Sentencing Commission to revise federal sentencing law to restore fundamental fairness to the American justice system. On the very same day it announced it would accept the case -- United States v. Watts -- the Court, acting in extraordinary fashion, issued its unsigned opinion without any formal briefing or oral argument, catching court observers by complete surprise. -- more --

September 1995 -- "Criminal Defense Bar Leader To Criticize Hypocrisy of Congress on Crime Measures"
Washington, DC, September 21, 1995 -- The head of the nation's criminal defense bar will criticize Congress' criminal justice agenda in a speech to the annual meeting of the District of Columbia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (DCACDL), to be held at Sfuzzi, in Washington's Union Station, on Friday evening, September 22. --more--

August 1995 -- "'Three Strikes' Laws: 'Absurd and Unnecessary'"
Washington, DC, August 14, 1995 -- "The federal 'three strikes' law tried to fix a system that wasn't broken," according to Robert Fogelnest, of New York City, president of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL). --more--

July 1995 -- "Hypocrisy on the Hill: Proposals in Congress Make Future Wacos More Likely, Not Less"
Washington, DC, July 19, 1995 -- "Even as these Subcommittees begin to review the tragic debacle at Waco, ironically both Houses of Congress are considering measures to expand still further the powers of the very federal agencies responsible for that and other disasters. Those measures would bring about dramatic increases in the unchecked power, authority, and role of federal officials in everyday American life," according to National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) President Gerald H. Goldstein.--more--

June 1995 -- "New Study Documents Sentencing Waste: Unfair Crack Sentences Cost Taxpayers $3.5 Billion"
Washington, DC, June 15, 1995 -- Racially discriminatory federal sentences for drug offenses involving crack cocaine will waste $3.5 billion of taxpayers' money if Congress fails to follow the recommendations of the U.S. Sentencing Commission to reduce those sentences, a report prepared for the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) reveals. --more--

June 1995 -- "Congress Considers Muzzling Defense Lawyers: Proposal is 'Anathema' to Constitutional System"
Washington, DC, June 29, 1995 -- "If Congress is going to give federal prosecutors the power to indict opposing lawyers for arguments they advance in court, it might as well repeal the Sixth Amendment and burn the Bill of Rights," according to National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) President Gerald H. Goldstein, of San Antonio. --more--

June 1995 -- Abandoning Constitutional Liberties Won't Cure Crime! Criminal Defense Bar To Urge Congress to Come to Its Senses
Washington, DC, June 12, 1995 -- The broad-based abandonment of constitutional liberties contained in the current congressional crime agenda represents a dangerous surrender of long-cherished American rights and will be futile in making our society safer, criminal defense lawyers from across the U.S. will tell congressional leaders on Wednesday, June 14 when they arrive in Washington for the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers' (NACDL) Fourth Annual Legislative Fly-In. --more--

April 1998 -- Death Penalty Condemned at U.N.
Washington, DC, April 7, 1998 -- "Capital punishment in the United States is a direct descendant of lynching and other forms of racial violence," a representative of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) told the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in Geneva, Switzerland last week. Professor Speedy Rice submitted the association's statement in support of the Commission's vote calling for a worldwide moratorium on capital punishment at its annual meeting in Geneva April 3, contemporaneous with the release of findings by a U.N. human rights investigator that the death penalty in the United States is racially and economically discriminatory and politically driven. -- more --

July 1997 -- NACDL Urges Clemency to Correct an Injustice
Washington, DC, July 30, 1997 -- Serious questions regarding the guilt of death row inmate Tommy Thompson, and the courts' powerlessness to correct the injustice of a wrongful conviction, are compelling grounds to commute his death sentence, says Judy Clarke, President of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, in a letter to California Governor Pete Wilson. Ms. Clarke notes in her letter that a number of newspapers and former state and federal prosecutors support clemency for Thompson, who is scheduled to be executed August 5. -- more --

March 1997 -- ABA Should 'Take All Appropriate Action' To Implement Death Penalty Moratorium
Washington, D.C., March 3, 1997 -- The Board of Directors of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) expressed its support of the death penalty moratorium proposed by the American Bar Association earlier this month, and urged the ABA "to take all appropriate action with all deliberate speed to bring about its implementation." The Board unanimously passed its resolution at NACDL's Mid-Winter Meeting in New Orleans. -- more --

August 1995 -- "House Bill Abolishes Death Penalty Legal Centers: Depriving Death Row Inmates of Qualified Lawyers 'Abdicates Constitutional and Moral Responsibility'"
Washington, DC, August 14, 1995 -- "Wanting to appear 'tough' on crime is one thing, but depriving people who have been condemned to death of the counsel they need is dead wrong. It's a moral embarrassment and an abdication of our nation's constitutional and moral responsibilities. It's beyond the pale," declared Robert Fogelnest, of New York City, in taking office as president of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL). --more--

June 1995 -- South Africa Surpasses United States as Respecter of Human Rights, Decision Further Isolates U.S. in Executing Citizens
Washington, DC, June 6, 1995 -- "This is a historic day, not just for South Africa, but for the entire world community," said an ecstatic National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) President Gerald H. Goldstein, of San Antonio, Texas, in praising what he called the "wonderful, beautiful decision" of South Africa's Constitutional Court to outlaw capital punishment in that country. Goldstein noted that the decision further isolates the United States as the only Western country that still executes its citizens. --more--

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FBI Lab Disclosures

October 1999 -- Justice Dept. Cover-Up for FBI Exposed
Washington, DC, October 6, 1999 -- A federal judge has found instances where the DOJ engaged in "misconduct and bad faith" in an attempt to cover-up improprieties committed by the FBI. The cover-up consisted of repeated misrepresentations of key information in a FOIA suit brought by the NACDL, aimed at disclosing to the public new information about abuses at the FBI Lab. --more--

September 1998 -- Statement of NACDL President Larry S. Pozner, On FBI Laboratory Accreditation
Washington, DC, September 22, 1998 -- "Accreditation is a positive and necessary step for any crime lab -- and for the FBI Lab in particular, one that is long overdue. Accreditation helps ensure quality control, quality assurance, and public confidence in overall performance, something the FBI Lab has lost in recent years." -- more --

June 1998 -- USDOJ/OIG Special Report
Washington, DC, June 1998 -- The FBI Laboratory One Year Later: A Follow-Up to the Inspector General's April 1997 Report on FBI Laboratory Practices and Alleged Misconduct in Explosives-Related and Other Cases -- more --

April 1998 -- Lawyers' Group Urges DOJ to Act on FBI Lab Investigation Results
Washington, DC, April 25, 1998 -- At its Spring Board of Directors meeting in Santa Monica, CA, April 25, 1998, the Board unanimously passed a resolution calling on the U.S. Department of Justice to promptly notify all persons whose prosecutions and convictions may have been affected by misconduct in the FBI Laboratory. The resolution also calls for the Justice Department to make its FBI Lab investigation records electronically available over the Internet. -- more --

February 1998 -- Defense Bar Congratulates FBI Lab Whistleblower
Washington, DC, February 27, 1998 --The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers congratulated Dr. Frederic Whitehurst on settlement of his whistleblower suit against the FBI today with a statement from its President, Gerald B. Lefcourt, of New York. -- more --

December 1997 -- 10 Most Unwanted Forensic Experts from the FBI
Washington, DC -- Based on the Inspector General's findings, NACDL has compiled a list of the Ten Most-Unwanted Forensic Experts from the FBI Lab - i.e., unwanted by the criminal justice system. More may be added as we receive more internal records from the Department of Justice pursuant to our Freedom of Information Act requests on DOJ and the FBI. -- more --

November 1997 -- DOJ Aware of Problems in FBI's DNA Lab
Washington, DC, November 25, 1997 -- The Justice Department's Office of Inspector General, which conducted an 18-month investigation of the FBI lab, has been on notice of problems in the FBI's DNA analysis unit (DNAU) since as far back as December 1995, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers announced today. "Investigators from the Inspector General's Office interviewed dozens of FBI agents during the course of their 18-month investigation," NACDL President Gerald B. Lefcourt noted. "During that time, they turned up evidence that the prevailing culture of the lab -- which one agent likens to a "fraternity" -- is a 'shoot from the hip' culture favoring the prosecution, rather than a culture of objective science, and honest search for the truth." -- more --

October 1997 -- Letter to Sen. Sessions from NACDL President Gerald Lefcourt Regarding FBI Lab Misconduct; Newly-Discovered Information About the Use of Bad Science to Convict Accused Citizens Due to Such Misconduct; Failure of the Novel "Newly-Discovered" Evidence Standards Under the 1996 Post-Conviction, Habeas Corpus Laws to Afford Review and Remedy for Likely Wrongful Convictions Resulting From Such Misconduct.
Washington, DC, October 16, 1997 -- Dear Senator Sessions: In the course of my testimony during the Subcommittee hearing of September 29, 1997 (A Review of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Laboratory: Beyond the Inspector General Report), you expressed great interest in the burden a federal habeas petitioner bears when proffering newly-discovered evidence -- such as that mishandled or suppressed because of FBI Lab misconduct -- under "The Effective Death Penalty and Anti-Terrorism Act of 1996" (the Act). -- more --

September 1997 -- Early Review of Documents Reveals FBI Lab Misconduct More Serious than Reported
Washington, D.C., September 29, 1997 -- "Our review of documents thus far generated by the Department of Justice Inspector General's 18-month investigation of the FBI Lab reveals systemic problems scarcely addressed by the April 15 report -- bad science, sloppy record-keeping and professional misconduct," Gerald B. Lefcourt, President of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers said today as he prepared to testify before a Senate hearing on problems in the FBI's Crime Laboratory. "So far we've only seen the tip of the iceberg. We are greatly concerned that for some American citizens convicted by 'bad science,' the time for filing appeals and writs of habeas corpus is fast running out," Lefcourt said. -- more --

May 1997 -- Congress Should Reform FBI Lab
Washington, D.C., May 12, 1997 -- Science should favor neither the prosecution nor the defense in its search for the truth, an attorney for the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) will remind members of the Crime Subcommittee of the House Judiciary Committee Tuesday morning. The panel is holding oversight hearings on serious deficiencies in the FBI Lab which came to light after last month's release of the Justice Department Inspector General's damning Report. Having focused on just 3 of 35 Lab units, the Report identified numerous instances of fabrication of test results, scientifically flawed and biased testimony, unqualified examiners with little or no formal education in their professed field of expertise, a predisposition toward slanting testimony in favor of the prosecution, and other rampant problems. -- more --

April 1997 -- FBI Lab Report Raises Specter of National Scandal
Washington, D.C., April 15, 1997 -- The Inspector General's investigation into practices and misconduct at the FBI lab raises more questions than it answers, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers said today. The Justice Department's final report (click here for the report), released to the public today as a result of legal action brought by NACDL, identifies deficient work in the few high profile cases it analyzes, casting serious doubt on the integrity of the entire lab. Concentrating primarily on misconduct in only three departments -- the Explosives Unit, the Materials Analysis Unit, and the Chemistry-Toxicology Unit -- the edited 517-page report raises the specter of a national scandal of mammoth proportions. -- more --

March 1997 -- Justice Department's March 14 letter to U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler
Text of the Justice Department's March 14 letter to U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler stating its position that prisoners who potentially have habeas claims based on the contents of the final report on the FBI lab will have one year from the date of its release to file habeas petitions for relief under Sections 2254 and 2255. -- more --

March 1997 -- Ruling in FBI Lab Report Case Is Victory for Due Process
Washington, D.C., March 17, 1997 -- Persons unlawfully convicted in cases involving mishandled evidence from the FBI forensic science labs will have a full year from the release of the Justice Department's report on lab deficiencies and foul-ups to challenge their convictions, the government conceded in federal court today. -- more --

March 1997 -- Justice Dept. Memo on FBI Lab Problems
NACDL is making available to the public a 1996 memorandum from the-Acting Assitant Attorney General John Keeney to all U.S. Attorneys advising them that FBI lab whistleblower Frederic Whitehurst may have identified some problems in the FBI's forensic science labs. Keeney's memorandum notes that Dr. Whitehurst criticizes the work of a number of FBI laboratory personnel, contending that certain examiners lack proper qualifications, are not competent to perform the scientific analysis required in a case, slant their opinions to favor the prosecution, or have inappropriately changed Whitehurst's reports. A list of the FBI laboratory personnel criticized by Whitehurst is set forth in the memorandum. -- more --

March 1997 -- Congress Should Refrain from Meddling in Pending Criminal Cases
Washington, D.C., March 12, 1997 -- It is improper, unwise and unconstitutional for Congress to pass special legislation to try to preside over pending criminal trials from Capitol Hill, the nations's criminal defense bar told the House Judiciary Committee in a letter today (click here for letter), as the panel prepares to rush through legislation directed at reversing rulings of two courts in the celebrated Oklahoma City bombing trial. -- more --

February 1997 -- Government Uncooperative in Disclosing FBI Lab Report Says Federal Public Defender
The following affidavit was prepared by Federal Public Defender Thomas Hillier, II, in support of NACDL's Freedom of Information Act lawsuit seeking immediate disclosure of the OIG report pertaining to misconduct at the FBI forensic lab. Mr. Hillier outlines the government's reluctance to produce information in the report relevant to his case, his seeming victory in obtaining the information by court order, and his subsequent discovery that more relevant information was deliberately withheld. His declaration is an example of the most compelling reason why the entire report -- not just portions the Justice Department unilaterally determines to be relevant to a particular case -- should be made available to defense counsel across the country in time to adequately prepare for trial. -- more --

February 1997 -- Court Action Commenced to Disclose Report Critical of FBI Lab
Washington, D.C., February 25, 1997 -- "The first resort of tyrants is secrecy," said William B. Moffitt, Vice President of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) at a press conference today after the Association filed suit to force disclosure of a government report critical of the FBI's crime lab. -- more --

Defense Resource -- Discovery Motion for FBI Lab Report
The following pretrial motion for disclosure of the Justice Department's Office of Inspector General's (OIG) report detailing serious allegations of mishandling of evidence and other misconduct at the lab was filed on behalf of Terry Nichols in the Oklahoma City bombing case. The bases of the request are that timely disclosure of the report pursuant to the Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure governing discovery, Fed.R.Crim.P. 16, is "material to the preparation of the defendant's defense," and that "conclusions of the OIG may well corroborate the testimony of the defense's own experts." Defense attorneys preparing to counter scientific evidence from the FBI lab or preparing cross-examination of FBI forensic experts should probably consider filing the same sort of motion as soon as possible, either under Fed.R.Crim.P. 16 or applicable state rules. -- more --

February 1997 -- FBI Lab FOIA Suit Press Conference Tuesday, Feb. 25
Washington, D.C., February 22, 1997 --The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) will file suit tomorrow under the Freedom of Information Act seeking expedited disclosure of the Justice Department's Inspector General report outlining serious problems in the FBI laboratory. -- more --

February 1997 -- Justice Dept. Urged to Release FBI Lab Report
Washington, D.C., February 4, 1997 -- Frustrated over the U.S. Justice Department's refusal to make public its Inspector General's report outlining serious problems with and within the FBI laboratory -- problems which could affect hundreds of individual cases across the country -- the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) today filed a Freedom of Information Act request (Click Here for Letter) seeking its prompt release within 10 working days as required by law. -- more report --

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Forfeiture

March 2000 -- Reform Coalition Succeeds; Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Sails Through the Senate
Washington, DC, March 28, 2000 -- Innocent citizens will no longer suffer at the hands of overzealous law enforcement officials who unfairly seize property and other assets, thanks to hard-fought reform legislation passed unanimously by the Senate last night. Passage of the Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act of 2000 (S. 1931) institutes overdue protections for citizens and reins in the government's ability to arbitrarily make seizures without due process of law. --more--

June 1999 -- House to Feds: No More Unfair Asset Grabs
Washington, DC, June 24, 1999 -- Overzealous federal law enforcement officials who unjustly seize property and assets of innocent citizens will be reined in as a result of reform legislation passed by the House today. The bi-partisan Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act "preserves the basic American principle that individuals are innocent until proven guilty and that citizens should not lose their property without due process of law," said Larry Pozner, President of the NACDL. --more--

May 1999 -- Supreme Court Decision on Forfeiture -- Florida v. White
Washington, DC, May 17, 1999 -- Chipping away at what remains of the Fourth Amendment, the U. S. Supreme Court today — overruling the Florida Supreme Court — upheld the warrantless seizure of an automobile the police believed was used in drug trafficking several months earlier. --more--

June 1997 -- Measure to Restrict Government Seizure Power Further Compromises Citizens' Rights
Washington, D.C., June 23, 1997 -- After careful review, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers rejects the important but severely flawed civil asset reform effort reported out of the House Judiciary Committee late last week. The measure purports to address the basic unfairness and inequities of existing asset forfeiture laws, but what was at first an outstanding bill with widespread bi-partisan support in the House has been seriously compromised by the U.S. Department of Justice and other law enforcement entities who unfairly benefit from these laws at the expense of innocent citizens. -- more --

June 1997 -- Hearing to Highlight Forfeiture Abuses Involving Innocent Property Owners
Washington, D.C., June 10, 1997 -- "The government's use of over broad 'civil' forfeiture statutes has run amok," depriving innocent citizens of their property without due process of law, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers will tell the House Judiciary Committee Wednesday. -- more --

July 1996 -- Reform Needed to Protect Rights of Innocent Property Owners
Washington, D.C., July 22, 1996 -- "The unchecked use of overbroad civil forfeiture statutes has run amok," depriving innocent citizens of their property without due process of law, three members of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers told the House Judiciary Committee today. NACDL Asset Forfeiture Abuse Task Force co-chairs E.E. "Bo" Edwards (Nashville, Tenn.), David B. Smith (Alexandria, Va.) and Richard J. Troberman (Seattle, Wash.) testified in support of H.R. 1916, the Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act, sponsored by Judiciary Chairman Henry J. Hyde (R-Ill), citing numerous examples of American citizens permanently deprived of their property without a day in court and when no criminal charges were ever brought. --more--

March 1996 -- Bennis v. Michigan: Supreme Court's Decision Will Spur Forfeiture Reform
Washington, DC, March 4, 1996 -- "The Supreme Court today did more to advance the cause of forfeiture reform than all of the advocacy campaigns of the past several years combined," declared Robert Fogelnest, president of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL), reacting to the Court's 5-4 decision today in Bennis v. Michigan. --more--

June 1996 -- "Supreme Court Does Abrupt About-Face on Civil Forfeiture; O.K.'s Easy Seizure of Americans' Homes"
Washington, DC, June 24, 1996 -- "I've never seen our nation's highest court do such an abrupt about-face," commented National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) President Robert Fogelnest today after reading the Supreme Court's dismaying decision in U.S. v. Ursery. "To anyone concerned about the growth of government power beyond constitutional limits, today may be the single saddest day in many terms," Fogelnest said. --more--

November 1995 -- "Give Up Everything You Own -- Maybe You'll Get a Lighter Sentence: Court's Cursory Analysis in Libretti Waters Down Property Rights of Citizens Who Plead Guilty"
Washington, DC, November 7, 1995 -- "America depends on the preservation of fairness and constitutional protections for the guilty as well as the innocent. But apparently today's Supreme Court -- with the exception of Justice Stevens -- is untroubled about applying a watered-down standard to protect the property rights of defendants in criminal forfeitures," declared Robert Fogelnest, president of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL), in reaction to today's Supreme Court decision in Libretti v. U.S. --more--

June 1995 -- "Chairman Hyde Advances Reforms: Civil Forfeiture Laws Trash the Constitution"
Washington, DC, June 22, 1995 -- "A worse example of police state tactics would be hard to find. Civil forfeiture laws have perverted law enforcement agencies by allowing them summarily to seize property from innocent citizens and corporations," National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) President Gerald H. Goldstein, of San Antonio, said today. --more--

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Fourth & Fifth Amendments

May 1999 -- Media on Police Raids: Unconstitutional -- News Gatherers, Not Carrion Feeders
Washington, DC, May 24, 1999 -- The U.S. Supreme Court today decided two companion cases which test the constant tension between individual rights and the public's right to know, Hanlon v. Berger, 97-1927 and Wilson v. Lane, 98-83. In both of these cases, the Court held, police authorities who invite news media to observe the execution of search warrants violate the Fourth Amendment privacy rights. --more--

April 1999 -- Searching Auto Passengers
Washington, DC, April 5, 1999 -- In response to today's U.S. Supreme Court decision in Wyoming v. Houghton, permitting searches of automobile passengers when only the driver is suspected of criminal conduct, NACDL issued the following statement. "We're becoming a police state," said NACDL President Larry S. Pozner, of Denver. --more--

March 1999 -- News Gatherers, Not Carrion Feeders
Washington, DC, March 24, 1999 -- The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument today in two companion cases which test the constant tension between individual rights and the public's right to know. In both of these cases, authorities invited news media to accompany them on "raids," and the aggrieved citizens later sued. --more--

April 1997 -- Richards v. Wisconsin Is Victory for Fourth Amendment
Washington, D.C., April 28, 1997 -- The Fourth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States provides that Americans shall be secure in their homes and persons from unreasonable searches and seizures. To that end, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers argued on behalf of Steiney Richards in the Supreme Court decision handed down today, Richards v. Wisconsin. -- more --

August 1996 -- Coalition Protests Dangerous Anti-Terrorism Proposals: Calls for Preservation of Citizens' Fourth Amendment and Privacy Rights
'Who Will Guard the Guards?'
Washington, D.C., August 1, 1996 -- A broad coalition of organizations today called on Congress to reject renewed "counter-terrorism" proposals which would take away Americans' rights while giving dangerous new powers to federal law enforcement agencies. --more--

March 1995 -- "Provisions in Senate Crime Bill Would Eviscerate Fourth and Fifth Amendments"
Washington, DC, March 23, 1995 -- Proposals that would corrode the constitutional pillars of our legal system and undermine our cherished American democracy are now making their way through Congress. --more--

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Indigent Defense

March 1999 -- Champion Magazine Explores 'Gideon at 36 Years': Funding Justice for All
Washington, DC, March 24, 1999 -- Recognizing that more than 36 years after the Gideon decision the playing field is still steeply sloped in favor of the prosecution, The Champion, NACDL's monthly magazine, devotes its April issue to a national crisis of concern to judges, legislators, prosecutors and defense lawyers alike: the problem of delivery of legal services to the poor. --more--

March 1999 -- Gideon at 36 Years: Competent Counsel or Shoddy Advocacy?
Washington, DC, March 18, 1999 -- Thirty-six years ago today, in the landmark Gideon v. Wainwright ruling, the United States Supreme Court recognized the Sixth Amendment command that competent counsel must be provided for everyone accused of a crime. Despite that mandate, funding for defending the indigent accused is woefully inadequate. --more--

February 1999 -- Imprisoning America's Poor -- a Crisis in Defense Funding
Washington, DC, February 4, 1999 -- America's criminal justice system is beset with a fatal flaw: funding for the defense of the indigent accused is so woefully inadequate that the adversary system —- indeed the justice system itself -— is breaking down. As a result, justice has become an empty promise for all but the most wealthy in America. --more--

October 1997 (updated November 3, 1998)-- Disciplinary Boards Must Scrutinize Low-Bid Contracts Providing Counsel to Needy Citizens
Washington, DC, October 10, 1997 -- Fixed-price contracts for providing legal representation to poor Americans accused of crimes or wrongdoing are effectively wiping out the Sixth Amendment right to counsel, violating citizens' rights and leading to wrongful convictions, according to a report the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers released Friday. The report charges that the practice of "low-bid contracting" is designed to "process the maximum number of defendants at the lowest cost -- without regard to truth, justice or innocence." -- more --

June 1998 -- Wenatchee Witch-Hunt Emphasizes Need for Public Defender Funding
Washington, DC, June 2, 1998 -- At a press conference held today calling for federal investigations into the Wenatchee, WA, "sex ring" prosecutions, NACDL President Gerald B. Lefcourt issued a statement calling for adequate public defender funding across the nation. The 1992-1995 probe resulted in 43 arrests on an incredible 27,726 counts of child sexual abuse involving 60 children -- many of whom are now unwilling wards of the state -- in a town of only 17,000 residents. -- more --

April 1998 -- Adequate Defender Services Funding Needed to Counter Prosecutorial Excesses
Washington, DC, April 1, 1998 -- Years of "woefully inadequate" funding for federal criminal defense services has resulted in "widespread and rampant abuse of citizens rights by federal prosecutors," the President of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) told a House Appropriations subcommittee today. -- more --

January 1997 -- Statement of Judy Clarke, President, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, On Settlement of Oklahoma Indigent Defense Funding Crisis
Washington, D.C.., Jan. 22, 1997 -- The nation's criminal justice lawyers want to commend today's last minute agreement ensuring supplemental funding to keep the Oklahoma Indigent Defense System from descending into chaos. Facing imminent insolvency due to increased caseloads and last year's arbitrary funding cuts, Governor Keating and the legislative leadership became convinced that letting the system crash and burn would only lead to case dismissals, prisoner releases and a cascade of lawsuits This eliminates any need to challenge the state's failure to abide by the U.S. Constitution's requirement -- recognized for over a third of a century -- that counsel be provided to Americans who cannot afford lawyers when the state seeks to deprive them of their lives or liberty. NACDL particularly commends Court of Criminal Appeals Presiding Judge Charles Chapel and Vice Presiding Judge Charles Johnson for their efforts, and patience, in facilitating the negotiations. -- more --

October 1996 -- CJA Update: Funding -- The Fine Print
Washington, D.C., October 1996 -- Before leaving town to politick at home, Congress pulled several all-nighters and passed a $600 billion monster appropriations bill (six overdue bills in one) which the president signed in time to keep the government from crashing on October 1st. As for a $5 raise for the CJA panel attorneys whose approved rate increases have been postponed since 1988, "funding for this purpose has not been provided." Thus sayeth the Conference Report, which is not a binding law, see In re North, 50 F.3d 42, 46 (D.C. Cir. 1995), but is considered literal gospel by the Judicial Conference entrusted with actually spending the money. -- more --

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Innocence Project

February 2000 -- Innocence Agenda Needed in Louisiana
New Orleans, LA, February 25, 2000 -- The likely conviction of the innocent which results in prison and even deaths sentences in Louisiana and across the country may be eased and prevented by implementing new reforms including DNA testing legislation, the nation's preeminent criminal defense bar said today. --more--

February 2000 -- DNA Testing Reform Legislation Long Overdue
Washington, DC, February 11, 2000 -- Legislation designed to remedy wrongful convictions and reform the capital punishment justice system earned high marks from the NACDL. The "Innocence Protection Act," introduced today by Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) offers long overdue changes that will pave the way for the vindication of some who have been wrongfully convicted and improve the quality of counsel for indigent defendants. --more--

November 1997 -- Initiative to Free the Innocent Expanding
Washington, D.C., November 20, 1997 --- "Countless innocent Americans are behind bars or on death row for crimes that they didn't commit. Law schools and journalism schools are often in the best position to correct these grave injustices, as we've seen in Illinois where more people have been freed from death row than have been executed," noted Gerald Lefcourt, President of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL), in announcing a major campaign to expand the existing Innocence Project to law schools and journalism schools nationwide. -- more --

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IRS 8300

September 1995 -- "Federal Appeals Court Rules: IRS Probe of Law Firm Was 'Pretext' Improperly Aimed at Obtaining Information on Client"
Washington, DC, September 14, 1995 -- Ruling on an issue of huge importance to law firms across the nation, a federal appeals court in Boston yesterday affirmed a lower court finding that "the IRS's purported probe of [a] law firm's tax-related affairs was a hoax" designed to obtain financial information about one of the firm's clients without going through procedures established by Congress "specifically to protect the civil rights, including the privacy rights, of taxpayers." --more--

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Law Enforcement

October 1999 -- Justice Dept. Cover-Up for FBI Exposed
Washington, DC, October 6, 1999 -- A federal judge has found instances where the DOJ engaged in "misconduct and bad faith" in an attempt to cover-up improprieties committed by the FBI. The cover-up consisted of repeated misrepresentations of key information in a FOIA suit brought by the NACDL, aimed at disclosing to the public new information about abuses at the FBI Lab. --more--

September 1999 -- Bounty Hunter Accountability Act
Washington, DC, September 28, 1999 -- NACDL joins Congressman Asa Hutchinson in support of legislation introduced today to safeguard the fundamental Constitutional rights of citizens against bounty hunter abuses. --more--

September 1999 -- First Waco, Now Boston?
Washington, DC, September 23, 1999 -- NACDL today called on President Clinton to take corrective measures against the FBI in light of stinging revelations in a Boston judicial proceeding last week that once again point to an agency that is violating the constitution and abusing its own internal guidelines. In a letter to Clinton, NACDL President William Moffitt cites a major federal racketeering case which revealed that the FBI disregarded the standards and procedures governing its relationship with two top echelon informants in Boston. --more--

August 1999 -- Reno Must Not Trust the FBI
Washington, DC, August 31, 1999 -- NACDL questioned Attorney General Janet Reno's willingness to involve the FBI in the investigation of the April 1993 siege at the Branch Davidian complex in Waco, Texas, in the face of recent revelations that the FBI lied about the use of flammable tear-gas canisters. In a letter to Reno, NACDL President William Moffitt pointed out that the FBI has exhibited a pattern of distortion and egregious professional misconduct in several matters--not just Waco. --more--

March 1998 -- 'Bounty Hunter' Bill Would Ensure Safety, Protect Citizens' Rights
Washington, D.C., March 12, 1998 -- "Even though some bounty hunters are ex-convicts, or have otherwise been in trouble with the law, they enjoy broader powers to arrest fugitives than do police officers," Leslie Hagin, Legislative Director of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, told a panel of the House Judiciary Committee today. "They can legally break into a home without a warrant or probable cause, and can violently arrest, shackle, imprison and even transport suspects across state lines with impunity. Because they are acting as privatized law enforcement officers, bounty hunter abuse of innocent citizens is law enforcement abuse, plain and simple." -- more --

September 1997 -- Bounty Hunters Threaten Americans in Their Own Homes
Washington, D.C., September 15, 1997 -- "Americans are protected by law from unlawful arrests made by police officers; but incredibly, they are not protected from bounty hunters who are 'wannabe' law enforcers out on the loose and out of control," noted Gerald Lefcourt, President of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers in the wake the recent fatal double shootings in Phoenix. -- more --

October 1996 -- Statement of Judy Clarke on the TRAC study showing uneven and irregular allocation of federal drug prosecution resources among 90 federal districts
Washington, DC, October 18, 1996 -- "You'll notice that the federal districts with the highest rates of drug prosecution referrals are fairly rural, with low urban populations. They do not have large county and municipal budgets. Forming federal-local drug task forces helps bring federal tax dollars to small town police and sheriff's offices, not to mention providing the federal nexus for drug asset forfeiture, in which 90 percent of the proceeds of a federal forfeiture are returned to the seizing police agency. In Mississippi and West Virginia, two states with the highest percentages of federal drug prosecutions, drug investigations contribute significantly to local law enforcement budgets. -- more --

December 1995 -- "Senate's Ruby Ridge Report Confirms: Law Enforcement Practice, Expansion Threaten Constitutional Freedoms"
Washington, DC, December 21, 1995 -- "Growing and increasingly powerful law enforcement agencies urgently require increased oversight," said Robert Fogelnest, president of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL), in response to the report released today by the Senate subcommittee investigating the August, 1992 tragedy at Ruby Ridge, Idaho. --more--

October 1995 -- Preventing Future Wacos and Ruby Ridges: Joint Statement of Gerald H. Goldstein, Immediate Past President, and National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL)
Washington, DC, October 24, 1995 -- By virtue of their role in the justice system, the nation's criminal defense lawyers are uniquely positioned to observe how law enforcement and prosecutorial agencies perform their work. Before the headline-grabbing events at Waco and Ruby Ridge, NACDL's members were painfully aware of the increasingly militaristic culture growing throughout law enforcement in the United States. --more--

September 1995 -- "Prevent Future Law Enforcement Lawlessness: Congress Should Act on the Common Lessons of Waco and Ruby Ridge"
Washington, DC, September 6, 1995 -- With Congress now focusing public attention on the law enforcement lawlessness that contributed to the tragedies at the Branch Davidians' Mount Carmel Center near Waco, Texas, and the home of the Weaver family on Ruby Ridge, Idaho, congressional leaders must adopt reforms to strengthen Americans' constitutional protections against such misconduct, and abandon proposals that would further weaken them, wrote Robert Fogelnest, president of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) in a letter to congressional leaders on the eve of Senate hearings on the Ruby Ridge incident. --more--

July 1995 -- "Constitutional Limits on Law Enforcement Are Our Only Protection from the 'Arrogance of Power': Government Deceit Before, During and After Waco Raid, Defense Attorneys Will Show"
Washington, DC, July 20, 1995 -- "Rather than teaching new lessons, the events at Waco serve to reaffirm the lessons the framers of the Constitution knew very well. They knew then what we must not forget -- that there will always be people in law enforcement who are ambitious, who enjoy power and who will be willing to distort the truth to achieve their objectives or to hide from blame," criminal defense lawyer Tim Evans, of Houston, Texas, will tell the House subcommittees examining the 1993 events at the Branch Davidian compound near Waco when he testifies on behalf of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) on Friday, July 21. --more--

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NACDL Events

July 1999 -- New Criminal Defense Lawyers' President Decries "Gutting" of Citizens Rights
Washington, DC, July 21, 1999 -- An unsettling political climate which "tramples on the constitutional rights of Americans, regardless of their innocence, and which ignores legitimate alternatives to incarceration" has made the work of criminal defense lawyers "more difficult and more essential than ever," said William B. Moffitt, incoming president of the NACDL. --more--

August 1998 -- Criminal Defense Lawyers Elect Officers, Board Members
Denver, CO, Aug. 8, 1998 -- The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers announced the election of its 1998-1999 officers and directors at its Annual Meeting here today. The new leadership will be sworn in today, Saturday August 8, at the Association's membership and board of directors meeting at the Westin hotel in downtown Denver. -- more --

August 1996 -- Judy Clarke Elected First Public Defender President
Washington, D.C., August 13, 1996 -- Judy Clarke, the Executive Director of Federal Defenders of Eastern Washington and Idaho, was sworn in as President of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers at the association's annual meeting in Santa Monica August 11. Ms. Clarke is the first public defender elected president of NACDL and the second woman to be so honored. --more--

May 1996 -- "U.S. Sens. Hatfield, Simon, Rep. Schroeder, Journalists Cauchon, Curriden and Meddis Named 'Champions of Justice' by Nation's Criminal Defense Bar"
Washington, DC, May 20, 1996 -- The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) on Tuesday evening, May 21, will present its Champion of Justice Awards to three outstanding members of Congress and three exceptional journalists, to honor their professional contributions in defending Americans' constitutional rights. --more--

November 1995 -- "Stetson Law Students Win National Criminal Trial Competition; Hofstra, New Mexico, and Southwestern Also in Top Four"
Washington, DC, November 9, 1995 -- Beating back fierce competition from 11 other law schools, a team of four students representing Stetson University College of Law took top honors in the 1995 Cathy E. Bennett National Criminal Trial Competition, sponsored by the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) and held at NACDL's Fall Meeting in Las Vegas, Nevada, October 25-28. --more--

August 1994 -- "Gerald H. Goldstein Takes Helm As President of Nation's Criminal Defense Bar"
Gerald H. Goldstein, of San Antonio, Texas began his one-year term year as president of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) at the association's annual meeting in Traverse City, Michigan, on August 13, 1994. --more--

April 1994 -- "Criminal Defense Bar to Brief Congress at '94 Fly-In May 4-5; Justice Brennan, Rep. Edwards, Sister Prejean to Receive Awards"
Criminal defense lawyers from all over the U.S. will brief members of Congress on criminal justice and crime policy issues during the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers' (NACDL) third annual Legislative Fly-In May 4-5. The defense bar will also honor retiring Congressman Don Edwards (D-CA) and Sister Helen Prejean at a Capitol Hill reception on Thursday, May 5 and will present a special NACDL award to retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice William J. Brennan, Jr., at a reception on Friday, May 6. --more--

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Prosecutorial Misconduct

February 1999 -- Winning at Any Cost: Prosecutorial Excess Distorting America's Justice System
Washington, DC, February 9, 1999 -- A slew of recent investigative reports in major newspapers across America document that excess by prosecutors, both federal and local, are on the rise and often in flagrant violation of the very laws prosecutors are sworn to defend. --more--

October 1998 -- Congress Passes Measure Re-Establishing That Federal Prosecutors Are Bound by Rules of Ethics
Washington, DC, October 21, 1998 -- Today's passage by Congress of the "Citizen's Protection Act," as Section 801 of the omnibus spending bill, stops in its tracks backdoor attempts by DOJ to hold its lawyers above the laws of ethical conduct which apply to all lawyers. -- more --

August 1998 -- The CIA-Contra-Crack Cocaine Controversy: A Review of the Justice Department's Investigations and Prosecutions -- In August 1996, the San Jose Mercury News published a series of articles, entitled "Dark Alliance: The Story Behind the Crack Explosion." The series implied that individuals associated with the Nicaraguan Contras had flooded Los Angeles with crack coacaine in the 1980s, using the profits to support the Contras. Furthermore, the articles implied that the CIA was aware of these activities and may have protected the drug dealers, or simply turned a blind eye to their activities. In response to the allegations presented in the "Dark Alliance" series, the DOJ Office of the Inspector General conducted a review of DOJ actions related to the articles' claims, particularly concerning the treatment of individuals specifically mentioned in the series. The OIG Report, completed December 1997, has recently been made available online, at www.usdoj.gov/oig/c4rpt/c4toc.htm.

July 1998 -- Former DOJ Officials Advise Curbing Prosecutorial Excess
Washington, DC, July 9, 1998 -- In the cover article of the July issue of The Champion, NACDL's award-winning monthly magazine, Arnold Burns and Warren Dennis, with co-author Amybeth Garcia-Bokor, highlight recent "sea changes" in the attitudes and professional conduct of federal prosecutors and regulatory lawyers, which they perceive as presenting a "bona fide danger to the quality of justice and the fundamental nature of due process and fair play" in America today. -- more --

July 1998 -- Circuit Court Tells Prosecutors: Tempting Witnesses Akin to Bribery
Washington, DC, July 7, 1998 -- In the wake of last week's momentous federal appeals court decision turning aside the common practice by which the U.S. Department of Justice buys testimony against accused citizens, NACDL is urging Congress and the Justice Department to change that practice across the board. NACDL is also alerting judges and defense attorneys around the nation that the Justice Department's practice of promising leniency to jailhouse informants in exchange for their testimony must now be deemed precisely what the 10^th Circuit Court of Appeals declared it is: a violation of the federal bribery statute -- more --

May 1998 -- NACDL President Gerald B. Lefcourt Decries Release and Selective Editing of Hubbell Tapes
Washington, DC, May 6, 1998 -- "The release of selectively-edited transcripts of Webster Hubbell's telephone conversations from prison with his wife and with his lawyer violated two sacred relationships cherished by our society: the sanctity of private conversations between man and wife and the necessary confidentiality between client and counsel. It is nothing less than revolting." -- more --

April 1998 -- Defense Bar Assails Tactics of Whitewater Independent Counsel In Harassing Susan McDougal
Washington, DC, April 27, 1998 -- The Board of Directors of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers has unanimously adopted a resolution condemning Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr's action to compel Susan McDougal to re-appear before the Whitewater grand jury in Little Rock, Arkansas, and calling for a full and independent investigation into apparent conflicts of interest and possible misconduct in this matter. -- more --

April 1998 -- Grand Jury Reform Urged To Counter Prosecutorial Excesses
Washington, DC, April 2, 1998 -- In the wake of widespread and intense scrutiny by the media and American public of the Whitewater grand jury proceedings, major reforms are in order to avert future abuses and restore the institution of the grand jury to its original role as a protector of fundamental citizen rights, the President of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers says in a lead article published today. -- more --

March 1998 -- Supreme Court To Hear Posthumous Privilege Case
Washington, DC, March 30, 1998 -- The U.S. Supreme Court today granted certiorari in Swidler & Berlin v. United States, No. 97-1192. The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers filed an amicus curiae brief in the case in support of James Hamilton, of D.C. law firm Swidler & Berlin, who was White House counsel Vincent Foster's attorney before his death in 1993. After Mr. Foster's death, Mr. Hamilton's client file was subpoenaed by the Office of the Independent Counsel as part of the Whitewater investigation. A split decision by the federal Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld the subpoena, saying that the attorney-client privilege does not necessarily survive the death of the client. -- more --

February 1998 -- Family Values Imperiled When Mother Forced to Testify Against Child:
Need for Parent-Child Privilege
Washington, DC, February 13, 1998 -- "At no time before has the need for a 'parent-child privilege' been so clear as when America this week saw Marcia Lewis visibly shaken and trembling after her ordeal before the Washington grand jury convened by Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr," Gerald Lefcourt, President of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers said today. NACDL is calling upon Congress to create a new testimonial privilege to protect confidential communications between parents and children in the interest of preserving family relationships. -- more --

February 1998 -- Independent Counsel's Leaks and Unethical Conduct Imperil America's Justice System
Washington, DC, February 10, 1998 -- The Board of Directors of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, meeting this weekend, unanimously rebuked Independent Counsel Kenneth W. Starr's office for leaking secret grand jury testimony and calls upon the U.S. Department of Justice and the appropriate judicial authorities to immediately investigate to determine those who have unlawfully leaked information. In a separate resolution, the Association denounced the unethical treatment of potential grand jury witness Monica Lewinsky by Starr's prosecutors and agents in ignoring and defying state ethical prohibitions against contacting persons who are represented by counsel. Both resolutions were passed at NACDL's Midwinter Meeting in Puerto Rico on Saturday and released today. -- more --

December 1997 -- Statement by Gerald Lefcourt On Supreme Court's Prosecutorial Immunity Decision
Washington, DC, December 10, 1997 --In a victory for justice and common sense, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled today that a prosecutor who lied in order to obtain an arrest warrant may be sued for damages. Kalina v. Fletcher, No. 96-792, affirms lower court decisions holding that state officials enjoy only limited immunity from suits for violations of civil rights they commit during the course of performing their official duties. -- more --

September 1997 -- Prosecutor's Office Intimidates Law Professor
Washington, DC, September 11, 1997 -- Earlier this week, an investigator with the Memphis District Attorney General's office threatened a respected law professor with obstruction of justice if he did not turn over confidential information he had gathered on an alleged conspiracy to murder Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. University of Memphis Law School Professor Mike Roberts was appointed by Memphis judge John P. Colton to review files pertaining to James Earl Ray, who is seeking to withdraw his guilty plea and exercise his constitutional right to trial. Acting at the behest of the court, Roberts interviewed persons claiming to have knowledge of a conspiracy until the Tennessee Court of Appeals revoked his subpoena power last month on technical grounds. -- more --

May 1996 -- "Court 'Hears No Evil, Sees No Evil, Speaks No Evil,' Sets Impossible Standard for Claims of Race-Based Selective Prosecution"
Washington, DC, May 13, 1996 -- "Eight members of the Court 'hear no evil, see no evil, and speak no evil' of the government," declared William B. Moffitt, Treasurer of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL), today in response to the Supreme Court's anxiously-awaited ruling in Armstrong v. U.S. "They are deaf to the cries of African Americans for racial justice in the enforcement of our criminal laws," he said.--more--

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Terrorism

March 1999 -- The Murder of Rosemary Nelson: Impartial Outside Investigation Urged
Washington, DC, March 16, 1999 -- NACDL expresses outrage and profound grief over the murder of human rights lawyer Rosemary Nelson, who was killed by a car bomb outside her home in Northern Ireland yesterday. "On behalf of our 10,000 members on both sides of the Atlantic, I am calling for an immediate and independent inquiry into this case to forestall any possibility of official cover-up of this heinous crime," said NACDL President, Larry Pozner. --more--

April 1996 -- "Tossing 200-Year-Old Liberty into 'Dustbin of History': Passage of 'Antiterrorism' Bill Will Mark 'Tragic Triumph of Politics'"
Washington, DC, April 17, 1996 -- "It will be a sad memorial to the 169 Oklahoma City bombing victims if Congress tosses into the dust-bin of history one of the most precious of Americans' constitutional liberties," declared Robert Fogelnest, president of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL), today. --more--

December 1995 -- "Expanded 'Counter-Terrorism' Powers Unnecessary and Dangerous: 'Tap 'Em, Entrap 'Em, and Zap 'Em' Antiterrorism Bill Imperils Americans' Rights, Puts Federal 'Big Brother' in Charge"
Washington, DC, December 6, 1995 -- "The only Americans who have any need at all for sweeping new 'antiterrorism' legislation are politicians desperate to boost their ratings back home before Congress adjourns for the year," noted John Flannery, co-chair of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers' (NACDL) Legislative Committee, at a Capitol Hill press conference organized by a broad-based coalition of groups opposed to legislation the House is expected to take up early next week. --more--

May 1995 -- Oklahoma City Bombing: Criminal Defense Bar Urges Transfer of Case and Permitting Appointed Counsel to Withdraw
Washington, DC, May 2, 1995 -- To ensure justice and due process, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers President Gerald H. Goldstein today urged the federal court in Oklahoma City to transfer the bombing case to another jurisdiction and permit the two local attorneys appointed to represent defendant Timothy McVeigh to withdraw from the case. --more--

April 1995 -- "NACDL President Warns Against Legislative Overreaction to Oklahoma City Bombing"
Washington, DC, April 26, 1995 -- Gerald H. Goldstein, president of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL), today warned members of Congress against using the tragic Oklahoma City bombing as an excuse for stampeding to enact "anti-terrorism" legislation that tramples basic American principles of due process and limited government power. --more--

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Trial

June 1999 -- Loitering Law Struck Down
Washington, DC, June 11, 1999 -- The U.S. Supreme Court ruled yesterday on Chicago's "Gang Congregation Ordinance," which prohibits "criminal street gang members" from "loitering" with one another or with other persons in any public place with "no apparent purpose." Chicago v. Morales, No. 97-1121. The ordinance violates the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Federal Constitution. --more--

June 1999 -- Supreme Court Opts for Empty Ritual: Prisoners Must Petition State Supreme Courts
Washington, DC, June 7, 1999 -- The U.S. Supreme Court today held that before state prisoners can seek federal habeas corpus relief, they must first petition the state supreme courts for discretionary review, even in states, like Illinois, which leave such matters to the state's intermediate appellate court. O'Sullivan v. Boerckel, 97-2048.--more--

June 1999 -- Supreme Court Vacates Drug Conviction: Right to Jury Unanimity Upheld
Washington, DC, June 1, 1999 -- The U.S. Supreme Court today held that before a jury can find that the government has proven the federal crime of "Continuing Criminal Enterprise," it must agree that a "continuing series" of drug offenses was proven beyond a reasonable doubt -- and must be unanimous as to what those offenses were. Richardson v.United States, 97-8629. --more--

December 1998 -- Supreme Court Voids Iowa Car Search Law Washington, DC, December 8, 1998 -- "The Supreme Court has unanimously reaffirmed one of our most cherished rights, the 'right to be left alone,'" Larry Pozner, President of NACDL said today in response to the Court's 9-0 decision in Knowles v. Iowa, No. 97-7597, banning nonconsenual searches of vehicles after routine traffic stops. -- more --

December 1998 -- New Criminal Discovery Rules for U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts December 1, 1998 -- U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts has promulgated new "self-executing, automatic" criminal discovery rules (effective date Dec. 1, 1998) which should serve as a model for every federal court in the country. -- more --

July 1998 -- Hubbell Tax Case Dismissed
Washington, DC, July 1, 1998 -- U.S. District Judge James Robertson today dismissed the federal tax evasion case against former Associate Attorney General Webster Hubbell, ruling that Mr. Hubbell's Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination was violated by prosecutors from the Office of Independent Counsel. -- more --

June 1998 -- Supreme Court Confirms Attorney-Client Privilege, Even After Death
Washington, DC, June 25, 1998 -- The Supreme Court of the United States today handed down its most important decision of the term, Swidler & Berlin v. United States, No. 97-1192, reaffirming the sanctity of the attorney-client privilege. The attorney-client privilege was already well-established in Elizabethan England, and as Chief Justice Rehnquist notes in his opinion, the posthumous attorney-client privilege has been recognized in this country for well over a century. -- more --

June 1998 -- Forfeiture Held Unconstitutional; Would Violate 'Excessive Fines' Clause
Washington, DC, June 22, 1998 -- The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers lauds today's U.S. Supreme Court decision in United States v. Bajakajian, No. 96-1487, holding that forfeiture of Mr. Bajakajian's savings solely for his failure to report it to a U.S. Customs officer before leaving the country would be, as Justice Thomas wrote,"grossly disproportional to the gravity of his offense." -- more --

June 1998 -- 'Actual Innocence' May Be Constitutional Ground For Appeal
Washington, DC, June 15, 1998 -- The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers applauds today's U.S. Supreme Court decision in Hohn v. United States, No. 96-8986, holding that the Court has jurisdiction to hear the a claim of actual innocence by a federal prisoner whose certificate of appeal of his post-conviction motion is denied in a federal appellate court. -- more --

June 1998 -- Supreme Court Broadens Gun Law: Five Years Added to Court Officer's Marijuana Sentence
Washington, DC, June 8, 1998 -- A 5-4 decision today by the Supreme Court could affect thousands of federal drug defendants caught "carrying" a firearm, adding five years or more to their sentences even if the weapon was not immediately accessible to them. Today's decision requires a five year mandatory prison sentence for Frank Muscarello, a Louisiana court bailiff caught selling marijuana. -- more --

June 1998 -- Supreme Court Unanimously Rejects Governmental 'Forum Shopping'
Washington, DC, June 1, 1998 -- In today's decision in United States v. Cabrales, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the government's attempt to try Vickie Cabrales in Missouri, for conduct allegedly occurring in Florida, essentially amounts to unconstitutional government forum shopping. -- more --

May 1998 -- Bousley v. U.S. -- 'Actual Innocence' May Trigger Release
Washington, DC, May 18, 1998 -- In a decision that could affect hundreds of prisoners across the country, the U.S. Supreme Court today decided that a 1995 case which defined "using or carrying" a firearm in relation to certain crimes may be retroactively applied. Even prisoners who pleaded guilty prior to the 1995 case, Bailey v. United States, should be allowed to show that they are actually innocent of the crime as now defined by the Court, the Chief Justice says in today's decision, Bousley v. United States. -- more --

February 1997 -- Discovery Motion for FBI Lab Report
The following pretrial motion for disclosure of the Justice Department's Office of Inspector General's (OIG) report detailing serious allegations of mishandling of evidence and other misconduct at the lab was filed on behalf of Terry Nichols in the Oklahoma City bombing case. The bases of the request are that timely disclosure of the report pursuant to the Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure governing discovery, Fed.R.Crim.P. 16, is "material to the preparation of the defendant's defense," and that "conclusions of the OIG may well corroborate the testimony of the defense's own experts." Defense attorneys preparing to meet scientific evidence from the FBI lab or preparing cross-examination of FBI forensic experts should probably consider filing the same sort of motion as soon as possible, either under Fed.R.Crim.P. 16 or applicable state rules. -- more --

January 1997 -- Supreme Court Limits Unfair Prejudice in Gun Cases
Washington, D.C., Jan. 7, 1997 -- The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers applauds today's decision by the U.S. Supreme Court limiting prosecutors' ability to introduce highly prejudicial or inflammatory evidence in federal prosecutions of convicted felons accused of possessing a firearm. The ruling conforms with the general rule which prohibits, in most cases, the prosecution from revealing facts about a defendant's prior record. -- more --

October 1996 -- Statement of Judy Clarke, NACDL President, Concerning Separate Trials for Okla. City Bombing Suspects
Washington, D.C., Oct. 25, 1996 -- "Judge Mastch's bold decision requiring separate trials for Oklahoma City bombing defendants Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols is living proof of the importance of an independent judiciary in preserving fundamental rights for the accused in America today. -- more --

October 1995 -- Jury Finds O.J. Not Guilty: Verdict Highlights 'Our Precious Jury System'
Washington, DC, October 3, 1995 -- "The 'not guilty' verdict in the O.J. Simpson case highlights the importance of America's precious constitutional system of justice," declared Robert Fogelnest, president of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, reacting to today's verdict in the trial of O.J. Simpson. --more--

December 1995 -- "Attorney-Conducted Voir Dire is Fairer, More Efficient: Let Lawyers Question Prospective Jurors, Professional Criminal Defense Bar Urges"
Washington, DC, December 14, 1995 -- Federal courts should be required to permit attorneys to participate in pretrial questioning of jurors in criminal trials, prominent Northern California attorney James Farragher Campbell will urge a federal judicial panel at a hearing in Oakland, California on Friday. Campbell will testify on behalf of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL). --more--

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Trial Publicity

March 1999 -- "Perp Walks" Should be Outlawed
Washington, DC, March 3, 1999 -- "'Perp walks' are offensive to any conceivable notion of justice in America and to the Constitution that underlies our justice system. This self-serving, police practice of parading citizens under arrest -- alleged "perpetrators" -- before photographers and TV cameras destroys their presumption of innocence. Police departments across the country should cease and desist immediately," Larry Pozner, NACDL President, said today. --more--

April 1998 -- Lawyers' Group Approves 'Ethical Considerations' For Legal News Commentators
Washington, DC, April 28, 1998 -- Noting that "unprecedented coverage of criminal and other legal proceedings has resulted in an explosion of attorneys serving as legal commentators," the Board of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) today released its long-awaited Ethical Considerations for Criminal Defense Attorneys Serving as Legal Commentators. The recommendations were approved Saturday at a meeting of the Association's Board of Directors in Santa Monica, CA. An effort will be made to get other leading national bar associations to likewise raise the consciousness of their member attorneys. -- more --

February 1996 -- "Cameras in the Courts in Criminal Cases?: Consent of the Accused Essential to Ensure Fairness and Due Process"
Washington, DC, February 28, 1996 -- Persons accused of crime must have the final say over whether their trials are televised, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers' (NACDL) board of directors voted this week, on a question that has split criminal defense lawyers into two camps since "cameras in the courts" became a practical reality over a decade ago. --more--

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Victims Rights

April 1997 -- Victims' Rights Amendment Endangers Everyone's Rights
Washington, D.C., Apr. 29, 1997 -- Burgeoning opposition to the proposed Victims' Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in recent weeks comes from unexpected quarters. Prominent among groups opposing the idea outright or refusing to endorse it are the Legal Defense and Education Fund of the National Organization for Women (NOW LDEF), the National Clearinghouse for the Defense of Battered Women, the National Network to End Domestic Violence, and Murder Victims Families for Reconciliation. -- more --

September 1996 -- Law Professors, Victims' Families Oppose Victims' Rights Amendment
Washington, D.C., September 5, 1996 -- A victim's rights amendment to the U.S. Constitution is an unnecessary infringement on the states' powers and would prove too costly and cumbersome to implement, according to a letter released today by 160 prominent law professors and legal scholars from across the country. The letter notes that almost all states already have statutes or constitutional provisions protecting victims' rights to restitution or to participate in sentencing proceedings, and that a constitutional amendment could actually make criminal proceedings more complex and time consuming and would lead to "more, not less, uncertainty in the criminal justice process."--more--

July 1996 -- 'Victims' Rights' Imperil Bill of Rights
Washington, D.C., July 11, 1996 -- Any so-called "victims' rights" amendment to the Constitution would pose "grave dangers" to the Bill of Rights, a representative of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers told the House Judiciary Committee today. Elisabeth A. Semel, a prominent California lawyer and the organization's legislative committee co-chair, testified that such an attempt to "elevate" victims' rights to the same status as those of the accused effectively would write fundamental citizens' rights out of the Constitution. --more--

April 1996 -- 'Victims' Rights' Don't Belong in the Constitution
Washington, DC, April 22, 1996 -- "The last thing we need is to tinker with the federal Constitution so that some cynical politicians can gain political capital in an election year" Robert Fogelnest, president of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL), said today. Fogelnest, a prominent New York City attorney, was reacting to today's introduction in Congress of a proposed constitutional amendment on victims' rights. --more--

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Wiretapping Legislation

September 1996 -- Stealth Surveillance Legislation in Appropriations Bills - Privacy Threatened by the Fine Print
Washington, D.C., September 19, 1996 -- Congress must remove provisions from an appropriations bill which would unfetter federal wiretappers, an unusual coalition of civil liberties and public interest groups said today. The organizations are protesting stealth legislation added to the Commerce, Justice, State and Judiciary spending bill by Senate appropriators which would loosen legal standards for intercepting telephone and electronic communications, permit interception in certain non-criminal political investigations, and provide funding for intercepting digital (fiber optic) voice and data communications. -- more --

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National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL)
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