The U.S. government launders the original source of evidence in criminal cases in a practice known as “parallel construction.” In order to keep certain investigative activity hidden, agents simply arrange for an alternate evidentiary path. This practice allows the government to obscure secret surveillance technologies and programs or potentially illegal investigative methods from those accused in criminal cases, and the public at large. This webinar will educate members of the defense community about the practice of "parallel construction" and prepare them to fight it in the courtroom.

Presented by: Detective James Trainum (ret.), Washington, DC, Metropolitan Police Department; and Deja Vishny, Homicide Practice Group Coordinator and Deputy Training Director, Wisconsin State Public Defender

Presented by: Colin Fieman Assistant Federal Public Defender, Tacoma, WA; and Paul Ohm, Professor of Law, Georgetown University Law Center

This webinar was supported in part by Grant No. 2013-MU-BX-K014 awarded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance.

Recent legislative changes to Virginia Code 16.1-272 give the judiciary greater guidance and discretion in sentencing youth convicted of felony offenses in Virginia. This program features an overview of the blended sentencing provisions for juveniles transferred to circuit court followed by a discussion of the new sentencing provisions passed earlier this year.

Walk through the recommendations from NACDL's Policing Body Cameras report and learn about how to negotiate stronger body camera policies in your jurisdiction, the technical aspects of body cameras, and strategies and tactics for defending clients in body camera jurisdictions.

Long underused and unfairly applied by the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, federal compassionate release is seeing a revival under the First Step Act. That law not only corrected many of the flaws in the way the BOP handled compassionate release requests, but allows prisoners direct access to the courts. The new law clarifies the broad range of circumstances related to age, illness, and family circumstances that might trigger eligibility for relief and further opens up exciting new opportunities to seek reconsideration of sentences that are no longer appropriate for a variety of other reasons.

Featuring NACDL's Task Force on Criminal Court Reopening: Nina Ginsberg, Stephen Ross Johnson, Todd Pugh, and Martín Sabelli

The Sixth Amendment guarantee to a speedy trial is a cornerstone of the American criminal legal system. Its broad cloak serves to protect the interests of the accused, witnesses, the government and the community in ensuring meaningful and timely resolution to criminal charges. Today, as judges, prosecutors, and defendants begin to navigate the aftermath of long periods of court closures and the resulting backlog of cases, stakeholders face new questions and challenges in meeting obligations to community health and safety while also protecting core constitutional rights.

Sentencing expert Amy Baron-Evans discusses the ins and outs of the First Step Act, with emphasis on potentially overlooked aspects of the most significant provisions.

Presented by: Daniel Arshack, criminal defense attorney, New York, NY; Lynn Paltrow, Executive Director, National Advocates for Pregnant Women (NAPW); and Nancy Rosenbloom, Director of Legal Advocacy, NAPW

A key pillar of the First Step Act, a bipartisan federal criminal reform bill signed into law in December 2018, was the creation of a risk and needs assessment tool for federal prisoners.  In July 2019, the Department of Justice first published this tool, the Prisoner Assessment Tool Targeting Estimated Risk and Needs (“PATTERN”) and began using it to place prisoners in recidivism reduction programming and award certain benefits. This webinar discusses the origins of PATTERN as well as the many questions that remain about its design and implementation, including during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Updates and information about applying for compassionate release for your client. Presented by Mira Baylson, Elizabeth Blackwood, Justine Harris, Lisa Mathewson, JaneAnne Murray, Shazzie Naseem, Avery Pollard, Marjorie Peerce, and Mary Price.

Presented by: Ariel Simms, Criminal Justice Attorney Fellow, National Center on Criminal Justice and Disability (NCCJD), The Arc

Presented by: Esha Bhandari, Staff Attorney, Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project, American Civil Liberties Union

Presented by: Marsha Levick, Co-Founder, Deputy Director, Chief Counsel, Juvenile Law Center; and Dr. Jennifer Woolard, Associate Professor of Psychology, Georgetown University and Research Fellow, Center for Social Justice