Last time, our blog began discussing how defendants who believe that the evidence prosecutors are seeking to introduce at their criminal trial was gathered in violation of their constitutional rights can seek to have it suppressed, meaning thrown out, via the...
The Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution expressly protects "the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures." While this language may seem a bit complex, it essentially means that...
In February 2015, Governor Bruce Rauner signed an executive order forming the Illinois State Commission on Criminal Justice and Sentencing Reform, a statewide taskforce whose express duties included devising workable solutions to help reduce the state's prison...
We all know you can get in trouble for having an open container of alcohol, driving under the influence of alcohol or possessing some controlled substance. However, there are specific laws that govern minors when it comes to alcohol and drugs. They're called minor in...
In our last post, we provided a bit of a history lesson concerning the landmark Gun Control Act of 1968, which outlaws any "unlawful user and/or an addict of any controlled substance" from purchasing a firearm.Specifically, we discussed how the Bureau of Alcohol,...
When it comes to gun ownership and illegal narcotics, it would be no surprise to anyone anywhere to learn that the federal government has a zero tolerance policy. Indeed, this stance can be traced all the way back to 1968 when Congress passed the landmark Gun Control...
In a series of ongoing posts, we've been discussing how the U.S. Constitution provides every person with certain inalienable rights regardless of whether they are confronted by federal agents, state troopers or local police officers, and regardless of whether this...
Last week, we began discussing a shocking report on property forfeiture here in Illinois, a process through which law enforcement agencies can essentially take anything they merely suspect was involved in some manner of criminal activity.To recap, the report,...
Earlier this week, officials with the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois and the Illinois Policy Institute, two organizations with vastly different political ideologies, announced the release of a rather shocking report that they co-authored on asset...
Last time, we began discussing just how distressing any sort of encounter with state or federal law enforcement officials can be for the average person. We also discussed how the fear engendered by these encounters can sometimes be so great that it leads people to...
