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DOJ Memo Sneaks In Seismic Changes

DOJ Memo Sneaks In Seismic Changes

January 31, 2025

DOJ Memo Sneaks In Seismic Changes

By: James Trusty

Amidst the tidal wave of Executive Orders, presidential appointments, and policy announcements, it is easy to treat last week’s Interim Policy Memo from the Acting Deputy Attorney General[1] as just another ripple of nominal change that occurs when democrats replace republicans or republicans replace democrats. And, indeed, although there are portions of it that reflect the recurring philosophical tug-of-war over the tough on crime approach first memorialized by Attorney General Thornburgh in 1989, it would be a serious oversight to miss the Memo’s dramatic departure from status quo and even from the first Trump administration’s view of federal prosecutor responsibilities. The heart of the memo is immigration enforcement. The Memo emphasizes the need for DOJ and the Department of Homeland…

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Virtual Reality Creating Jury Reality

January 7, 2025

Virtual Reality Creating Jury Reality

By: James Trusty

A Florida Judge may have unwittingly ushered in a new age of criminal justice, where slickly made virtual reality (“VR”) presentations turn judges and jurors into witnesses, and VR headsets provide subjective “testimony” in a powerful and difficult to challenge manner. Broward County Judge Andrew Siegel agreed to don a virtual reality headset in a preliminary proceeding[1] where the defendant was accused of aggravated assault….

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How Thick is the Blanket? – Preemptive Pardons as a Presidential Power

December 6, 2024

How Thick is the Blanket? – Preemptive Pardons as a Presidential Power

By: James Trusty

As the presiding judge scolded Hunter Biden’s attorneys this week, “The Constitution provides the President with broad authority to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States, U.S. Const. art. II, § 2, cl. 1, but nowhere does the Constitution give the President the authority to rewrite history.”[1]  But what exactly is that history he claims is being re-written? Judge Scarsi was challenging…

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Copyright & Trademark Protections- Is Metadata Included?

September 9, 2015

Copyright & Trademark Protections- Is Metadata Included?

By: Ifrah Law

A Canadian federal court recently released an opinion holding that meta tags, at least in some circumstances, are not entitled to copyright protection.  Although the precedent is not binding in American courts, the well-reasoned opinion provides an excellent logical analysis on why meta tags may or may not be afforded copyright protection. In Red Label Vacations Inc. v. 411 Travel Buys Limited, the plaintiff travel…

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Government Dismisses Its Case After Warrantless Airport Laptop Search

August 19, 2015

Government Dismisses Its Case After Warrantless Airport Laptop Search

By: Ifrah Law

    The government has voluntarily dismissed its case against Jae Shik Kim, the South Korean businessman for whom Ifrah Law obtained a motion to suppress in federal court.  In 2012, Mr. Kim was stopped by federal agents as he tried to board a plane to South Korea from LAX.  The government seized his laptop and copied his hard drive based on suspicion that he…

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U.S. Justice Department v. FIFA Executives and Others in Bribery Indictment

June 2, 2015

U.S. Justice Department v. FIFA Executives and Others in Bribery Indictment

By: Ifrah Law

In an ironic twist, the U.S. Justice Department unsealed a 47-count indictment this morning charging nine present and former officials of the Federation Internationale de Football Association (better known by its acronym, FIFA) and five sports marketing executives with fraud, racketeering, bribery and money laundering. The guilty pleas of four individuals and two entities relating to these same allegations were also unsealed. The indictment alleges…

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Cell Tower Location Data Privacy Decision Reversed

May 18, 2015

Cell Tower Location Data Privacy Decision Reversed

By: Jeffrey Hamlin

Last July, we reported on United States v. Davis, an Eleventh Circuit decision in favor of privacy rights. In that case, a three-judge panel held that cell phone users have a reasonable expectation of privacy in their cell phone location data. If the government wants to collect the data, it must first obtain a probable-cause warrant, as required by the Fourth Amendment. The groundbreaking decision…

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Laptops, Border Checks and The Fourth Amendment

May 11, 2015

Laptops, Border Checks and The Fourth Amendment

By: Ifrah Law

Photo: “LAX-International-checkin” by TimBray at en.wikipedia.   Developments in law are sluggish compared to the rapid rate of technological advancement, and courts must constantly apply old legal principles to technologies which were not contemplated at the time the laws were enacted.   Recently, technology has been at the forefront of privacy rights debates, in light of revelations that the government has access to online communications, personal…

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Articles and Presentations by Our Firm Attorneys

DOJ Memo Sneaks In Seismic Changes

DOJ Memo Sneaks In Seismic Changes
By: James Trusty

Virtual Reality Creating Jury Reality

Virtual Reality Creating Jury Reality
By: James Trusty

How Thick is the Blanket? – Preemptive Pardons as a Presidential Power

How Thick is the Blanket? – Preemptive Pardons as a Presidential Power
By: James Trusty

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