Oct: 04, 2017

Felony DWI For Man Facing 28th DWI In Minnesota

A man was arrested for felony level driving while intoxicated (DWI) in Crow Wing, Minnesota. This was his 28th DWI in Minnesota over his lifetime.

Apr: 14, 2014

Minnesota’s prison overcrowding issue

Prison overcrowding is a vast issue in Minnesota. With many policymakers insistent on the need for stricter sentencing and no tolerance for multiple-offense inmates, state prisons are bursting at the seams. Instead of reducing or eliminating prison terms for many non-violent inmates, especially those incarcerated for fraud and other white collar crimes, prisons are slowly releasing inmates in early release programs.

Nov: 03, 2013

Lawsuit may lead to changes in Minnesota’s sex offender policy

Convicted sex offenders face notoriously harsh punishments. In fact, only one person has ever been released in the history of the 19-year-old Minnesota Sex Offender Program. A new lawsuit filed by a sex offender that was committed civilly may determine that this current system is unconstitutional. The 2011 lawsuit is yet to be resolved in federal court; in the meantime, the Minnesota Department of Human Services is starting to consider alternative correction methods that are less restrictive.

Nov: 03, 2013

Hearing to determine if Minnesota serial rapist will be released

Not all sex offenders in Minnesota go to prison. In some cases, a court may decide that such a criminal should be held in a treatment center. Minnesota houses nearly 700 sex offenders in treatment facilities at St. Peter and Moose Lake, and $73 million is spent every year to lock these offenders up. In the last 20 years, however, only one person has ever been released from one of these centers. On Nov. 8, a panel of judges scheduled a hearing to determine whether there should be a second.

Oct: 03, 2013

Minneapolitans need to rethink the stranger with candy mentality

Although parents in Minneapolis have grown up with stories and urban legends of strangers lurking with candy, waiting to abduct children and do horrible things, the reality is that very few children are harmed by strangers. When we look at the numbers, nearly all incidents of child molestation are committed by family members or acquaintances, with only 7 percent being committed by strangers. So, if the “creepy man in the van” is a myth, why are we still so worried about him?

Sep: 03, 2013

What does a guilty plea actually mean to a teenager?

Most people in Eagan recognize that a sexual assault charge is incredibly serious and a conviction would come with a long prison sentence and potentially a lifetime on the Minnesota Sex Offender Registry. With this in mind, it may seem ridiculous to think that anyone would enter a guilty plea on a charge of rape unless he or she actually raped someone. Yet 38 percent of juveniles who are convicted and later exonerated were found to enter false confessions. So when a teenager pleads guilty to any crime, what does he or she actually mean?

Sep: 03, 2013

Sentencing for sex crimes could turn on biased evaluations

The role of a Minneapolis criminal defense lawyer is not always to clear someone’s name; sometimes the evidence of guilt is overwhelming and there is little a criminal defense lawyer can do to free his or her client. That does not mean, however, that a lawyer is useless, but rather the lawyer’s job is to ensure the trial is fair and the punishment is appropriate. For many criminal offenses, including sex crimes, a sentence may depend heavily on the evaluation of a mental health professional. In these cases, part of the lawyer’s job is to make sure that the evaluation is unbiased, because if it is not, the defendant could find him- or herself facing a long sentence in prison.

Jul: 03, 2013

How unique is your hair? The FBI is looking into it

For decades the FBI has been using hair analysis and other forms of DNA testing to aid in the conviction of defendants. The science has certainly helped defendants who are accused of violent crimes, murder and rape to clear their name, too, but the FBI has recently announced that it will be looking into some of its cases to check for faulty science. One of the biggest problems the FBI has had, it seems, is agents making claims about hair analysis that can’t be supported by science. When those statements led to a conviction, it is very possible that the wrong person was convicted.

Aug: 02, 2012

Placing offenders in jobs reduces rates of recidivism

It is undeniable that some people make mistakes, and when they have been appropriately punished for their mistakes, they deserve a chance to start over. This applies to people who have made small mistakes and those who have committed drug crimes in Minnesota. After leaving prison, they should be able to find a job in Minneapolis-St. Paul and restart their lives.

Jun: 01, 2011

White collar convict likely to control personal finances while in prison

Two weeks ago a federal jury in Manhattan convicted Raj Rajaratnam, the founder of Galleon Group, ofwhite collar crime. The hedge fund founder faces sentencing for 14 counts of securities fraud and conspiracy and faces millions of dollars in fines as well. Rajaratnam in 2009 was worth $1.3 billion and is expected to remain a wealthy individual after the payment of legal defense fees and criminal penalties.

Tag: prison