Author: Joel Ready
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Com v. Crispell: PCRA Petitions may be amended to add new claims, even if the new claims fall outside of the “one year” rule
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In an otherwise mundane PCRA affirmance, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ruled unanimously that a PCRA petitioner may move to amend his petition to add an additional claim, even if…
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Com v. Wilmer: Community Caretaking exception to warrant requirement lasts until officer is done rendering assistance
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A party at a sorority house led to a drunk college kid on the roof of the house, stumbling about, looking as though he were about to fall off the…
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Danganan v. Guardian Protective Services: UTPCPL violation need not be in Pennsylvania
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The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled unanimously in Danganan v. Guardian Protective Services that a violation of the Unfair Trade Practices Consumer Protection Law need not have occurred in Pennsylvania to…
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Com v. Fulton: Warrantless Cell Phone searches violate both Constitutions
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In a relatively-unsurprising re-affirmation of recent SCOTUS caselaw, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ruled 6-0 in Commonwealth v. Fulton that a warrantless search of a cell phone is unconstitutional and…
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Federal Block to Gerrymandering Roundup 2-26-18
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The fight over SCOPA’s gerrymandering decision continues. SCOTUS denied cert from the first decision, but now the issuance of the map is being challenged. Lyle Denniston of SCOTUSblog fame discusses…
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League of Women Voters v. Commonwealth: The “Free and Equal Elections” Clause Prohibits Gerrymandering
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EDIT: The map has been released as promised by the Court, along with a brief opinion on February 19, re-outlining the views of the Court. We have included it here…
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Com v. Yong: Collective Knowledge Doctrine Affirmed
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When two police officers independently have the information necessary to constitute probable cause, but they have not communicated these facts to each other, is the arrest of the defendant constitutional?…
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Com v. DiMatteo: PCRA petitioner entitled to new sentence where SCOTUS change occurred before his sentence was final
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Commonwealth v. DiMatteo resolves an obscure overlap in sentencing rules in Pennsylvania, confirming that a Defendant is entitled to resentencing where he was not sentenced on his open plea before…
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Shearer v. Hafer: Interlocutory Appeal unavailable for civil pretrial dispute over right to counsel at psychological examination
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In Shearer v. Hafer, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania rules 6-1 that an interlocutory appeal was not appropriate in a pretrial discovery dispute over whether a plaintiff has the right…
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Com v. VanDivner: Three Part Miller Test Establishes Sanity for Death Penalty
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The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ruled 6-0 in Commonwealth v. VanDivner that a defendant whose intellectual impairments interfere with his ability to cognitively adapt is mentally incompetent as regards the…