Attention criminal defense attorneys: You do not lose your right to appeal the denial of a pretrial motion to suppress evidence if you decline to object to the introduction of that evidence at trial. In a unanimous decision, Maryland’s top ...

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Maryland’s top court Wednesday upheld the second-degree murder conviction of a jailhouse rap singer who argued in vain that his violent lyrics should not have been admissible at trial despite their eerie similarity to the details of the slaying. In ...

Tagged with: artistic expression criminal relevance evidence murder probative evidence rap music

A convicted murderer’s attorney told Maryland’s top court this week that the trial judge erred in admitting into evidence the violent rap lyrics his client wrote and sang to an associate during a jailhouse telephone call before trial. The lyrics ...

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Evidence is admissible in criminal cases when prosecutors present properly authenticated testimony even if all witnesses in the chain of custody cannot be produced, the state’s highest court has held.

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Baltimore police department's body worn camera program was praised, but policies that allow officers to review footage before writing reports continue to be criticized.

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The apparent failure of the Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office to flag a body camera video that allegedly showed an officer manipulating the footage highlights the downside to having hours of recordings of arrests as the cameras become more prevalent: ...

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Bills affecting evidence in sexual assault trials, opioid distribution charges, shielding of criminal records and the enforcement powers of the Office of the Comptroller all returned to the General Assembly in 2017 with varying degrees of success. Legislation to allow ...

Tagged with: criminal procedure evidence General Assembly office of the comptroller

Legislation to allow evidence of past sexually assaultive behavior into criminal trials has again stalled in the General Assembly despite backing from the governor’s office. The measures would allow prosecutors to introduce evidence of a defendant’s past behavior that would ...

Tagged with: evidence Maryland General Assembly maryland rules sexual assault

Legislation to allow prosecutors to introduce evidence at trial of past sexually assaultive behavior under limited circumstances has returned to the General Assembly, and while advocates say it is narrowly tailored and includes procedural safeguards, defense attorneys maintain it is ...

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The impact of the widespread use of police body cameras is still uncertain, but as larger departments continue to put more cameras on the street, prosecutors and defense attorneys have a more immediate concern: how to find time to review ...

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