Newsletters

CONFESSIONS - WAIVER OF RIGHTS

A confession must be voluntary in order to be admitted into evidence in a criminal proceeding. When a person makes a confession, he or she is waiving his or her right against self-incrimination under the Fifth Amendment of the United States Constitution. The person may also be waiving his or her right to counsel under the Sixth Amendment of the United States Constitution.

RIGHTS OF CRIME VICTIMS

Being a victim of a crime is a frightening experience. Until fairly recently, crime victims had no rights and did not have access to any federal, state, or local services to help them through the experience. In most states, there are now many services and resources that are available to crime victims.

Challenging a Speeding Ticket and Radar Guns

If a driver receives a ticket for a speed violation, the driver may challenge the ticket. Often times, a speeding ticket is the result of an officer using a device known as a radar gun. The radar gun is a device that officers use to determine the exact speed that the driver is traveling at a certain point.

The Travel Act

The Travel Act was passed in the 1960's in response to organized crime. The Act was intended to assist state and local authorities with limited resources in their efforts to combat organized crime. The Act provides that any individual who travels in interstate or foreign commerce or uses the mail or any facility in interstate or foreign commerce with the intent to distribute the proceeds of any unlawful activity, commit a violent crime to further criminal activity, promote, manage, establish, carry on, or facilitate the promotion, management, establishment, or carrying on of any criminal activity, may be guilty of violating the Travel Act.

Production Immunity

Although the concept of production immunity is relatively new, in 1886 the United States Supreme Court held that the compulsory production of private papers containing incriminating information violated the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The Court has since found that as long as the subpoenaed papers were prepared voluntarily, the documents themselves cannot be said to contain compelled testimonial evidence. The documents therefore may not always be withheld on Fifth Amendment grounds.