Check out this incredible new MDefenders resource designed to help public defenders bring social science into criminal courtrooms. Data for Defenders collects cutting-edge social science research and helps defenders incorporate it into their advocacy:

QI is about establishing principles, not finding a case with identical facts, CA10 says: In this case, the principles of its precedents established that the government's conduct was excessive force. https://t.co/26FZGKIvp0 #N

Officers arrest driver; they think he has a gun in the car, but lack PC. Search it anyway, finding gun. Govt argues this was a protective sweep to prevent girlfriend from accessing weapon. CA5 reluctantly suppresses; this doesn't fit protective sweep. https://t.co/GyYbkmK6lU #N

JOB OPENING: Internship (Summer 2026), Office of Justice Kimberly A. Thomas, Michigan Supreme Court. Position will remain open until filled. https://t.co/VhtnA2a9Ze

Medical Examiners Warn That Controversial Lung Float Test Could Be Dangerous @deldeib @propublica https://t.co/yhahFv6TZH

No QI for officer who suspected person leaving store of shoplifting, and who reached into suspect's pockets and retrieved what was in the pockets. There was no arrest, and reaching in first was clearly beyond the frisk power. (Person hadn't shoplifted) https://t.co/LxOBIdwNYG #N

Warrant needed to enter defendant's room at transitional homeless center to arrest him, NY trial court rules; It's not a traditional home, but Payton still applies, so fruits of search suppressed. https://t.co/v8oMk3NWBg #N

A New Jersey Supreme Court decision ruled that the controversial "Shaken Baby Syndrome" lacked scientific support, barring testimony about SBS in criminal trials. @elizabethweill examines the potential ripple effects of the decision across the country. https://t.co/aiCbmA8iUL

Handcuffing suspect and bringing him to the police station for a DNA test is outside the bounds of Terry, and instead counts as a full arrest, per Del SCT. https://t.co/JbE6PvKHyI #N

I was so honored to receive @UMichLaw’s L Hart Wright Award for teaching excellence this past year. Teaching here is such a privilege. Here are some of my remarks upon accepting the award:

New @UMichLaw #DataforDefenders motions to compel discovery abt & suppress evidence obtained through Flock's AI-inspired license plate reader technology. These motions explain why Flock-obtained data is not reliable and needs to be challenged in court.

State Dept of Revenue issues warrant to search for and seize any property of value of suspect for failure to pay taxes on profits from selling meth. Searching her residence, officers find meth. NC Court of Appeals: Can't get a warrant for this under the 4A. Meth suppressed.

Texas Court of Criminal Appeals— the state's highest court for criminal cases—rules that drug detection dog's unprompted entry of his nose into suspect's car through open window was a Fourth Amendment search. https://t.co/jkVMULb14M #N

New @umichlaw.bsky.social #DataforDefenders brief argues that funding for and admission of an antiracism expert witness is necessary to ensure fairness and due process in many criminal cases:

New @UMichLaw #DataforDefenders brief argues that evidence that a defendant has a substance abuse problem is improper lay opinion testimony, impermissible character evidence, and unfairly prejudicial:

New @UMichLaw #DataforDefenders brief argues against mandating regular drug or alcohol testing as a probation condition for a client who does not have a history of substance abuse related to their offense. Check it out:

Firing bullets that hit a car is a seizure of its driver, even if the driver isn't stopped, CA11 holds, extending Torres v Madrid. Torres says we look to the common law, and back then, assaulting a horse or horse-drawn carriage was an assault on its rider. Today, that's cars. #N

Hawaii SCT interprets state constitution to require video and audio recording for all custodial interrogations—"where feasible" when outside the police station—to protect against self-incrimination, the right to confrontation, & right to a fair trial. https://t.co/oEeKqcz0zy #N

Burdens of Proof in Constitutional Criminal Procedure is out in @DukeLawJournal. Burdens are important (often determining outcomes in crim pro cases) & often overlooked. This article provides advocates w/a roadmap for raising burdens more effectively. https://t.co/fytLabqApE

JOB OPENING: Intern (Winter/Spring 2026), Office of Justice Kimberly A. Thomas, Michigan Supreme Court. Position will remain open until filled. https://t.co/0wPAzZs0ux