A Maryland appellate court recently considered whether a defendant competently waived his constitutional right to have a jury decide his case unanimously. The case arose when the defendant stabbed and killed a man in 2009. After an investigation he was charged with first-degree murder and two related weapons offenses. The…
In Maryland, only United States citizens may serve on the jury for a state case. Recently, a criminal defendant appealed his conviction on the grounds that a Maryland court did not ask potential jurors voir dire questions about their citizenship. The criminal defendant had previously been convicted of a felony…
In Snyder v. State, the Maryland appellate court recently considered two indictments. In the first case, the defendant was indicted on thirty-seven counts based on shootings that took place at his neighbor’s properties. In the second indictment (called by the court, the “neighbor case”), the defendant was charged with similar…
A Maryland appellate court recently decided a case involving a charge of aggravated cruelty to animals. This case arises from the defendant stabbing a fifteen-year-old in Baltimore, Maryland in July 2004. The police officer went to the house of the defendant’s aunt and saw him run away. A K-9 officer…
Recently, our office represented a criminal defendant who had been charged with prostitution in Baltimore City, MD. She was facing up to one year in jail and a $500.00 fine if she was found guilty. However, the possible immigration consequences were even more severe – deportation from the U.S. Our…
In the recently filed case Edward Charles Schmitt v. State of Maryland, the Maryland Court of Special Appeals considered whether evidence was sufficient to convict a man of sexual abuse or exploitation of a minor where the minor was not aware of the abuse or exploitation. The defendant moved in…
Recently Maryland has been considering criminal bills related to the special protection of minors. This year, the “Misuse of Interactive Computer Service” bill, also known as “Grace’s Law”, is expected to be signed into law. Sponsored by Senator Allen Kittleman, it is a General Assembly bill named after a high…
The Maryland Court of Appeal recently considered a case, Waker v. State, which should be important to all criminal defendants. Prior to a 2009 amendment, a Maryland theft statute provided that theft of something worth not more than $500 was a misdemeanor not to be punished by more than 18…
The Maryland Court of Special Appeals recently ruled in Tubaya v. State of Maryland, an appeal based on the prohibition against double jeopardy in our Constitution. The case arose on June 27, 2011, when Valencia Tubaya pushed into the home of her older parents. She held a “sharp metal object” against…
The Maryland Senate approved a gun-control bill in February that would make it the strictest gun control state in the nation. Governor Martin O’Malley proposed the bill. The key piece of the legislation (and the most controversial) is that it tightens restrictions on gun purchases by residents committed for mental…