Articles Posted in Criminal Investigation

With the advent of “smart homes and devices,” we are now in a world once only imagined in science fiction. Our phones now track our every move, contain our internet search histories and record vast portions of our lives through photos, texts, and encrypted messages. Home security devices and cameras record not only strangers coming…

Back in April 2017, I wrote about airport and border searches of average travelers coming back to the United States from their business or personal trips abroad. Since you are coming back across our border, law enforcement does not need probable cause to suspect that a crime has been committed, that you were involved, and…

Every day we are bombarded with news about the ever-expanding investigation into the President and the alleged Russian connection to his staff. The news media has been filled with headlines and postings about people who are labeled a “person of interest,” a “subject,” a “target” or a “witness”. Do these terms have specific meanings to…

Fitbit Data Leads to Husband Charged with Wife’s Murder Technology has advanced the ease and quality of life immeasurably. Smart phones are handheld computers that can surf the internet; deliver emails, texts and phone calls; take videos and pictures; make dinner reservations and track your every movement through various apps. Our cars can almost drive…

Violent police encounters and police officer involved shootings have dominated the national press for some time. Such encounters have led to mass protests; much-needed examinations of police policies, procedures and training; and pleas for better relations between the police and the communities they serve. One result has been the call for body worn video cameras…

The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects us from unreasonable searches and seizures. Unlike a warrantless stop and search of a car or of a person walking down the street, when law enforcement searches a home or business they have usually obtained a search warrant to do so. A search warrant must be issued…

Between the President’s accusation that the prior President tapped his phones, and WikiLeaks recent exposure of alleged CIA hacking tools and techniques, much has been reported in recent days about the government’s ability to intercept and listen to our conversations over our cellphones; computers; smart home devices such as televisions and baby monitors; products such…

In many types of criminal cases, the right expert can be invaluable. Whether it is a forensic accountant in a complex fraud or tax investigation; a medical or billing expert in a healthcare fraud investigation; a forensic psychiatrist for a sex abuse or child pornography case; a computer expert for a computer crimes matter; or…

In the past few years, the explosion in the popularity of smart phones, text messaging, and use of social media has dramatically altered the fabric of our lives in ways that we are only beginning to understand. It has also changed the way that sophisticated attorneys investigate and litigate criminal cases. We all now carry…

Thanks to television and movies, most people are aware that prosecutors often make deals or agreements with individuals under investigation, wherein the person being investigated is granted immunity from prosecution or a reduction of charges in exchange for providing information to the government. Of course, the details of these negotiations are dramatized for the sake…