Kentucky Supreme Court Limits Post-Conviction DNA Testing: Kentucky's high court today defined the scope of an inmate's access to post-conviction DNA testing, reports the Lexington Herald-Reader (KY). In response to a lawsuit by death row inmate Thomas Clyde Bowling, the court held that inmates are entitled to only one DNA test of old evidence - regardless of the results that test might produce. Bowling was sentenced to death for the 1990 murders of Eddie and Tina Early, whom he shot in their car in the presence of their 2-year-old son. The Kentucky Supreme Court's opinion can be accessed here (from the court's minutes, click on the link to the case Bowling v. Commonwealth).
Hearing in Massachusetts Bullying Case: Three teenage girls appeared in a Massachusetts court today, charged with civil rights violations following the suicide of 15-year-old Phoebe Prince. Prosecutors claim the three girls, along with several other students at their high school, bullied Prince so relentlessly that she hung herself earlier this year. All three have pleaded not guilty, with trials set to begin in 2011. Prince's case in part prompted Massachusetts lawmakers to pass anti-bulling legislation. The Boston Herald has this story.
Proposed Bill Would Strengthen Response to Sexual Assault Crimes: The International Business Times reports that U.S Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) today introduced the Justice for Rape Victims and Improving Use of DNA Evidence Act of 2010. Under the bill, state and local governments would receive extra federal funding if they meet specific requirements related to the handling of rape cases, such as establishing a process through which a victim can have her rape kit tested within 180 days. The bill would also require the Department of Justice to issue annual reports detailing the rape kit DNA backlog. Rep. Nadler highlighted the need for this legislation, citing the "unconscionable" statistic that "fully 1/5 of American women fall[] victim in their lifetimes."
Hearing in Massachusetts Bullying Case: Three teenage girls appeared in a Massachusetts court today, charged with civil rights violations following the suicide of 15-year-old Phoebe Prince. Prosecutors claim the three girls, along with several other students at their high school, bullied Prince so relentlessly that she hung herself earlier this year. All three have pleaded not guilty, with trials set to begin in 2011. Prince's case in part prompted Massachusetts lawmakers to pass anti-bulling legislation. The Boston Herald has this story.
Proposed Bill Would Strengthen Response to Sexual Assault Crimes: The International Business Times reports that U.S Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) today introduced the Justice for Rape Victims and Improving Use of DNA Evidence Act of 2010. Under the bill, state and local governments would receive extra federal funding if they meet specific requirements related to the handling of rape cases, such as establishing a process through which a victim can have her rape kit tested within 180 days. The bill would also require the Department of Justice to issue annual reports detailing the rape kit DNA backlog. Rep. Nadler highlighted the need for this legislation, citing the "unconscionable" statistic that "fully 1/5 of American women fall[] victim in their lifetimes."
Leave a comment