The Maryland Constitution is quite clear on this subject: all state court judges must retire at age 70. This has been in the organic state law for over a century and a half. There have been attempts in the past to raise the so-called age of “constitutional...
A drug conviction may mean serious trouble for anyone who receives one. Yet, if you are living in or around Washington, D.C., as a legal permanent resident or another type of noncitizen, the stakes may prove even higher. Any type of drug conviction, regardless of its...
As science continues to progress and evolve, the criminology fields also change. In recent years, evidence related to DNA science has grown ever more important. You likely understand a thing or two about how DNA factors into court cases. But what do you know about...
Judge Alexander Williams Jr., interviewed Steve Mercer recently on the podcast Perspectives on Justice about parole, pardons, and commutations. Here is an excerpt in which Steve discusses an issue that is profoundly troubling: The irrational failure of the criminal...
ANNAPOLIS, Md. — A Maryland appeals court has overturned the convictions of one of four men who were found guilty in the killings of two Maryland high school students on the eve of their graduation. The Court of Special Appeals ruled Thursday that a trial judge erred...
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — A Maryland appeals court has overturned the convictions of one of four men found guilty in the killings of two Maryland high school students on the eve of their graduation. The court ruled Thursday that a judge erred in preventing attorneys for...
On January 14, 2021, in the Court of Special Appeals, Isabelle Raquin and Steve Mercer secured a major win in a complex criminal case involving forensic science. RaquinMercer won the reversal of the 2017 murder conviction in Galicia v. State of Maryland, No. 3350...
As a leading medical professional, you probably serve many roles. You could be a physician, a researcher, an executive and a thought leader — and those would only be your professional duties. You try to behave ethically, but no one could expect you to be a healthcare...
A Maryland drug conviction may mean major changes to your lifestyle, and it may, too, mean time behind bars. Depending on the circumstances surrounding your drug offense and whether you meet other eligibility criteria, you may be able to avoid spending time behind...
DNA stands for deoxyribonucleic acid, a substance present in your genes and those of all other human beings. Your DNA profile identifies you in much the same way as your fingerprints do. However, as FindLaw explains, forensic experts need only an incredibly small...