Daughter in a long line. Law Prof @ AU WCL. Africana Legal Studies!
HBCU double alumna (Howard U).
Thoughts and opinions are my own :)
Jun 30, 2023 • 31 tweets • 4 min read
303 creative just dropped!
Following ScotusBlog's live feed this morning.
Jan 27, 2023 • 31 tweets • 5 min read
Re #TyreNichols I'm trying to make sense of it all still. Been following my college roommate, friend, and sis @BMoncreaseTV for updates; she is a reporter in Memphis and is there on the ground.
I'm not a criminal practitioner or a Tennessee Attorney, but I have some broad thoughts that might be helpful to some. First, the law stuff. Then, some thoughts on whiteness in all of this.
Dec 15, 2021 • 53 tweets • 7 min read
Okay, so now I'm going to go back and glance at some of Stoughton's testimony. I probably won't finish tonight, because he was on the stand for a long time--given his centrality to the case. But I'll try and get as much as I can.
Seth Stoughton is an assoc prof at the Univ of South Carolina School of Law. As I said, he was also the use of force expert in Chauvin, and his testimony really brought the state argument home
Dec 15, 2021 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
Ah looks like Seth Stoughton was a witness today for the state in the Kim Potter trial. He was the use of force expert that the state used in the Chauvin trial. He was great.
Aubrey Wright also testified as the spark of life witness for Daunte Wright. I think he may be the state's last witness.
Dec 15, 2021 • 10 tweets • 2 min read
Derek Chauvin Pleads Guilty to Violating George Floyd’s Rights nytimes.com/2021/12/15/us/…
So Chauvin entered a guilty plea in the federal case. Looks like federal prosecutors will seek a 25 year sentence, and it'd be served in federal prison (concurrent with his state sentence of 22.5 years). This would add a couple years to his sentence.
Dec 15, 2021 • 25 tweets • 3 min read
Defense is crossing the officer who trains on tasers. And Paul Engh uses the phrase "split second decisions." hitting on a common theme in these police cases.
Engh emphasizes that Taser 7 was a new model that the dept got early in 2021 and Potter never used it in the field. This is a red herring. This case isn't about her making a mistake while using an unfamiliar taser. The mistake was grabbing an entirely different weapon.
Dec 14, 2021 • 7 tweets • 1 min read
Commander Garrett Flesland is now on the stand.
Main point of this witness is to bring in records (remember: all evidence, including documents, has to come in thru witnesses), specifically Potter's training and personnel records.
Dec 13, 2021 • 9 tweets • 2 min read
The state's second motion requests that Judge Chu allow the state to elicit testimony related to union membership for the purpose of establishing bias in various law enforcement witnesses.
To this point, Judge Chu has held that union membership is not relevant in this case. The state disagrees. The state wants to be able to argue to the judge that it should be allowed to at least bring up union membership when the defense parades police witnesses in here.
Dec 13, 2021 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
I'm looking at the state's filings. Looks like the state asked the judge to preclude Defense from offering "improper lay opinion testimony" during their case.
The state explained that they think the defense intends to elicit testimony from police witnesses about the legality of Potter's conduct (e.g. whether her use of force was authorized). State is preemptively arguing that the defense needs use of force experts to do that.
Dec 13, 2021 • 5 tweets • 1 min read
State says they have no further witnesses this afternoon. (They have more witnesses, just not today--usually you ask your witnesses to show up on their day, as opposed to asking all witnesses to show up every day....
...especially with expert witnesses, who you have to pay by the hour and pay for their transportation and accommodations, you usually try to keep their availability timeframe narrow so you're not wasting money/resources.
Dec 13, 2021 • 21 tweets • 3 min read
State's next witness is Travis Melland. He's a forensic scientist for the BCA. He is the ballistics expert.
His testimony is probably also going to be pretty straightforward and is meant to meet that burden of proof that the state has to show causation.
Dec 13, 2021 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
State's next witness is Eric Koeppen. He is a forensic scientist in the biology section of the BCA laboratory.
He examines evidence for biological fluids, does DNA profiling, writes reports, review other scientists' work, and testifies as needed.
Dec 13, 2021 • 42 tweets • 4 min read
State calls Michelle Frascone. She's a police officer with the BCA. Asst. Special Agent In Charge.
Larson is walking up to asking her about the features and functionality of firearms and tasers.
Dec 13, 2021 • 30 tweets • 4 min read
Next witness for the State is Special Agent Brent Petersen. Another BCA agent.
He's done about 73 police use of force investigations.
Dec 13, 2021 • 12 tweets • 2 min read
Next witness is Agent Michelle Frascone who works as a forensic scientist at the Minnesota BCA.
She explains that the BCA crime lab examines items of evidence to assist with BCA investigations. Identifies DNA, prints, body fluid, firearms and tool marks, toxicology, etc.
Dec 13, 2021 • 28 tweets • 4 min read
State is calling a Dr. So and So. As I expected, today is going to be about expert testimony.
This is Dr. Lorren Jackson. He is an assistant medical examiner at Hennepin County. Gotta get the medical examiner in.
Nov 24, 2021 • 41 tweets • 5 min read
So, a quick breakdown of the verdict, why some guilty and some not guilty, etc.
The jury navigated the verdict form beautifully actually.
Nov 24, 2021 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
Man Is Exonerated in Rape Case Described in Alice Sebold’s Memoir nytimes.com/2021/11/23/nyr…
From that article: prosecutor joined the motion to vacate the conviction, noting that "witness identifications of strangers, particularly those that cross racial lines, are often unreliable."
May 3, 2021 • 13 tweets • 2 min read
Defense also filed a memo opposing the upward sentencing departure.
Defense basically argued the exact opposite. Says Floyd was not particularly vulnerable bc he was over six feet tall, muscular, and weighed over 200 lbs; was able to prevent two officers from putting him in the squad; and "continued to struggle" on the ground. 🤦🏾♀️ Sigh
May 3, 2021 • 7 tweets • 1 min read
Re #ChauvinSentencing the state just filed a memorandum detailing its arguments for an aggravated sentence.
Their reasons: 1. George Floyd was a particularly vulnerable victim bc he was in a vulnerable position on the ground.
