Search Results

open access

Obstruction of Justice: An Overview of Some of the Federal Statutes That Prohibit Interference with Judicial, Executive, or Legislative Activities

Description: This report discusses obstruction of justice, which is is a federal crime. It describes specific kinds of obstruction, organized by type, and references various relevant laws that have provisions against obstruction.
Date: April 17, 2014
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Sex Trafficking: Proposals in the 114th Congress to Amend Federal Criminal Law

Description: This report discusses proposed legislation that would amend federal substantive law in three areas: commercial sex trafficking (18 U.S.C. 1591); the Mann Act, which outlaws transportation and travel for unlawful sexual purposes; and federal tax crimes.
Date: April 29, 2015
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Davis v. United States: Retroactivity and the Good-Faith Exception to the Exclusionary Rule

Description: This report covers the legal causes and implications of Davis v. United States. The Supreme Court will consider whether evidence that was seized in violation of the defendant’s Fourth Amendment rights is admissible at trial because the police seized the evidence in good-faith reliance on then-controlling case law.
Date: April 19, 2011
Creator: Barbour, Emily C.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Closing the Guantanamo Detention Center: Legal Issues

Description: This report provides an overview of major legal issues likely to arise as a result of executive and legislative action to close the Guantanamo detention facility. It discusses legal issues related to the transfer of Guantanamo detainees, the continued detention of such persons in the United States, and the possible removal of persons brought into the country. It also discusses selected constitutional issues that may arise in the criminal prosecution of detainees, emphasizing the procedural and … more
Date: April 14, 2009
Creator: Garcia, Michael John; Bazan, Elizabeth B.; Mason, R. Chuck; Liu, Edward C. & Henning, Anna C.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Federal Habeas Corpus: An Abridged Sketch

Description: This report discusses federal habeas corpus, which is a procedure under which a federal court may review the legality of an individual’s incarceration. It is most often invoked after conviction and the exhaustion of the ordinary means of appeal. It is at once the last refuge of scoundrels and the last hope of the innocent. It is an intricate weave of statute and case law whose reach has flowed and ebbed over time.
Date: April 28, 2006
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Federal Mandatory Minimum Sentencing Statutes: An Overview of Legislation in the 107th Congress

Description: This report examines legislation in the 107th Congress pertaining to federal mandatory minimum sentencing statutes (mandatory minimums), which demand that execution or incarceration follow criminal conviction. They cover drug dealing and using a gun to commit a federal crime, among other crimes.
Date: April 17, 2003
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Sexual Violence at Institutions of Higher Education

Description: This report provides background information on sexual violence on campus and its prevalence, descriptions of the Clery Act and Title IX, and an analysis of prominent policy and legal issues related to these two statutes. It also includes a brief description of a related third statute focused on educational privacy.
Date: April 15, 2016
Creator: Gonzalez, Heather B. & Feder, Jody
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Murderous Schemes are not Violent Crimes?

Description: This report discusses the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit's decision in the case of "U.S. v. McCollum" which stated that conspiracy to murder was not a violent crime for federal sentencing purposes and discusses the background of the case and the prior case law which led to the decision.
Date: April 17, 2018
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF): Budget and Operations for FY2008, FY2009, and FY2010

Description: This report provides an overview of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) budget and operations for FY2008, FY2009, and FY2010. It chronicles congressional action on the annual Commerce, Justice, Science (CJS), and Related Agencies Appropriations bills for those fiscal years, as well as action on supplemental and stimulus appropriations bills.
Date: April 15, 2010
Creator: Krouse, William J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF): Budget and Operations for FY2010

Description: This report provides an overview of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) budget and operations. This report chronicles congressional action on the FY2011 Commerce, Justice, Science (CJS), and Related Agencies Appropriations bills, as well as any FY2010 supplemental appropriations bills, that provide funding for ATF.
Date: April 27, 2010
Creator: Krouse, William J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Public Mass Shootings in the United States: Selected Implications for Federal Public Health and Safety Policy

Description: This report focuses on mass shootings and selected implications they have for federal policy in the areas of public health and safety. While such crimes most directly impact particular citizens in very specific communities, addressing these violent episodes involves officials at all levels of government and professionals from numerous disciplines.
Date: April 16, 2013
Creator: Bjelopera, Jerome P.; Bagalman, Erin; Caldwell, Sarah W.; Finklea, Kristin M. & McCallion, Gail
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

The Death Penalty: Capital Punishment Legislation in the 109th Congress

Description: This report discusses legislation regarding the death penalty in the 109th Congress. The USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act (Reauthorization Act) contains a number of death penalty related provisions. Some create new federal capital offenses; some add the death penalty as a sentencing option in the case of preexisting federal crimes; some alter the procedural attributes of federal capital cases. Other proposals offered during the 109th Congress would have followed the same pattern:… more
Date: April 26, 2006
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Missing and Exploited Children: Background, Policies, and Issues

Description: This report covers only select aspects of the broader topic of missing and exploited children. It begins with an overview of the scope of the missing and exploited children issue, including definitions and approximate numbers of children known to be missing or exploited. The report also provides information about the Missing and Exploited Children's (MEC) program's funding, oversight, and major components. Finally, the report discusses issues that may be relevant to the MEC program.
Date: April 29, 2015
Creator: Fernandes-Alcantara, Adrienne L.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Federal Habeas Corpus: A Brief Legal Overview

Description: This report discusses Federal habeas corpus, which is a procedure under which a federal court may review the legality of an individual’s incarceration. It is most often the stage of the criminal appellate process that follows direct appeal and any available state collateral review.
Date: April 26, 2006
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Enemy Combatant Detainees: Habeas Corpus Challenges in Federal Court

Description: This report provides an overview of the early judicial developments and the establishment of Combatant Status Review Tribunals (CSRTs) procedures; summarizes selected court cases related to the detentions and the use of military commissions; and discusses the Detainee Treatment Act, as amended by the Military Commissions Act of 2006 and the Military Commissions Act of 2009, analyzing its effects on detainee-related litigation in federal court. The report summarizes the Supreme Court's decision … more
Date: April 7, 2009
Creator: Elsea, Jennifer K. & Garcia, Michael J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Economic Impacts of Prison Growth

Description: This report provides an economic overview of the correctional sector as background for the unfolding debate over spending and other policies. It begins with information on the growth in prison populations in public and in private prisons and also briefly explores the economic impacts of prison location. It is not intended a study of the effectiveness of sentencing and other laws, nor of evolving polices aimed at reducing recidivism and prison populations.
Date: April 13, 2010
Creator: Kirchhoff, Suzanne M.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Terrorism, Miranda, and Related Matters

Description: This report provides background information regarding Miranda rights and public safety exception. The report discusses Supreme Court decisions on Miranda v. Arizona, due process inquiry, and the Fifth Amendment right.
Date: April 24, 2013
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Enemy Combatant Detainees: Habeas Corpus Challenges in Federal Court

Description: This report provides an overview of the early judicial developments and the establishment of Combatant Status Review Tribunals (CSRTs) procedures; summarizes selected court cases related to the detentions and the use of military commissions; and discusses the Detainee Treatment Act, as amended by the Military Commissions Act of 2006 and the Military Commissions Act of 2009, analyzing its effects on detainee-related litigation in federal court. The report summarizes the Supreme Court's decision … more
Date: April 5, 2010
Creator: Elsea, Jennifer K. & Garcia, Michael J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Protecting Classified Information and the Rights of Criminal Defendants: The Classified Information Procedures Act

Description: A criminal prosecution involving classified information may cause tension between the government's interest in protecting classified information and the criminal defendant's right to a constitutionally valid trial. In some cases, a defendant may threaten to disclose classified information in an effort to gain leverage. Concerns about this practice, referred to as "graymail," led the 96th Congress to enact the Classified Information Procedures Act to provide uniform procedures for prosecutions i… more
Date: April 2, 2012
Creator: Liu, Edward C. & Garvey, Todd
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Cybersecurity: Authoritative Reports and Resources

Description: Cybersecurity vulnerabilities challenge governments, businesses, and individuals worldwide. Congress has been actively involved in cybersecurity issues, holding hearings every year since 2001. There is no shortage of data on this topic: government agencies, academic institutions, think tanks, security consultants, and trade associations have issued hundreds of reports, studies, analyses, and statistics. This report provides links to selected authoritative resources related to cybersecurity iss… more
Date: April 26, 2012
Creator: Tehan, Rita
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
Back to Top of Screen