Free Republic

Mass. Court Strikes Down Drug-Trafficking Roadblocks Court rejects state's comparison to sobriety checkpoints Denise Magnell American Lawyer Media January 21, 2000 Roadblocks set up by local authorities to stop drug trafficking are unconstitutional, unlike roadblocks intended to stop drunken drivers who pose an "imminent threat to the lives and safety of the public," the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled Jan. 19. The case, Commonwealth v. Hector Rodriguez, stemmed from a 1997 roadblock in Holyoke in which 58 vehicles were stopped in a high-crime area. According to the suit, the police had outlined a plan for the roadblock to confiscate narcotics, ...

CAVEAT: FOR DISCUSSION AMONG CITIZENS HAVING AN INTEREST IN THE CONTROVERSIAL SUBJECT OF THE RIGHT TO KEEP AND BEAR ARMS AND THE COMPELLING GOVERNMENTAL INTERESTS IN THE OUTER LIMITS OF AUTHORITY TO CONTROL OR CURTAIL SECOND AMENDMENT RIGHTS Beneath the Robes Dan Christensen Miami Daily Business Review as reported by Law News Network January 14, 2000 TAKING CARE OF NO. 1: While U.S. District Senior Judge Roettger knows he can call on federal marshals if he feels he needs protection, it isn't enough. 'The marshals haven't lost anybody they had under their protection,' he says, 'but even so you always ...