On March 21, 2022, the Director of the Maryland State Police Forensic Sciences Division notified the State’s Attorney co-ordinator for Maryland that the MSP lab would cease doing blood alcohol testing because the accrediting agency determined their testing procedure violated scientific requirements for blood alcohol testing. Read the letter here.…
Earlier this week, the Maryland Court of Appeals agreed to hear the case of Dejarnette v. State. In Dejarnette, the Maryland Court of Special Appeals held that a violation of the requirement that officers observe a defendant for 20 minutes before a breath test would only go to the weight…
Last week both houses of the Maryland legislature overrode Governor Hogan’s veto and passed the Maryland Police Accountability Act of 2001. The Act will improve the criminal justice system in Maryland a number of ways: Set stricter standards for use of force by police; Limit the use of “no knock”…
We have noticed lately what seems like an extraordinary number of referrals to the MAB. When anyone suspects that a driver may have a physical or mental condition that would affect their ability to drive, he or she may refer that person to the Medical Advisory Board (MAB) of the…
On this Veteran’s Day we pay tribute to the over 17 million veterans in the US today. These are men and women who have personally sacrificed to preserve our freedoms, and the great experiment in republican democracy that has survived for over 225 years since the adoption of the US…
As you all know by now Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away Friday night on erev (the evening of) Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year). According to Jewish tradition, a person who passes on Rosh Hashanah is considered a “tzadik” – a revered person. The “Notorious RBG” as she came…
Today the Supreme Court issued a 5-4 decision rejecting the Trump administration’s effort to get rid of DACA – Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. Robert’s opinion is worth a read. But here’s my summary of the main points. Administrative action must be supported by a reason at the time the…
Goldstein & Stamm, P.A. is pleased to welcome Michael Stamm to the firm as a new associate attorney. Michael Stamm graduated from Georgetown University Law Center in 2017. While there he interned at public defender offices in Upper Marlboro and Baltimore, Maryland and Fairbanks, Alaska. He worked as an Executive…
Last week, the Supreme Court announced an 8-1 decision, authored by Justice Thomas, in the case of Kansas v. Glover, allowing a police officer to stop a car where the owner’s driver’s license was revoked, without first ascertaining that the driver was the owner. This represents a change in the…
Updated September 30, 2022. As many of you are aware, courts and the MVA are now open. Court hearings are back to normal for the most part, except that there is a backlog of cases that were postponed or delayed during the pandemic. Some District Courts have two am and…