Off topic - local playground website

My friend Oliver Trojak has put together a website for the Resica Playground in East Stroudsburg, PA as part of a community service project for his graduate studies.

http://kidscreateplay.com/

Great website build and looks to be a valuable community service program. Check out the site and help out with the playground build if you can.

Appeal work - "Statement of Matters Complained of on Appeal"

The process for an appeal from a Court of Common Pleas to the Superior Court is actually relatively straightforward. Only a simple "Notice of Appeal" needs to be filed along with the appropriate fees. The Notice itself does not need to contain the reasons for the appeal.

The lower court is entitled to request that an appellant file a "Statement of Matters Complained of on Appeal", commonly known as a "1925(b) statement." This is the first time that the appellant is required to list the reasons for the appeal. This need not be an exhaustive brief, and it is usually best to make the statements as simple and clear as possible, but it does need to contain all the claims that are a basis for the appeal. Failure to include an issue in this statement is grounds for the Superior Court to ignore such issues.

This statement is then reviewed by the lower court and may result in a response from the lower court justifying its decision. Such a response is forwarded to the Superior Court for further review along with the briefs of the parties.

Although the 1925(b) statement is relatively simple to prepare it must be done with the knowledge that it is an important part of the appellate process, and failure to complete it adequately could result in waiver of appellate issues.

FBI admits it overstated expert evidence for over two decades.

The Justice Department and FBI have formally acknowledged that nearly every examiner in an elite FBI forensic unit gave flawed testimony in almost all trials in which they offered evidence against criminal defendants over more than a two-decade period before 2000.

Of 28 examiners with the FBI Laboratory’s microscopic hair comparison unit, 26 overstated forensic matches in ways that favored prosecutors in more than 95 percent of the 268 trials reviewed so far, according to the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) and the Innocence Project, which are assisting the government with the country’slargest post-conviction review of questioned forensic evidence.

The cases include those of 32 defendants sentenced to death. Of those, 14 have been executed or died in prison, the groups said under an agreement with the government to release results after the review of the first 200 convictions.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/crime/fbi-overstated-forensic-hair-matches-in-nearly-all-criminal-trials-for-decades/2015/04/18/39c8d8c6-e515-11e4-b510-962fcfabc310_story.html

Wow, simply wow.

Sexual assault cases and disclosure of victims and alleged offenders.

Pocono Mountain Regional Police arrested a 19-year-old Pocono Summit man on April 10 and charged him with statutory sexual assault, according to a police report sent out on Friday.

http://www.poconorecord.com/article/20150417/NEWS/150419477

The press has taken a position that it will not reveal the names of sexual assault victims in news stories, but it has no such prohibition on the names of the alleged offenders. Alleged sexual assault offenders, who have yet to be convicted of a crime, face severe ostracization from the rest of society, including loss of employment. While first amendment issues obviously prevent a prohibition on revealing the names of those involved in sexual assault cases, it would be nice if the press would consider the privacy of those who have not been convicted of such a crime from being released to the public.

Monroe County Family Law Section - 4.10.15 topics covered.

Today was the first monthly lunch meeting of the Monroe County Family Law Section. We covered some interesting topics and had some great food.

Here is the link to a newspaper article about the New York case we discussed at today's lunch - 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2015/04/09/divorce-papers-can-be-served-via-facebook-n-y-court-rules-if-thats-the-best-practical-alternative/

As well as the link to the Judge's opinion - 

http://www.schlamstone.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Baidoo-v-Blood-Dzraku-2015-NY-Slip-Op-25096.pdf

Thanks again to everyone for attending. The next lunch will be May 8th, 2015 at noon at the Willowtree. If anyone has any ideas for topics to discuss feel free to post here or email me and I can prep copies of cases or handouts. Feel free to invite any other family law attorneys who practice in Monroe County, membership in the Monroe County bar is not required, nor is physical office presence in Monroe. It's open to anyone who shows up at the Courthouse for any of the varied family law cases. 

Many thanks to the Monroe County Bar Association for helping set this up, as well as to the Willowtree Inn for hosting us.

Monroe County Family Law Section

Tomorrow, April 10th, at noon at the Willowtree Inn, 601 Ann Street, Stroudsburg, PA 18360 will be the first lunch for the Monroe County Family Law Section. Any attorney practicing in family law in Monroe County is invited to attend. Attorneys working in divorce, custody, adoption, dependency, support - all are welcome.

The first meeting will be an organizational one to set up the meetings going forward. Masters and conciliators are welcome to attend this initial meeting.

I have also started a google groups listserve for us which can be accessed at monroe-county-family-law-attorneys@googlegroups.com It is a private group so you must be approved for membership, just shoot me an email at taxeljones@gmail.com if you're interested. We've had good success with this format at the Criminal Law Section meetings so I hope this one is as popular.

Medical marijuana in Pennsylvania: Eventually...

HARRISBURG (AP) — Prosecutors and police are telling Pennsylvania legislators strict regulatory controls are critical in any medical marijuana law to ensure that it doesn't compound the problem of recreational marijuana use.

Spokesmen for three law-enforcement groups shared that message in testimony Wednesday before what was billed as a fact-finding hearing of the House Health and Judiciary committees.

Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman, speaking for the Pennsylvania District Attorneys Association, says legislators must ensure that the right people are prescribing, distributing and receiving any medical form of marijuana.

James Walsh of the state lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police, says police agencies are concerned that Pennsylvania may endorse the use of marijuana as a pain relief while the federal government says it has "no current medical use."

http://www.poconorecord.com/article/20150408/NEWS/150409481

Not surprising that the law enforcement agencies came out in favour of "strict controls." I'm looking for confirmation but it doesn't appear there was anyone on the other side of the issue before the Judiciary Committee. Medical Marijuana is nearly a foregone conclusion. The only questions is will PA have a disastrous system similar to our ridiculous state liquor store system or will the Commonwealth embrace freedom and individual choice.