UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. BRADFORD D VOL ALLEN
US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, Keenan, November 28, 2018,
Sentencing – Use of a communication facility in a drug-trafficking crime qualifies as a “controlled substance offense” for sentencing enhancement purposes
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RYAN LAWRENCE STECK v. STATE OF MARYLAND
Court of Special Appeals of Maryland, Battaglia, November 28, 2018,
K-9 – A K-9 isn’t required to give its “final alert” in order to establish probable cause that a vehicle contains CDS.
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CAROLYN HOWARD v. BEN CRUMLIN, et al.
Court of Special Appeals of Maryland, Fader, November 28, 2018,
Police Officer Liability – An officer’s failure to make contact with a 911 caller does not make him liable for her subsequent death where there is no showing of malice, gross negligence, or a special duty to protect the victim.
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MICHAEL JOHNSON, JR. v. TYRONE S. FRANCIS, et al.
Court of Special Appeals of Maryland, Fader, November 28, 2018,
Discovery – An individual can’t seek information about the Baltimore Police Department’s assets where a judgment was made against an individual officer and no enforcement action was taken against BPD directly.
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GEORGE SPELL v. STATE OF MARYLAND
Court of Special Appeals of Maryland, Graeff, November 28, 2018,
Possession – A suspect could be convicted of CDS possession where he had a key to the stash location, the CDS in the stash matched CDS recovered off of his person, and he was less than a block away from the stash.
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PHILIP DANIEL THOMAS v. STATE OF MARYLAND
Court of Special Appeals of Maryland, Raker, November 28, 2018,
Resentencing – If parole eligibility is set by statute, a new sentence that increases the time before a defendant is eligible for parole is an increased sentence that must be justified
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MARK ERIC LAWLOR v. DAVID W. ZOOK
US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, Thacker, November 27, 2018,
Death Penalty – Defense expert testimony that the defendant posed a low risk of future violence while incarcerated should have been admitted during death penalty phase of trial

RODNEY LEE AGNEW v. STATE OF MARYLAND
Court of Appeals of Maryland, Hotten, November 20, 2018,
Wiretap – A suspect who violates Maryland wiretap law by recording a conversation related to a substantive crime can have that recording used against him at trial.

BRADFORD OWUSU v. MOTOR VEHICLE ADMINISTRATION
Court of Appeals of Maryland, Hotten, November 20, 2018,
Implied Consent – A driver who refuses an alcohol concentration test after having been read the DR-15 Advice of Rights cannot have his privilege to drive restored just because the officer reading the DR-15 gave an incomplete summary afterwards.

Concur – Watts joins in judgment only
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BALTIMORE CITY DETENTION CENTER v. MICHAEL FOY
Court of Appeals of Maryland, Barbera, November 19, 2018,
COBR – Failure to record a hearing due to technical malfunction may be cured by redoing the meeting on the record.

Reversing COSA opinion