Plea Deal in Celebrity Child Pornography Case
Mark Salling, most known for his acting and singing role in “Glee,” was charged with 2 counts of child pornography. In 2015, law enforcement raided his home and found more than 25,000 images and 160 videos of child pornography and 29,000 images of child erotica stored on his computer. If convicte...
Convicted Felons in Arizona & Restoration of Their Constitutional Right to Vote
Voting Rights after conviction of a felony.
Fentanyl: an Opiate of the Masses Causes Arizona DPS to Change its Policy on Field Testing of Drugs
Fentanyl is a dangerous opiate. A Schedule II controlled substance because of its high risk of dependency and dangerous side effects, the drug was primarily meant only to provide relief from serious pain. Fentanyl can be injected, swallowed, inhaled, or absorbed through the skin, and if used prop...
When Sexual Conduct is Misinterpreted as Sexual Assault (or Vice Versa): Betsy DeVos Takes Back Fairness and Due Process
Fairness and due process of law may soon be coming back to school campuses across the nation. Under the Obama Administration, regardless if well-intentioned, the Title IX policies for sexual assaults that were put into place stripped constitutional rights from accused persons. Education Secretary...
Possible Defenses to Aggravated Assault in Arizona
Law enforcement officers must uphold the laws as any other citizen must; they are not above the law. A new case in Arizona illustrates this fact. A Pima County Corrections Officer was charged in June 2017 with aggravated assault of a juvenile. On May 26, 2017, there was a fight between juvenile i...
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos Returning Office of Civil Rights to Impartial Investigative Agency
There has been considerable controversy regarding Education Secretary DeVos recent meetings with representatives of organizations advocating on behalf of men accused of sexual offenses on college campuses. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos said she is returning the Office for Civil Rights to its...
Former Maricopa County Sheriff on Trial for Contempt of Court
In late June, both the prosecution and the defense of former Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio rested their cases after four days in court. Arpaio is currently being charged for criminal contempt of the court for ignoring a federal judge who ordered him to end his practice of traffic patrols which looke...
New Reporting Protocols Show Frequency of Opioid Related Deaths in Arizona
As the dramatic effects of the opioid crisis are being felt in the state of Arizona, Governor Ducey has signed a declaration of emergency to try to address the systemic and widespread problem. On June 5, the governor published a document citing the fact that there has been a 74% increase in opioi...
Automated Risk Assessment Tools Gaining Traction in Court
As incarceration levels in Arizona and around the United States rise and courts struggle to cope with the number of defendants passing through their doors, many states and governments have been turning to automated systems streamline the processing of many defendants. One controversial tool imple...
Best Lawyers In America 2017
Best Lawyers has once again chosen to recognize Steve Sherick for the 2017 Edition of Best Lawyers in America for Criminal Defense. Sherick and Bleier PLLC has been recognized again for Best Law Firms in the United States for Criminal Defense.
Setting Aside a Criminal Conviction in Arizona
Arizona allows a person who has been convicted of a criminal offense to apply to judge for an order to set aside the judgment of guilt. To be eligible to have a conviction set aside the individual must have fulfilled the conditions of his/her conditions of probation or discharged the sentence of...
Title IX Rights of Accused Students Violated
The U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights (OCR) recently reported that Wesley College had violated the Title IX rights of students accused of sexual assault. Among the violations found by OCR were: 1) The school would impose interim suspensions before interviewing the acc...
Governor Signs HB 2539 Providing Limited Relief from Sex Offender Registration For Youthful Offenders
Last week Governor Ducey signed legislation permitting offenders who engaged in sexual conduct with a minor when they were under 22 years of age to petition to have their sex offender registration terminated. The bill provides limited relief and is conditioned upon the sexual conduct to have bee...
Legislation Would Give Limited Relief from Sex Offender Registration for Youthful Offenders
The Arizona Legislature has passed H.B. 2539 and it awaits the Governor's signature to become law. The statute would provide limited relief to offenders who were convicted of sexual conduct with a minor and the crime was committed when the offender was 22 years old or younger. Among other requ...