Vermont Law School blog articles featuring stories about criminal law, criminal practice and procedure, evidence, and more. From opinions on criminal justice system reform to innovative criminal justice practices and the latest developments from the Criminal Law Clinic, learn what's going on in the world of criminal law from VLS.
Thad Adkins JD'09, an environmental attorney in Helena, Montana, ended up representing a fellow Montanan imprisoned for 23 years in the appeal of a lifetime.
March 17, 2017
Marijuana reform is at a unique crossroad as policies on the recreational drug vary from state to state. On February 21, 2017, Vermont Law School professor Robert Sand offered his perspective on a fundamentally different approach to the current punitive model.
"It's become a device that marginalizes, and stigmatizes, and penalizes," Sand said of marijuana."As a result, we've created more harm by how we've responded to marijuana, than has ever been created by the plant itself. And that just…
February 17, 2017
By Robert Sand, Assistant Professor of Law
"I was very pleased to see that H.55, a bill that guarantees public defense services to all needy people who were 25 or under at the time of their alleged offense, passed the Vermont House yesterday. This bill rejects the notion that some criminal charges are not "serious" for young people. All charges are serious and can have devastating direct and collateral consequences. This bill is an important advancement in justice. Thank you to the Committee Chair Rep. Maxine Grad and the entire House…