The recent news of child abuse allegations against NFL running back Adrian Peterson has raised several moral and legal questions. Is it legal to spank a child? Can a parent discipline a child by hitting them? What does the law consider to be child abuse? Does New York State's laws on child abuse differ from other states? I address this questions in an interview with WGRZ's Claudine Ewing in her report on how the Adrian Peterson case stirs the conversation on child discipline. Click the video above to watch my legal analysis on child abuse laws.
A Yemen-born man who was resided in Rochester was indited on Tuesday. He is accused of recruiting for the terrorist organization, the Islamic State, also known as ISIS. While the terror charges the suspect faces are serious, he is also charged with additional substantive crimes. NBC News affiliate WGRZ aired a detailed report on the suspect, including an interview with me for some legal analysis on the case. Click on the video above to hear my commentary on the statute being used in this case as well as the potential jail time the suspect faces just for gun charges and other crimes.
The Buffalo Police have begun to utilize new audio surveillance technology. The device allows police to know when a shooting occurs and may even be able to tell the direction in which bullets were fired. Can such audio surveillance also detect and record conversations of citizens on the street? Would the audio surveillance of gun shots or human voices be admissible in court? Click on the video above where I address these questions in WGRZ Channel 2's full report on the Buffalo Police's new audio surveillance tool.
Over the past 4 months, NBC News affiliate WGRZ has been investigating the Erie County Sheriff's Department and its use of cell phone tracking devices on citizens without a warrant. I have provided legal analysis for WGRZ throughout their investigative reports. The federal appeals courts has ruled it is unconstitutional to perform cell phone tracking without a warrant. Despite the ruling Erie County Sheriff Tim Howard has indicated he will continue the practice. The video above shows the entire report in the latest developments in this cell phone tracking investigation, including my analysis regarding the 11th Circuit's ruling.
A WGRZ investigative report has unveiled that the Erie County Sheriff's Department has spent over $350,000 on equipment used to spy of citizens' cell phones. The report details the type of equipment purchased, its spying capabilities, and the confidentiality used by law enforcement agencies as well as the equipment manufacturer when such devices are purchased. WGRZ asked that I provide perspective as their legal expert for the report to discuss if information obtained by the Sheriff's Department could be used in court and the constitutionality of such law enforcement tactics. Click above to watch the full report and my analysis on the legality of the Erie County Sheriff Department's use of cell phone spying devices.
Buffalo Board of Education member Carl Paladino is reported to have some strong opposition to fellow members of the Buffalo school board. Paladino has raised questions on the competence and ethics of some board members and made formal motions regarding these issues. Such motions require paperwork and often requires the work of an outside law firm. These actions consequently result in costs to taxpayers. Local NBC news affiliate WGRZ recently reported on Carl Paladino's removal motions and interviewed me for a legal perspective. You can watch the report, including my commentary, by clicking on the video above.