Technology

Could NSA surveillance help an accused bank robbery conspirator? His lawyer thinks so

The lawyer for a Florida man accused in a series of bank robbery attempts says phone records collected by the National Security Agency could prove his client wasn’t at one of the crime sites. The lawyer, Marshall Dore Louis, has filed a motion for NSA records on phones used by…

Jun 13, 2013 1:49 PM CDT

Prosecutors’ use of mobile phone tracking is ‘junk science,’ critics say

Jun 1, 2013 8:50 AM CDT

Should the cellphone industry do more to end the trade in stolen smartphones?

Stolen cellphones account for nearly half of the robberies in San Francisco and are such a common problem in Chicago that authorities urge riders not to use smartphones on the city’s mass transit system. But the problem could be greatly reduced, some say, if handset makers and carriers did more…

May 2, 2013 6:30 PM CDT

In ‘truly bizarre’ situation, FDA, DOJ and federal judge differ on ‘Plan B’ pill sale to teens

In the latest round of a hard-fought political battle over the issue of whether the so-called morning-after birth control pill should be available without a prescription to 15- and 16-year-olds, a federal regulatory agency has told pharmacies they are free to sell one brand, Plan B One-Step, over the counter,…

May 2, 2013 4:15 PM CDT

Connecting the digital dots to catch the ‘Craigslist Killer’

When police responded to the April 14, 2009 murder of a young woman in an upscale Boston hotel, they had little to go on. Besides the victim, who was found face down in the doorway of her room, her hands bound with plastic ties, with three 9-mm bullet wounds to…

Apr 8, 2013 1:40 PM CDT

Law firms offer cybersecurity advice and attorney-client privilege to hacked companies

Law firms are getting involved as companies investigate hacker incidents, providing attorney-client privilege to shield the findings in future lawsuits. The Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) has a story on the trend. In one example, Nationwide Insurance hired Ropes & Gray after a hacker obtained personal details about 1 million…

Apr 2, 2013 11:00 AM CDT

Unlikely allies join in a push to require warrants for access to digital communications

Apr 1, 2013 10:10 AM CDT

Cloudy opinions: Online activities are still in the Wild West of regulation

Apr 1, 2013 7:40 AM CDT

Can a brain scan predict recidivism? Low activity in one brain region is linked to rearrest

A brain scan study of 96 inmates in New Mexico has found that those with low activity in a region of the brain controlling impulsivity were more likely to be arrested after their release. Researchers with the Mind Research Network in Albuquerque, N.M., used functional magnetic resonance imaging to scan…

Mar 28, 2013 10:45 AM CDT

Scalia and Kagan appear most skeptical about DNA collection from arrestees

Justice Antonin Scalia appeared unimpressed with the statistics on Tuesday when the U.S. Supreme Court debated the constitutionality of collecting DNA samples from those arrested for serious crimes. Scalia commented after Maryland’s chief deputy attorney general, Katherine Winfree, offered some statistics, report the National Law Journal, the New York Times…

Feb 27, 2013 2:59 PM CST

It’s a golden age for Texas’ oil and gas transactional lawyers

Feb 1, 2013 10:59 AM CST

Space law is taking off

Feb 1, 2013 8:59 AM CST

Anonymous DNA study volunteers identified with online sleuthing; consent form covered possibility

Volunteers participating in the 1000 Genomes Project signed a consent form saying the researchers could not guarantee their privacy. At the time, the risk appeared remote, according to the director of a government entity that that helps fund and direct the project. Not any more. “We are in what I…

Jan 22, 2013 12:00 PM CST