Research by Dr. Marian Williams and Dr. Jeff Holcomb, both associate professors of criminal justice in the Department of Government and Justice Studies, has been cited extensively in an amicus curiae brief written to the United States Supreme Court. An amicus brief is a legal argument to the Court written by third parties who hope to inform the Court’s decision. The brief was submitted by the Institute for Justice (IJ), a public interest law firm and legal advocacy organization. The cited research include a report and an article published in the Journal of Criminal Justice written by Williams, Holcomb, and Tomislav Kovandzic of the University of Texas-Dallas on asset forfeiture practices by police agencies. This research has also been cited by prominent media outlets such as columnist George Will and The Economist as well as organizations such as the ACLU and the Cato Institute. The case, Florida v. Harris, will be heard by the Supreme Court on Oct. 31 and deals with the necessary threshold for constitutional police searches.
The amicus curiae brief citing Williams and Holcomb’s research can be found here.
Courtesy of University News