Ken Strutin

September 12, 2006 | New York Law Journal

Ken Strutin, director of legal information services at the New York State Defenders Association, writes that one facet of personal technology is the ability to easily transfer information from one device to another, which means that any one gadget might hold an assortment of private communications and records. And, when they are discovered during an arrest or investigation, the question is: How far can the police go in searching and seizing a virtual private library?

By Ken Strutin

8 minute read

September 19, 2005 | Law.com

Ken Strutin, director of legal information services at the New York State Defenders Association, writes that due process in the Information Age means leveling a dynamic playing field. As courtrooms are being wired for computer access, jurors and litigants are opening the courthouse doors just enough to allow the Internet inside. These online excursions are challenging current notions of fair trial and equal justice.

By Ken Strutin

7 minute read

September 08, 2009 | New York Law Journal

Ken Strutin, director of legal information services at the New York State Defenders Association, writes: "New technologies and communication tools are flooding our lives. And they raise an important question for lawyers: What gadgets and software are people using?1 Beyond the businessware common in law offices, there is the larger world of smartphones and Web 2.0 inhabited by clients, witnesses, jurors and criminal justice professionals. It is this technological realm that provides a new cultural-communicative context for case preparation and litigation strategies."

By Ken Strutin

10 minute read

November 04, 2008 | New York Law Journal

Ken Strutin, director of legal information services at the New York State Defenders Association, writes that expert knowledge in psychology, sociology and computer forensics can provide a missing link in understanding exotic Information Age behavior. Otherwise, he warns, there is a danger of making unscientific assumptions about the innocent activities of computer users and Web surfers.

By Ken Strutin

12 minute read

July 29, 2004 | Law.com

Lawyers and academics seemed to start publishing new information online about Blakely v. Washington and sentencing guidelines before the ink on the Supreme Court opinion was dry. They've embraced the power of Web logs -- with their capacity for self-publishing, easy updates and reader input -- to create an electronic bullpen where practitioners can share observations and news. Find the best-informed sites.

By Ken Strutin

5 minute read

May 17, 2006 | Law.com

Lawmakers are allowing the use of blogs as evidence in investigations and trials, which has raised a host of constitutional issues. In essence, blogs are electronically accessible versions of private diaries and personal papers -- sharing the qualities of print journals in substance and computer evidence in form. Attorney Ken Strutin analyzes issues presented by the use of blogs in the courtroom, and discusses the details of several cases that have addressed them.

By Ken Strutin

9 minute read

March 08, 2005 | New York Law Journal

Ken Strutin, director of legal information services at the New York State Defenders Association, writes that computerized evidence can run the gamut from blowups to slick graphics and special effects. Like traditional demonstrative evidence, it is up to the trial judge to determine if it is a fair, accurate reproduction.

By Ken Strutin

7 minute read

November 13, 2007 | New York Law Journal

Ken Strutin, director of legal information services at the New York State Defenders Association, writes that when it comes time to face the output from an analysis by a computer driven machine, a human being has the right to know whether the inner workings of that witness are reliable. And every defendant ought to be entitled to examine those inner workings with the help of an expert.

By Ken Strutin

11 minute read

March 11, 2008 | New York Law Journal

Ken Strutin, director of legal information services at the New York State Defenders Association, writes that until recently, the Fifth Amendment provided guidance in responding to demands for keys to lock boxes and combinations for safes. Now suspects are being asked to disclose information that will access computer hard drives and open encrypted files. How far will the Constitution protect the right against self-incrimination in light of increasingly sophisticated means of securing computer contents?

By Ken Strutin

10 minute read

May 14, 2008 | Legaltech News

Prosecutors oppose the use of biometric evidence. But since juries are allowed to hear from laypersons to help them identify a figure in a surveillance photo, fairness dictates the use of biometrics for a defendant to counter a critical element of the state's case, identification.

By Ken Strutin

11 minute read