| Appellate Review of Comments During Closing Arguments and Standards of Review |
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| When a defendant appeals his conviction on the basis that the trial court erred in overruling his objection to the prosecutor's improper comments made during closing arguments, the appellate court will analyze the entire closing argument. The trial court is given wide discretion with respect to closing arguments.
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| FEDERAL LAWS REGARDING EXTORTION |
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| A person commits the federal offense of extortion if he or she transmits in interstate or foreign commerce any demand or request for ransom or for a reward for the release of a kidnapped person, any threat to kidnap or injure another person, or any threat to injure the property or reputation of another person or to accuse another person of a crime with the intent to extort. The federal offense of extortion applies to both interstate and foreign telephone calls and other forms of communication. As long as the communication crosses state or national borders, the communication is considered to involve interstate or foreign commerce. More... |
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| FEDERAL LAWS REGARDING HOSTAGE-TAKING |
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| Although the policy of the federal government is that most hostage-taking offenses within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States should be handled by state and local authorities, there are situations in which the federal government may be involved in prosecuting such offenses. These situations include the taking of a federal official or an international guest as a hostage, a demand against the United States regarding the hostage-taking, or when international terrorists are the perpetrators. More... |
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| Jury Selection in Capital Cases |
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| In a case in which a defendant may face the death penalty, jury selection takes on additional and different concerns than those faced in jury selection generally. The nature of the case, penalty phase procedures and length of the case are all additional factors that must be taken into consideration. More... |
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| WITNESS TAMPERING |
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| A person commits the offense of witness tampering if he or she offers, confers, or agrees to confer any benefit on a witness or a prospective witness in a judicial or an administrative proceeding.
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