Ringstrom DeKrey

09/30/2025

The First Step Act created a standard that inmates should be placed closer to their homes, when possible. An audit found room for improvement in actually implementing that standard.

The First Step Act was meant to put inmates closer to their families but that has not happened. An OIG report details the challenges.

08/14/2025

Cases that are dismissed or acquitted as of Aug. 1 will close 61 days after the ruling. Defendants with acquittals or dismissals before Aug. 1 have to file a petition to seal the records.

07/10/2025

Moving in the right direction, North Dakota.

New budgets for state agencies and commissions in North Dakota went into effect July 1 and one commission will see a 20% increase over the next two years — the Commission on Legal Counsel for Indigents.

07/07/2025

Celebrate the due process wins.

The U.S. Supreme Court handed down several rulings Thursday including two in favor of decades-old criminal defendants.

05/01/2025

A great trio of new bills for North Dakotans.

Bismarck, N.D. – North Dakota Governor Kelly Armstrong has signed three bills aimed at reforming the criminal justice system for specific defendants, and providing more support to convicts who are released from prison Known as the “deflection”

04/30/2025

"You can paint a very clear picture of someone's life with just a list of all the places they've been in their car," this article observes.

Records reviewed by WIRED show law enforcement agencies are eager to take advantage of the data trails generated by a flood of new internet-connected vehicle features.

04/10/2025

We agree with Gov. Armstrong about the dignity of those convicted. Says the governor, “We don’t criminalize people. We criminalize conduct and that is why lady justice is blind. That is why facilities like this matter.”

The rehabilitation of female inmates in North Dakota took a large step forward Wednesday as state officials celebrated the groundbreaking of the first prison in state history designed to house women.

03/12/2025

This article recommends changing the Federal Rules of Evidence "that force judges to admit evidence when there is compelling proof that the evidence is fake."

In the age of AI, listener authentication of voice evidence should be permissive,  not mandatory.

02/26/2025

“I think what we are teaching law enforcement is that the rules have no meaning,” says a law professor quoted in this article.

New records show that the F.B.I. identified Bryan Kohberger as a potential murder suspect after tapping consumer databases that were supposed to be off limits.

01/31/2025

Our firm is proud to be a sponsor of this double-bill show.

🎭 We’re getting excited for our upcoming double bill of Scalia/Ginsburg and Trial by Jury!!

Friday, February 28 and Sunday, March 2 at Comstock Theater at Concordia College!

These two dynamic works showcase both
the wit and passion of the legal world:

⚖️ Scalia/Ginsburg – A clever, witty opera that imagines a conversation between Supreme Court Justices Antonin Scalia and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, exploring their unlikely friendship and differing views with humor and depth. This will be a regional premiere of the opera by Derrick Wang!

🎻 Trial by Jury – Gilbert & Sullivan’s charming comic operetta about a trial of love and justice, where the courtroom drama takes a hilariously unexpected turn.

You’re invited to join us as we bring these stories to life! Whether you’re a fan of legal drama, opera, or both, this production promises to entertain and provoke thought.

01/21/2025

Our attorney Bruce Ringstrom Jr. is quoted in this article on drug-charging decisions in Polk County, MN.

Over the past five years, hundreds of people in Polk County, Minnesota, have been charged with possessing drugs in “drug-free zones” despite not setting foot on those properties. They include two young men who admitted to police they previously used drugs at one of their parents’ houses, which...

01/09/2025

In many cases, minimum sentencing unnecessarily hamstrings judges.

The bill will set mandatory minimum penalties for resisting arrest, fleeing law enforcement and assaulting officers. One lawmaker says the state can't incarcerate its way out of the problem.