Rashad Roynel Banks shuffled into a federal courtroom in downtown Portland last month, his ankles chained together. His attorney immediately objected, and a judge directed two deputy U.S. marshals to escort Banks back out briefly before his arraignment. Defense lawyer CeCelia E. Valentine wanted the judge to explain why her client, charged with illegally possessing a gun as a felon, required leg shackles in court. It's a question routinely asked in state and federal courts since two recent 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rulings made it clear that judges must evaluate defendants before they can enter a courtroom in handcuffs, a belly chain, leg or other restraints. The decisions have led...
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