Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Digital Commons Network

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 22 of 22

Full-Text Articles in Entire DC Network

The Gratuities Debate And Campaign Reform – How Strong Is The Link?, George D. Brown Nov 2011

The Gratuities Debate And Campaign Reform – How Strong Is The Link?, George D. Brown

George D. Brown

The federal gratuities statute, 18 USC § 201(c), continues to be a source of confusion and contention. The confusion stems largely from problems of draftsmanship within the statute, as well as uncertainty concerning the relationship of the gratuities offense to bribery. Both offenses are contained in the same statute; the former is often seen as a lesser-included offense variety of the latter. The controversy stems from broader concerns about whether the receipt of gratuities by public officials, even from those they regulate, should be a crime. The argument that such conduct should not be criminalized can be traced to, and …


The Better Part Of Valor: The Real Id Act, Discretion, And The “Rule” Of Immigration Law, Daniel Kanstroom Nov 2011

The Better Part Of Valor: The Real Id Act, Discretion, And The “Rule” Of Immigration Law, Daniel Kanstroom

Daniel Kanstroom

This article considers the problems raised by a federal law--the “REAL ID Act”--that seeks to preclude judicial review of discretionary immigration law decisions. Discretion, the flexible shock absorber of the administrative state, must be respected by our legal system. However, as Justice Felix Frankfurter once wrote, discretion is, “only to be respected when it is conscious of the traditions which surround it and of the limits which an informed conscience sets to its exercise.” The article suggests that judicial construction of the REAL ID Act will plumb the deep meaning of this qualification. The new law states, essentially, that constitutional …


Criminalizing The Undocumented: Ironic Boundaries Of The Post-September 11th ‘Pale Of Law.’, Daniel Kanstroom Nov 2011

Criminalizing The Undocumented: Ironic Boundaries Of The Post-September 11th ‘Pale Of Law.’, Daniel Kanstroom

Daniel Kanstroom

The general hypothesis put forth in this Article is that well-accepted historical matrices are increasingly inadequate to address the complex issues raised by various U.S. government practices in the so-called “war on terrorism.” The Article describes certain stresses that have recently built upon two major legal dichotomies: the citizen/non-citizen and criminal/civil lines. Professor Kanstroom reviews the use of the citizen/non-citizen dichotomies as part of the post-September 11th enforcement regime and considers the increasing convergence between the immigration and criminal justice systems. Professor Kanstroom concludes by suggesting the potential emergence of a disturbing new legal system, which contains the worst features …


Deportation And Justice: A Constitutional Dialogue, Daniel Kanstroom Nov 2011

Deportation And Justice: A Constitutional Dialogue, Daniel Kanstroom

Daniel Kanstroom

Recent statutory changes to the United States immigration law have resulted in a large increase in the number of lawful permanent resident noncitizens who are deported because of prior criminal conduct. Now, deportation is often a virtually automatic consequence of conviction for an increasingly minor array of crimes including possessory drug offenses and shoplifting. Under current statutory law, permanent resident noncitizens may be deported for crimes that were not grounds for deportation when they were committed and there may be no possibiilty of mercy or humanitarian relief. This Dialogue explores arguments for and against this system. Specifically, it examines the …


Judicial Integrity: A Call For Its Re-Emergence In The Adjudication Of Criminal Cases, Robert M. Bloom Oct 2011

Judicial Integrity: A Call For Its Re-Emergence In The Adjudication Of Criminal Cases, Robert M. Bloom

Robert M. Bloom

A court can invalidate or rectify certain kinds of offensive official action on the grounds of judicial integrity. In the past, it has served as a check on overzealous law enforcement agents whose actions so seriously impaired due process principles that they shocked the bench’s conscience. The principle not only preserves the judiciary as a symbol of lawfulness and justice, but it also insulates the courts from becoming aligned with illegal actors and their bad acts. The 1992 case of U.S. v. Alvarez-Machain, however, may have signaled a departure from past practices. This article reviews current Supreme Court cases and …


The Constitutional Infirmity Of Warrantless Nsa Surveillance: The Abuse Of Presidential Power And The Injury To The Fourth Amendment, Robert M. Bloom, William J. Dunn Oct 2011

The Constitutional Infirmity Of Warrantless Nsa Surveillance: The Abuse Of Presidential Power And The Injury To The Fourth Amendment, Robert M. Bloom, William J. Dunn

Robert M. Bloom

In recent months, there have been many revelations about the tactics used by the Bush Administration to prosecute their war on terrorism. These stories involve the exploitation of technologies that allow the government, with the cooperation of phone companies and financial institutions, to access phone and financial records. This paper focuses on the revelation and widespread criticism of the Bush Administration’s operation of a warrantless electronic surveillance program to monitor international phone calls and emails that originate or terminate with a United States party. The powerful and secret National Security Agency heads the program and leverages its significant intelligence collection …


Reconsidering Spousal Privileges After Crawford, R. Michael Cassidy Oct 2011

Reconsidering Spousal Privileges After Crawford, R. Michael Cassidy

R. Michael Cassidy

In this article the author explores how domestic violence prevention efforts have been adversely impacted by the Supreme Court’s new “testimonial” approach to the confrontation clause. Examining the Court’s trilogy of cases from Crawford to Davis and Hammon, the author argues that the introduction of certain forms of hearsay in criminal cases has been drastically limited by the court’s new originalist approach to the Sixth Amendment. The author explains how state spousal privilege statutes often present a significant barrier to obtaining live testimony from victims of domestic violence. The author then argues that state legislatures should reconsider their spousal privilege …


Toward A More Independent Grand Jury: Recasting And Enforcing The Prosecutor’S Duty To Disclose Exculpatory Evidence, R. Michael Cassidy Oct 2011

Toward A More Independent Grand Jury: Recasting And Enforcing The Prosecutor’S Duty To Disclose Exculpatory Evidence, R. Michael Cassidy

R. Michael Cassidy

This Article analyzes the Supreme Court’s decision in Williams, in which the Court struck down an attempt by the Tenth Circuit to impose an obligation on federal prosecutors to disclose substantial exculpatory evidence to the grand jury. The author discusses the contours of this case and the ethical underpinnings of a prosecutor’s disclosure obligations before the grand jury, and sets forth a new framework for consideration of such issues.


Unanswered Questions Of A Minority People In International Law: A Comparative Study Between Southern Cameroons & South Sudan, Bernard Sama Mr Oct 2011

Unanswered Questions Of A Minority People In International Law: A Comparative Study Between Southern Cameroons & South Sudan, Bernard Sama Mr

Bernard Sama

The month July of 2011 marked the birth of another nation in the World. The distressful journey of a minority people under the watchful eyes of the international community finally paid off with a new nation called the South Sudan . As I watched the South Sudanese celebrate independence on 9 July 2011, I was filled with joy as though they have finally landed. On a promising note, I read the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon saying “[t]ogether, we welcome the Republic of South Sudan to the community of nations. Together, we affirm our commitment to helping it meet its …


Legal Mechanization Of Corporate Social Responsibility Through Alien Tort Statute Litigation: A Response To Professor Branson With Some Supplemental Thoughts, Donald J. Kochan Jul 2011

Legal Mechanization Of Corporate Social Responsibility Through Alien Tort Statute Litigation: A Response To Professor Branson With Some Supplemental Thoughts, Donald J. Kochan

Donald J. Kochan

This Response argues that as ATS jurisprudence “matures” or becomes more sophisticated, the legitimate limits of the law regress. The further expansion within the corporate defendant pool – attempting to pin liability on parent, great grandparent corporations and up to the top – raises the stakes and complexity of ATS litigation. The corporate social responsibility discussion raises three principal issues about how a moral corporation lives its life: how a corporation chooses its self-interest versus the interests of others, when and how it should help others if control decisions may harm the shareholder owners, and how far the corporation must …


Freedom Of Association Or Guilt By Association: Australia's New Anti-Terrorism Laws And The Retreat Of Political Liberty, Aidan Ricketts Mar 2011

Freedom Of Association Or Guilt By Association: Australia's New Anti-Terrorism Laws And The Retreat Of Political Liberty, Aidan Ricketts

Aidan Ricketts

Combined effects of new and proposed legislation in response to perceived security concerns following the September 11 2001 terrorist attacks in the US, highlights the vulnerability of democratic values and rights of political participation in the face of anxieties over issues of national security - the new anti-terrorism laws constitute a substantial threat to existing rights of political association in Australia - no demonstrated need to define terrorism in such a way as to strike at the heart of democratic rights and infringe basic freedom of association.


Statement Of David E. Aaronson In Support Of Hb 1075 To Repeal The Death Penalty, David Aaronson Mar 2011

Statement Of David E. Aaronson In Support Of Hb 1075 To Repeal The Death Penalty, David Aaronson

David Aaronson

No abstract provided.


The Collateral Consequences Of Juvenile Publicity: What The Montana Legislature Has Overlooked In The Youth Court Act, Sarah Montana Hart Feb 2011

The Collateral Consequences Of Juvenile Publicity: What The Montana Legislature Has Overlooked In The Youth Court Act, Sarah Montana Hart

Sarah Montana Hart

This article discusses what the Montana Legislature should do in order to remedy some unforeseen effects of keeping Youth Court proceedings public.


Targeted Killing Court: Why The United States Needs To Adopt International Legal Standards For Targeted Killings And How To Do So In A Domestic Court, Michael Epstein Jan 2011

Targeted Killing Court: Why The United States Needs To Adopt International Legal Standards For Targeted Killings And How To Do So In A Domestic Court, Michael Epstein

Michael Epstein

In light of the fact that the Obama Administration appears committed to continuing and expanding the use of drones and targeted killing as a primary counter-terrorism method, addressing both domestic and international concerns about the legality of our drone use is no simple task. Much has been written on the topic, and various definitions and interpretations of international law have been proposed; in order to address all of these concerns simultaneously while balancing the obvious reality that drone strikes will not stop anytime soon, I propose that a domestic judicial mechanism is required. Part I of this paper demonstrates the …


Reforming Adult Felony Probation To Ease Prison Overcrowding: An Overview Of California S.B. 678, Jessica K. Feinstein Jan 2011

Reforming Adult Felony Probation To Ease Prison Overcrowding: An Overview Of California S.B. 678, Jessica K. Feinstein

Jessica Feinstein

This article provides a holistic examination of California’s groundbreaking Community Corrections Performance Incentives Act, S.B. 678, passed in 2009 in response to California’s prison crisis. S.B. 678 seeks to create stable funding for county probation departments to implement evidence-based practices by shifting resources from the state prison budget to county probation. Probation is the most frequently imposed form of criminal sentence in California—nor is it limited to the least serious offenders. Estimates of the state’s adult probation population range from roughly 325,000 to 350,000. The article illuminates the goals and mechanisms of S.B. 678 and the challenges facing its implementation. …


Constrained By Statute: Why We Have Statutes Of Limitations, Braden W. Johnson Jan 2011

Constrained By Statute: Why We Have Statutes Of Limitations, Braden W. Johnson

Braden W Johnson

The recent, high profile cases of sexual abuse in collegiate athletics have uncovered many alleged evildoers. Some of them, like Syracuse University Assistant Coach Bernie Fine, have escaped prosecution based on statutes of limitations. This article explains more about such statutes.


Mandatory Minimum Sentences In Utah: Does The Punishment Fit The Crime?, Braden W. Johnson Jan 2011

Mandatory Minimum Sentences In Utah: Does The Punishment Fit The Crime?, Braden W. Johnson

Braden W Johnson

An analysis concerning the effect that Congress' Comprehensive Crime Control Act had on state imposed mandatory minimum sentences, and considering the pros and cons with shifting this judicial responsibility onto the legislature.


Tribes As Essential Partners In Achieving Sustainable Governance, Prof. Elizabeth Burleson Jan 2011

Tribes As Essential Partners In Achieving Sustainable Governance, Prof. Elizabeth Burleson

Prof. Elizabeth Burleson

Indigenous peoples have modeled sustainable development around the world. Incentivizing the innovation and instillation of wind, solar, and other renewable energy sources can come in the form of public funding, including renewable portfolio standards, feed in tariffs and green tag programs. This article analyzes ways in which tribal communities are helping to expand cooperative good governance.


Why Our Justice System Convicts Innocent People And The Challenges Faced By Innocence Projects Trying To Exonerate Them, Steven A. Krieger Dec 2010

Why Our Justice System Convicts Innocent People And The Challenges Faced By Innocence Projects Trying To Exonerate Them, Steven A. Krieger

Steven A. Krieger

Despite the prominence and success of the over sixty innocence projects in the United States, there is almost no empirical literature discussing how these organizations operate, what resources or factors contribute to their success, and what challenges they must overcome. This article is a foundational step to fill this void. Following a brief introduction, Part I of the article surveys the reasons why innocent individuals get convicted, including: inaccuracy of eyewitnesses, perjured testimony, availability of DNA testing, accuracy of DNA testing and scientific evidence, prosecutorial misconduct, ineffective defense representation, ineffective capital representation, police misconduct: false confessions, and pretrial criminal procedure …


Somebody's Watching Me: Protecting Patient Privacy In De-Identified Prescription Health Information, Christopher R. Smith Dec 2010

Somebody's Watching Me: Protecting Patient Privacy In De-Identified Prescription Health Information, Christopher R. Smith

Christopher R Smith

Increasingly, legal scholars, state legislatures and the federal courts are examining patient privacy concerns that arise in the context of the dissemination, distribution and use of patient prescription information. However, less attention has been paid to the sharing of de-identified or encrypted patient prescription information versus identifiable patient prescription information. Though many patients may not realize it, identifiable, de-identified and encrypted patient prescription information is being used for a host of purposes other than insurance reimbursement and treatment, most notably for pharmaceutical marketing purposes. Existing state and federal laws and ethical guidelines provide some protection for the privacy of patient …


Fernando Pessoa, Hermenêutica Jurídica E Retórica, Paulo Ferreira Da Cunha Dec 2010

Fernando Pessoa, Hermenêutica Jurídica E Retórica, Paulo Ferreira Da Cunha

Paulo Ferreira da Cunha

Um curioso aspecto do pensamento de Pessoa foi deixado por ele esparso, e o que parece totalmente ao acaso dos investigadores: o Direito. Em política, temos até um auto-retrato bastante completo, e a sucessão de textos que foi escrevendo, em prosa e em verso, facilmente nos permite reconstruir um percurso, a partir das suas bases ideológicas. Mas o que pensaria Pessoa do Direito? Neste caso, o “fingidor” não fingiu, não posou para a sua tão cuidadosamente preparada fama póstuma. Estamos, assim, perante um aspecto da sua vida mental que parece ter escapado à composição para um público (ainda que futuro), …


On Equality: The Anti-Interference Principle, Donald J. Kochan Dec 2010

On Equality: The Anti-Interference Principle, Donald J. Kochan

Donald J. Kochan

This Essay introduces the “Anti-Interference Principle” – a new term on the meaning of equality, or at least one not yet so-named in the equality lexicon – as a necessary foundation for achieving the goal of true equality. Equality has a long-standing place in the discussion of politics and jurisprudence and remains a struggle of definition today. Rather than rehash the mass of scholarship, this Essay seeks to summarize the general equality concept, and propose that the legal discourse on equality center on a requirement that governmental power must protect and respect equal treatment and opportunity, unconstrained, not equal outcomes. …