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Full-Text Articles in Law
"Necessity Hath No Law": Executive Power And The Posse Comitatus Act, Candidus Dougherty
"Necessity Hath No Law": Executive Power And The Posse Comitatus Act, Candidus Dougherty
Candidus Dougherty
In this article, I comment on the debate over whether the Posse Comitatus Act, which criminalizes the use of the military for domestic law enforcement, should be tightened to restrict Executive action. In Part I, I catalog the historical context in which the Posse Comitatus Act was passed and describe the military events that are most commonly used to support the case for sharply divided civilian and military authorities. In Part II, I discuss the true purpose and intent of the Posse Comitatus Act: to prohibit civilian marshals from calling forth active duty military to enforce domestic law. I also …
While The Government Fiddled Around, The Big Easy Drowned: How The Posse Comitatus Act Became The Government's Alibi For The Hurricane Katrina Disaster, Candidus Dougherty
While The Government Fiddled Around, The Big Easy Drowned: How The Posse Comitatus Act Became The Government's Alibi For The Hurricane Katrina Disaster, Candidus Dougherty
Candidus Dougherty
This Article analyzes how the government's blame of the Posse Comitatus Act (PCA) for its late response to the Hurricane Katrina disaster was misplaced. In Part One, I discuss the history of the Posse Comitatus Act, including a summary of some of its many judicial and congressional expansions. In Part Two, I apply the PCA to the Hurricane Katrina Disaster to show that, under its proper application, the PCA does, in fact, permit the lawful use of the military for humanitarian purposes. Based on this analysis, I conclude that we should focus our efforts less on the Posse Comitatus Act …