Law Commons^™

Family Law—The Revictimization Of Survivors Of Domestic Violence And Their Children: The Heartbreaking Unintended Consequence Of Separating Children From Their Abused Parent, Jeanne Kaiser, Caroline M. Foley

Faculty Scholarship

Massachusetts law governing child custody recognizes the damaging effect that witnessing domestic violence can have on a child. Accordingly, the law requires courts to give special attention to the effects of domestic violence on a child when determining custody. An unintended consequence of this scrutiny is that parents who have been the victims of domestic violence can lose custody, or even their parental rights, for failing to protect children from witnessing their abuse. This result can be prevented by requiring courts to apply the same level of attention to the effects of domestic violence when removing a child from an …

Transgender Rights & The Eighth Amendment, Jennifer Levi, Kevin M. Barry

Faculty Scholarship

The past decades have witnessed a dramatic shift in the visibility, acceptance, and integration of transgender people across all aspects of culture and the law. The treatment of incarcerated transgender people is no exception. Historically, transgender people have been routinely denied access to medically necessary hormone therapy, surgery, and other gender-affirming procedures; subjected to cross-gender strip searches; and housed according to their birth sex. But these policies and practices have begun to change. State departments of corrections are now providing some, though by no means all, appropriate care to transgender people, culminating in the Ninth Circuit’s historic decision in Edmo …

Foreword, Jennifer Taub

Faculty Scholarship

This Foreword highlights the central points of the Articles in Volume 43, Issue 1 of Western New England Law Review. The Article topics include emotional support animals, distribution rights for small beer brewers, fairness in accident insurance coverage, alternative legal education materials, and custody challenges for parents with abusive partners. Each share the identification of a perceived problem with the legal status quo and presents proposed solutions.

Erasing Evidence Of Historic Injustice: The Cannabis Criminal Records Expungement Paradox, Julie E. Steiner

Faculty Scholarship

Cannabis prohibition and its subsequent enforcement have yielded an epic societal tragedy. The decision to criminalize cannabis was a paradigm-shifting moment in legal history because it converted lawful medicinal or intoxicant seeking conduct into criminal activity, inviting government intrusion into matters previously self-controlled.

Scholars increasingly recognize that prohibition was built upon a decades-long, false, media-driven narrative that “marijuana” was one of society’s worst menacing enemies. Using overtly racist propaganda, the narrative successfully captured the audience, fomenting public anxiety and unfairly demonizing cannabis and its users. This misinformation campaign ultimately led to its current status as prohibited under the federal Controlled …