Digital Commons Network^™

Eliminating Mandatory Minimum Sentences: Putting Sentencing Power Back In The Hands Of The Judiciary, Hunter Anderson, Joseph Dummar

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

Ron Miller had been a general manager of a company for twentyfour

years with no criminal record when his best friend asked

him to allow a shipment of drugs to be delivered to his company’s

address. Ron reluctantly agreed to help his friend, who was desperate

for money. Before the drugs arrived, Ron backed out and asked

his friend not to send the drugs, but by that point the shipment had

already been made. The police tracked the shipment to Ron and

arrested him. Even though Ron never knew the type nor the quantity

of drug that was delivered to …

How Can Pennsylvania Protect Itself From Its Own Measles Outbreak?, Megan M. Riesmeyer, Kristen Feemster

Faculty Scholarly Works

When a response to inaccurate information strives to be an informative exercise of its own, it is difficult to balance the desire to respond point by point to mischaracterized, misleading, or untrue information, with the need to simply offer a complete picture of facts. This article is a response to Abigail Wenger’s article regarding

vaccinations. To reply to each mischaracterization or inaccuracy in turn means this response loses its own informative intent and becomes simply a rebuttal. However, to ignore mischaracterizations and inaccuracies is to risk the reader’s acceptance of those points as true. Through illustrative examples in the United …

From Public Health To Public Wealth: The Case For Economic Justice, Barbara L. Atwell

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

This Article examines how we can overlay the principle of serving the common good, which undergirds public health law, onto financial well-being. It suggests that we apply public health law principles to corporate law and culture. In matters of public health, we view quite broadly states' police power to protect the public good. Government is also empowered to protect the general welfare in matters of financial well-being. Using the “general welfare” as a guidepost, this Article challenges the conventional wisdom that corporations exist solely to maximize profit and shareholder value to the exclusion of virtually everything else. It proposes two …

Regulating Care Robots, Valarie K. Blake

Law Faculty Scholarship

Care robots already assist the elderly in some nursing homes around the globe and could be in widespread use in hospitals and private homes sooner than we think. These robots promise great hope for patients: robots can provide increased independence, assistance with daily living, comfort and distraction during procedures, education, and companionship during vulnerable and lonely times in patients' lives. Despite these promising features, there are a number of concerns; care robots, designed with the aim of winning patient trust and affection, have unprecedented access to personal lives as well as recording and sensory capabilities beyond any human. They pose …

Fda In The Time Of Covid-19, Elizabeth Mccuskey

Faculty Scholarship

Over the past century, Congress has made the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) responsible for regulating the safety and efficacy of drugs and devices being deployed in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. The FDA’s regulatory infrastructure was built for public health threats and to combat manufacturers' misinformation about treatments.

This article spotlights the ways in which FDA has been adapting to a new challenge during the COVID-19 pandemic: combating misinformation emanating from within the executive branch.

Law In The Time Of Covid-19, Katharina Pistor

Faculty Books

The COVID-19 crisis has ended and upended lives around the globe. In addition to killing over 160,000 people, more than 35,000 in the United States alone, its secondary effects have been as devastating. These secondary effects pose fundamental challenges to the rules that govern our social, political, and economic lives. These rules are the domain of lawyers. Law in the Time of COVID-19 is the product of a joint effort by members of the faculty of Columbia Law School and several law professors from other schools.

This volume offers guidance for thinking about some the most pressing legal issues the …

Catastrophic Risk: Waking Up To The Reality Of A Pandemic?, W. Kip Viscusi, Jamison Pike, Jason F. Shogren, David Aadland, David Finnoff, Alexandre Skiba, Peter Daszak

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

Will a major shock awaken the US citizens to the threat of catastrophic pandemic risk? Using a natural experiment administered both before and after the 2014 West African Ebola Outbreak, our evidence suggests “no.” Our results show that prior to the Ebola scare, the US citizens were relatively complacent and placed a low relative priority on public spending to prepare for a pandemic disease outbreak relative to an environmental disaster risk (e.g., Fukushima) or a terrorist attack (e.g., 9/11). After the Ebola scare, the average citizen did not over-react to the risk. This flat reaction was unexpected given the well-known …

Addressing Environmental Toxins That Affect Children Through A Children's Rights Framework: Tools To Help You Succeed, Jenifer Cartland

Center for the Human Rights of Children

This toolkit was developed as part of Loyola University Chicago’s Advancing Healthy Homes and Healthy Communities Initiative (HHHCI). This initiative establishes an interdisciplinary university-community-public-private partner- ship to tackle the problem of environmental toxins in homes and communities through a range of activities. This approach integrates a unique set of strategies and tactics, including applied research, public education, organiz- ing, coalition building, legislative and policy advocacy, and policy implementation. HHHCI uses an integrative research and advocacy model to address the public health and hous- ing problems associated with environmental toxins. This approach integrates a unique set of strategies and tactics, including …

Time For Singapore To Address Some Uncomfortable Questions On Its Migrant Workers, Tan K. B. Eugene

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

In a commentary, SMU Associate Professor of Law Eugene Tan discussed the need for Singapore to address some uncomfortable questions on migrant workers and to safeguard their wellbeing and interests as well as to protect the rest of the community. He opined that even as we attend to the first order of business to suppress the many Covid-19 clusters in the dormitories, there are broader questions for our society to address based on an honest and thorough appraisal. Assoc Prof Tan believes that a failure to do so might result in us merely tackling the symptoms, and not the causes, …

Covid 19 In U.S. Migrant Detention Centers: The Call For Freedom In The Face Of A Global Pandemic, Salma Rojas

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

My research paper investigates the responses of the U.S. immigration detention system to the COVID 19 pandemic and determines the capacity of the detention centers to keep detained individuals alive and healthy. As I analyze their capacities, I look to past detention center outbreaks, updated public health resources, reports on ICE facility conditions and the testimonies of migrant people who were detained during the COVID 19 crisis. The urgency of the COVID 19 pandemic is why I dedicate part of my paper to what needs to be done to prevent the situation from worsening. In drawing from these various sources, …

The Lancet–O’Neill Institute/Georgetown University Commission On Global Health And Law: The Power Of Law To Advance The Right To Health, Jenny Kaldor, Lawrence O. Gostin, John T. Monahan, Katie Gottschalk

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

The Lancet–O’Neill Institute/Georgetown University Commission on Global Health and Law published its report on the Legal Determinants of Health in 2019. The term ‘legal determinants of health’ draws attention to the power of law to influence upstream social and economic influences on population health. In this article, we introduce the Commission, including its background and rationale, set out its methodology, summarize its key findings and recommendations and reflect on its impact since publication. We also look to the future, making suggestions as to how the global health community can make the best use of the Commission’s momentum in relation …

Global Guide: Measures Adopted To Support Businesses Through The Covid-19 Crisis: Singapore, Aurelio Gurrea-Martinez

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

After the outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19), the Singapore Government responded with a quick and comprehensive package of legal, economic and financial measures that sought to put the economy into hibernation and avoid the destruction of jobs and viable businesses, at least while companies were unable to generate revenues and cash-flows due to a variety of factors, including travel restrictions and lockdowns imposed in many countries around the world. To that end, the Government spent SGD$97.3 billion (that is, around 20% of the country’s GDP) to support businesses, households and employees. Most of this financial support was given in the …

Debilitating Southeastern Community College V. Davis: Achieving The Promise Of Disability Civil Rights, Leslie Francis

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

Disability civil rights law today continues to be shaped by troubling precedent created in initial decisions of the Supreme Court under the Rehabilitation Act. This article explores the first of these decisions, Southeastern Community College v. Davis, demonstrates Davis’ continuing impact, and analyzes how this impact may be addressed. Davis was a suit brought by a hearing-impaired student who had been refused accommodations and denied admission to the College’s nursing program. Critical litigation decisions on behalf of Davis at the trial court did not contest the College’s failure to provide accommodations that are common today, such as sign interpretation, or …

What Can The Protection And Advocacy Network Offer To Our Veterans?, David A. Boyer

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

The desire to compensate veterans predates the establishment of the United States (“U.S.”). In 1636, individuals with disabilities received pensions for defending the Plymouth colony against Native Americans.1 Throughout history, this practice continued, as documented by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (“VA”).2 By 1930, President Herbert Hoover signed the Executive Order 5398, which created the Veterans Administration.3 Prior to President Hoover’s signing of that executive order, the available veteran services were divided by three separate governmental agencies: the Veterans’ Bureau, the Pensions Bureau, and the Soldiers’ Home.4 Consequently, that executive order combined all three agencies into one that concentrated …

Fertility Fraud And Proposal For Florida Legislation, Cheyenne Dunn

Child and Family Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Responding To Covid‐19: How To Navigate A Public Health Emergency Legally And Ethically, Lawrence O. Gostin, Eric A. Friedman, Sarah A. Wetter

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

Widespread social separation is rapidly becoming the norm, including closure of schools and universities, tele-commuting to work, bans on large gatherings, and millions of people isolated in their homes or make-shift facilities. Bans on international travel are already pervasive. Domestic travel restrictions are exceedingly rare, but now within the realm of possibility. Officials are even discussing cordon sanitaires (guarded areas where people may not enter or leave), popularly described as “lockdowns” or mass quarantines.

When the health system becomes stretched beyond capacity, how can we ethically allocate scarce health goods and services? How can we ensure that marginalized populations can …

Strategies For Emergency Release Of Incarcerated People During Covid-19 Outbreak, Sara Alvarez, Andrew Kopke, Mariel Stein, Meg Tiley

Student Articles & Notes

Students in Cardozo's Criminal Defense Clinic partnered with the Office of the Appellate Defender to outline legal strategies to advocate for the release of incarcerated people who are vulnerable to harm from COVID-19.

Telemedicine: Benefits, Challenges, And Its Great Potential, Samantha J. Achenbach

Health Law and Policy Brief

No abstract provided.

Hepatitis C: There's A Cure, But Who Will Bail Out The Department Of Corrections?, Monica K. Houston

Health Law and Policy Brief

No abstract provided.

The Missing Link: Jail And Prison Conditions In Criminal Justicereform, Andrea Craig Armstrong

Louisiana Law Review

The article examines the link between conditions in jails and prisons and broader criminal justice reform efforts.

Let's Talk Specifics: Why Sti Evidence Should Be Treated As A "Specific Instance" Under Rape Shield Laws, Erin Wilson

North Carolina Law Review

No abstract provided.

Your Natural Gas Is Not Cyber-Secure: A Two-Fold Case For Why Voluntary Natural Gas Pipeline Cybersecurity Guidelines Should Become Mandatory Regulations Overseen By The Department Of Energy, Madeline A. Labovitz

North Carolina Journal of Law & Technology

In the past two decades, the United States has increased the production and use of natural gas to fuel every day American life. This increase has resulted in the construction of millions of miles of natural gas pipelines. While this development has produced a number of benefits, natural gas pipelines have introduced the threat of cyberattacks on natural gas infrastructure. This substantial threat is currently managed by voluntary guidelines promulgated by the Transportation Security Administration (“TSA”). While the private industry is satisfied to maintain the status quo and leave these threats essentially self-regulated, voluntary guidelines are not sufficient to defend …

Virginia Bar Exam, February 2020, Section 2

Virginia Bar Exam Archive

No abstract provided.

Antitrust Law, Freedom, And Human Development, Zephyr Teachout

Cardozo Law Review

For four decades, there was a near-universal consensus that consumer welfare was the sole and appropriate purpose of antitrust law. That consensus is breaking apart. For the first time in two generations, a growing group of scholars and policymakers is challenging that orthodoxy. They reject the consumer welfare consensus, and argue that antimonopoly policy should and can have much broader social goals, and serve democratic ends, not merely efficiency ones.

This group is unified by its shared protest, but lacks a shared positive platform. It does not itself have a consensus on what goals should replace the monotheistic approach of …

Ivf Errors - Is This Only The Tip Of The Iceberg?, Jody L. Madeira, Steven R. Lindheim Md, Mark P. Trolice

Articles by Maurer Faculty

ART errors are fortunately a rare occurrence. but humans are fallible and mistakes are inevitable. As social media sensationalizes these events, we, as infertility specialists, must be vigilant in reviewing existing risk management systems and consider other options to minimize/eliminate these events. ART programs should work to emphasize honesty and transparency to improve quality of care.

"When The Enemy Drew Our Attention": Reconsidering Prior Restraint In The Context Of Dual Use Research Of Concern, Caine Caverly

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

Through 2016 and 2017, a team led by Canadian virologist David Evans, and funded by an American pharmaceutical company, attempted to synthesize the previously extinct horsepox virus. After just six months and an expenditure of $100,000, the research team was able to successfully construct the virus “using only commercially available information, technology and tools.” In January of 2018, the team went on to publish their information in an American-based journal, PLOS ONE.

The publication was controversial because it included a potential “blueprint” for the synthesis of a genetic strand in the same viral family as the highly lethal, albeit eradicated, …

What Can Be Done About A Disruptive Physician? A Legal Analysis, Samuel D. Hodge Jr.

Pace Law Review

House, a medical drama about an infectious disease specialist, entertained television audiences for years as the irascible and pill-popping physician solved medical mysteries with the zeal of a modern-day Sherlock Holmes while playing mind games with his coworkers. Uncanny intuition and eccentric thinking earned the physician great respect but his bullish behavior and antisocial tendencies were a distraction at the hospital. Not only did Dr. House clash with his fellow physicians but he also insulted patients, flouted hospital rules and caused great conflict with the hospital administrators. In fact, his actions often crossed the line into obnoxiousness and rage causing …

How Clean Is Clean?: An Analysis On The Difference Between The Affordable Clean Energy Rule And The Clean Power Plan And Why States Should Adhere To Stricter Emissions Standards, Katherine Mccormick

Pace Environmental Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Covid-19 Safety And Health Accreditation Program: How Food Safety Inspectors And Building Inspectors Can Incentivize Osha Compliance To Protect Workers During The Coronavirus Pandemic, Lindsey Tanita

Center for Health Law Policy and Bioethics

The coronavirus pandemic exposed the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) severe lack of commitment and resources to enforce standards aimed at providing a safe and healthful workplace for millions of workers who are at an increased risk of exposure to COVID-19 every time they step foot into the workplace. We’ve seen nurses treating COVID-19 patients pleading for personal protective equipment all across the county,1 a bus driver in Detroit dying of COVID-19 after complaining about lack of protections from a coughing passenger,2 and more than three hundred workers testing positive for COVID-19 in one Los Angeles factory, even after …

Empowering The Minority Healthcare Worker Amidst Racial Patient Bias & Covid-19, Rachel Tran

Center for Health Law Policy and Bioethics

While the discussion surrounding implicit physician bias has become more prevalent, patient bias is often overlooked. For decades, the United States’ healthcare system has normalized accommodation of patients’ racially biased requests, providing little to no support for minority healthcare workers. This paper presents social, ethical, and legal arguments for the creation of effective patient bias policies while challenging traditional barriers to implementation. It also advances a guideline of recommendations for healthcare institutions, civil rights organizations, and governments to draw from. These recommendations include the right to turn away patients who repeatedly discriminate against healthcare professionals.