Digital Commons Network^™

Lessons From Vietnam: Informing Refugee Policy In Haiti And Afghanistan From Post-Vietnam United States Policy, Davis Lovvorn

Notre Dame Journal of Law, Ethics & Public Policy

No abstract provided.

An Ecological Approach To Data Governance, Jasmine Mcnealy

Notre Dame Journal of Law, Ethics & Public Policy

No abstract provided.

Smith To Smithereens? If So, What’S Next?, Joshua Lacoste

Notre Dame Journal of Law, Ethics & Public Policy

No abstract provided.

Automated Agencies, Joshua D. Blank, Leigh Osofsky

Faculty Publications

This article presents the first comprehensive study of how federal agencies use automated legal guidance tools—such as chatbots, virtual assistants, and decision-tree systems—to explain complex law to the public. The authors show that while automation offers administrative efficiency and wider reach, it often simplifies or distorts underlying legal rules. Through detailed analysis of agency tools and ten semi-structured interviews with officials, the article demonstrates that automated systems can portray unsettled or complex law as clear, omit exceptions, and answer too narrowly, thereby influencing user behavior in ways agencies neither fully appreciate nor monitor.

The study further finds that agencies lack …

The Prosecutor Lobby, Carissa Byrne Hessick, Ronald F. Wright, Jessica Pishko

Faculty Publications

Prosecutors shape the use of the criminal law at many points during criminal proceedings but there is an earlier point in the process where prosecutors have influence: during the legislative process. The conventional wisdom in legal scholarship is that prosecutors are powerful and successful lobbyists who routinely support laws that make the criminal law more punitive and oppose criminal justice reform. In this Article, we test that narrative with an empirical assessment of prosecutor lobbying in America. Using an original dataset of four years of legislative activity from all fifty states, we analyze how frequently prosecutors lobbied, the issues on …

Singling Out Single-Family Zoning, John Infranca

Suffolk University Law School Faculty Works

Single-family zoning is increasingly under attack in both the popular press and scholarly journals. Critics highlight how zoning districts that allow only detached, single-family homes exacerbate racial and economic segregation and perpetuate wealth disparities. Although a few local and state legislatures have eased regulations to permit denser development in existing single-family neighborhoods, such neighborhoods remain the dominant component of American zoning. The power of local governments to impose zoning derives from the police power—traditionally understood as the power to legislate in furtherance of health, safety, and the public welfare. These traditional concerns seem to provide little justification for prohibiting duplexes …

The Death Of The Legal Subject, Katrina Geddes

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

The law is often engaged in prediction. In the calculation of tort damages, for example, a judge will consider what the tort victim’s likely future earnings would have been, but for their particular injury. Similarly, when considering injunctive relief, a judge will assess whether the plaintiff is likely to suffer irreparable harm if a preliminary injunction is not granted. And for the purposes of a child custody evaluation, a judge will consider which parent will provide an environment that is in the best interests of the child.

Relative to other areas of law, criminal law is oversaturated with prediction. Almost …

Preface: New Directions In Prosecutorial Reform, Miriam Aroni Krinsky, Justin Murray, Maybell Romero

Publications

This Preface, which introduces the American Criminal Law Review’s Symposium Issue on Reform-Minded Prosecution, begins by describing the power that prosecutors hold in the criminal legal system, which has historically gone unchecked and unquestioned. As mass incarceration, police violence, and wrongful convictions began to permeate the public consciousness, many communities focused their attention on the critical role of their local elected prosecutor and elected leaders who promised to do the job differently. Reform-minded prosecutors have enjoyed remarkable electoral successes over the past decade such that close to twenty percent of the U.S. population now resides in a jurisdiction with a …

Biden V. Nebraska: The New State Standing And The (Old) Purposive Major Questions Doctrine, Jed Handelsman Shugerman

Faculty Scholarship

Chief Justice Roberts’s majority opinion in Biden v. Nebraska does not sufficiently explain how Missouri has standing under established Article III doctrine, nor how the Court approaches the major questions doctrine as a method of statutory interpretation. Clarification can come from other opinions, even other cases entirely, in which Justice’s counterarguments are suggestive of the real arguments underlying the decisions.

MOHELA may have faced a concrete injury from the student debt waiver, but there was no evidence that Missouri would – and the majority had no answer for how Missouri had standing without an injury. A debate over special state …

Originalism-By-Analogy And Second Amendment Adjudication, Joseph Blocher, Eric Ruben

Faculty Journal Articles and Book Chapters

In New York State Rifle & Pistol Ass’n v. Bruen, the Supreme Court held that the constitutionality of modern gun laws must be evaluated by direct analogy to history, unmediated by familiar doctrinal tests. Bruen’s novel approach to historical decision-making purported to constrain judicial discretion but instead enabled judicial subjectivity, obfuscation, and unpredictability. Those problems are painfully evident in courts’ faltering efforts to apply Bruen to laws regulating 3D-printed guns, assault weapons, large-capacity magazines, obliterated serial numbers, and the possession of guns on subways or by people subject to domestic-violence restraining orders. The Court’s recent grant of certiorari in United …

Sentencing In An Era Of Plea Bargains, Jeffrey Bellin, Jenia I. Turner

Faculty Journal Articles and Book Chapters

The literature offers inconsistent answers to a question that is foundational to criminal law: Who imposes sentences? Traditional narratives place sentencing responsibility in the hands of the judge. Yet, in a country where 95 percent of criminal convictions come from guilty pleas (not trials), modern American scholars center prosecutors – who control plea terms – as the decider of punishment. This Article highlights and seeks to resolve the tension between these conflicting narratives by charting the pathways by which sentences are determined in a system dominated by plea bargains.

After reviewing the empirical literature on sentence variation, state and federal …

Knowledge Generation And Uncertainty In An Unpredictable Social World, Benjamin David Pyle

Faculty Scholarship

Professor Megan T. Stevenson’s Article, Cause, Effect, and the Structure of the Social World, is an incredibly important, deep, and thought-provoking argument explaining what we can learn about fundamental causal relationships when we observe few interventions with long-lasting, cascading consequences.¹ It is a profound reflection on empirical work in the social sciences.

The Article argues that we have found few, if any, well-identified policy levers that generate outsized, long-term positive impacts for those impacted by the criminal legal system. It offers several explanations for the lack of randomized control trial (“RCT”) evaluations with large, non-mechanical effects, but the …

In Search Of: A Federal Safe Harbor For State Legalization Of Psilocybin, Kathryn L. Tucker, Holly Martinez, Ebony Morris

Lewis & Clark Law Review

In 2020, Oregon voters passed the Oregon Psilocybin Services Act (PSA). The PSA allows for the adult use of psilocybin at designated service centers and does not require a medicinal purpose for consumption. While the use of psilocybin becomes legal in Oregon in 2023 under the PSA, psilocybin remains a Schedule I substance under the federal Controlled Substances Act. This conflict between state legalization and federal prohibition creates significant challenges for individuals and businesses intending to abide by the requirements of the PSA—including the potential of jail time, fines, and forfeiture of property. This Essay explores three potential solutions the …

Covid-19, Free Exercise, And Most Favored Nation Status, Mark Strasser

Lewis & Clark Law Review

Commentators and some Justices suggest that religious activity is accorded a kind of Most Favored Nation status under free exercise guarantees—if a statutory exception is made for a relevantly similar secular activity, then an exception must also be made for religious activity. Such an approach would require a careful consideration of which secular activities were relevantly similar to religious activities to warrant protecting the latter. But the Most Favored Nation approach involves a mischaracterization of the past jurisprudence. Further, as is evidenced in the COVID cases, the U.S. Supreme Court does not engage in a nuanced consideration of which activities …

The Right To Migrate, Matthew J. Lindsay

Lewis & Clark Law Review

Since the late-19th century, the Supreme Court has insisted that the preservation of national sovereignty requires a constitutional chasm between immigration law and ordinary law. If the Court is to bridge that chasm, it must reimagine the longstanding premise of the federal immigration power that the presence of noncitizens in U.S. territory menaces the nation’s sovereignty and security. This Article contributes to that reimagining by chronicling a compelling alternative worldview with a venerable historical pedigree—that of a quintessentially American right to migrate.

During the Founding Era, American statesmen described the impoverished subjects of Europe’s monarchies as protagonists in an unfolding …

The Terms Of Their Deal: Revitalizing The Treaty Right To Limit State Jurisdiction In Indian Country, Dylan R. Hedden-Nicely

Lewis & Clark Law Review

For over 200 years, the “whole course of judicial decision” in the United States has recognized that American Indian tribes possess inherent sovereignty to govern their lands and people. Federal recognition of that sovereignty was memorialized in countless treaties, congressionally ratified agreements, and executive orders setting aside reservations throughout the United States. Throughout that same period, and with only minimal exception, the judiciary faithfully applied those treaties to protect tribal property rights, recognize tribal sovereignty, and bar states from imposing jurisdiction within Indian Country.

The jurisprudence in this arena has shifted, however, over the past few decades. Although the Supreme …

Making Red Lives Matter: Public Choice Theory And Indian Country Crime, Adam Crepelle

Lewis & Clark Law Review

American Indians are victims of violence at higher rates than members of any other racial group. Nevertheless, Indian victims receive little media attention. Aside from the prevalence of violence against Indians, the violence is unique because of the rules governing Indian country law enforcement. Tribes, absent compliance with federally mandated procedural safeguards, cannot prosecute non-Indian criminals. While state or federal law enforcement have jurisdiction over reservation crimes involving non-Indian perpetrators, they often fail to respond. Hence, non-Indians know they can target Indians with little fear of reprisal. This Article argues the rules governing Indian country crimes were not designed to …

(Re)Building The Master's House: Dismantling America's Colonial Politics Of Extraction And Exclusion, Marissa Jackson Sow

Law Faculty Publications

On February 10, 2021, and in the days thereafter, liberal American commentators showered Congresswoman Stacey Plaskett with superlatives and praise due to her masterful takedown of former President Donald Trump during his impeachment trial for incitement of the January 6, 2021 Capitol Riot. Referring to a picture of Plaskett wearing a knee-length blue dress with draped sleeves, the political strategist (and daughter of House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi) Christine Pelosi took to Twitter to note that “[n]ot all superheroes wear capes. This one does!”

Plaskett is one of many Black Americans who has done the hard work of cleaning up …

Parens Patriae After The Pandemic, Meredith Johnson Harbach

Law Faculty Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic prompted extraordinary state action to protect American children. Acting in its longstanding role as parens patriae, the state stepped in to protect children and their families from the ravages of the pandemic as well as from the dramatic upheaval it precipitated. This Article will evaluate the state’s pandemic response vis-à-vis children and their families, mining the experience for lessons learned and possible ways forward. Specifically, this project will argue that the state’s pandemic response represented a departure from the state’s conventional approach to parens patriae. Conventional practice prior to the pandemic was characterized by a state model …

First-Line Police Supervisors’ Utilization Of Criminal Justice Higher Education, Dennis George Hippert

Theses and Dissertations

A first-line police supervisor holds a large influence over street-level police officer behavior (Ingram, et al., 2014), but little consistency exists between police agencies regarding the minimum educational requirements necessary to successfully perform the functions of a first-line police supervisor. This study explored the experiences of criminal justice degree holding first-line police supervisors in using the content of their college curriculum to guide street-level officers in acceptable use of force practices, professional communication with the public, and discretionary decision-making. Employing a grounded theory method of inquiry with a constructivist approach, this study utilized semi-structured, one-on-one interviews to examine the ways …

Perceptions Of School Resource Officers On Their Role In Southern Maryland Public Elementary Schools, Lori B. Lodge

Theses and Dissertations

This applied dissertation was designed to investigate the perceptions of school resource officers (SROs) in Southern Maryland regarding the support SROs could provide elementary schools to foster positive interpersonal relationships while maintaining school safety and what additional resources that the SROs needed to support their job.

The overall school climate and morale at some elementary schools have significantly decreased due to increased student-aggressive behaviors. The school climate is correlated to student academic success (Sanders et al., 2018). School climate can include safety, interpersonal relationships, teaching and learning, and the school environment.

There is a need for school resource officers in …

Prosecution And Polarization, Steven Arrigg Koh

Faculty Scholarship

Domestically and internationally, two prominent contemporary discourses arise in law and society. First, we live in a time of tremendous uncertainty about the nature and function of criminal justice. In the United States, we chronicle mass incarceration, while the international community weighs war crimes prosecutions in Ukraine. Second, we live in a time of polarization, both at home and abroad. Cultural and political division is elevated domestically, while the international community debates fragmentation in a multipolar world.

This symposium contribution to the Fordham Urban Law Journal’s “Future of Prosecution” symposium asks: what does it mean to prosecute in a time …

Stress And Wellness Among Correctional Officers In The State Of Oregon, Dewayne Hendrix

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

It remained unknown if the effects of the employee wellness policy implemented in Oregon in 2018 were reducing stress and improving the health of correctional officers which if it does may benefit the local communities to help enhance social stability. The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of the employee wellness policy, as implemented in the state of Oregon in 2018, in reducing stress and improving the health of correctional officers. This study was guided by the perceived organizational support theory, which holds that employees develop existential views about how much their employer values their contributions and …

Disenfranchisement Laws Affecting Voting Rights Of Black Americans In Mississippi, April Masha Jones

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

From Black individuals being enslaved and freed to being incarcerated in modern-day society more frequently than White individuals, the desire to have a voice in the decision-making process has been challenging. Black voters in Mississippi may be underrepresented because of felony disenfranchisement laws. The purpose of this general qualitative study was to examine the lived experiences of Black Mississippians about felony disenfranchisement laws and voting rights. The first research question addressed perceptions of Black Americans in Mississippi regarding the felony disenfranchisement laws. The second research question addressed the experiences related to any political implications among the electorate in Mississippi. The …

Gang Diversion Programs In The Success Of Reducing Youth Gang Membership, Francis Songtiib Laari

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractThe rate of youth involvement in gang membership and crime has become a problem in Fairfax County, Virginia. It has increased violent crimes, drug trade, and incarceration rates for youths and decreased child school graduation rates. Youth gang membership is a significant public issue with broad mental and psychological implications for the child, family, and community because of the potential to commit a crime. Early exposure to gangs and violent neighborhoods can profoundly and negatively impact the residents. Researchers have explored why many children join gangs, but none have examined gang diversion programs' success in reducing youth gang membership. In …

Gang Diversion Programs In The Success Of Reducing Youth Gang Membership, Francis Songtiib Laari

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The rate of youth involvement in gang membership and crime has become a problem in Fairfax County, Virginia. It has increased violent crimes, drug trade, and incarceration rates for youths and decreased child school graduation rates. Youth gang membership is a significant public issue with broad mental and psychological implications for the child, family, and community because of the potential to commit a crime. Early exposure to gangs and violent neighborhoods can profoundly and negatively impact the residents. Researchers have explored why many children join gangs, but none have examined gang diversion programs' success in reducing youth gang membership. In …

The Recidivism Rate In Correlation To The Effectiveness Of The Bridges To Life Reentry Program In Texas, Steven Steen

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This research explored the relationship between reentry programs and recidivism in the state of Texas. One program in particular, Bridges To Life (BTL), has had an impact on recidivism in the state, and this research analyzed how the overall organization of BTL correlated to recidivism. Recidivism is the repeated or habitual relapse into crime. The purpose of this quantitative research study was to determine whether there was a direct correlation between the reduction of recidivism and the effectiveness of reentry programs through BTL in the state of Texas. The research question for this study explored the correlation between BTL and …

The Recidivism Rate In Correlation To The Effectiveness Of The Bridges To Life Reentry Program In Texas, Steven Steen

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This research explored the relationship between reentry programs and recidivism in the state of Texas. One program in particular, Bridges To Life (BTL), has had an impact on recidivism in the state, and this research analyzed how the overall organization of BTL correlated to recidivism. Recidivism is the repeated or habitual relapse into crime. The purpose of this quantitative research study was to determine whether there was a direct correlation between the reduction of recidivism and the effectiveness of reentry programs through BTL in the state of Texas. The research question for this study explored the correlation between BTL and …

Rights Violations As Punishment, Kate Weisburd

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

Is punishment generally exempt from the Constitution? That is, can the deprivation of basic constitutional rights—such as the rights to marry, bear children, worship, consult a lawyer, and protest—be imposed as direct punishment for a crime and in lieu of prison, so long as such intrusions are not “cruel and unusual” under the Eighth Amendment? On one hand, such state intrusion on fundamental rights would seem unconstitutional. On the other hand, such intrusions are often less harsh than the restriction of rights inherent in prison. If a judge can sentence someone to life in prison, how can a judge not …

Amending The Defense Production Act: Preventing Another Pandemic, Madalyn Mcgunagle

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.