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2025-2026 Factbook, Tennessee. General Assembly

Factbook

This Fact Book provides an overview of the state's budget for the fiscal year.

The Meaning Of Life, In Michigan: Mercy From Life Sentences Under The State Constitution, Molly Bernstein, David Shapiro

JCLC Online

Properly understood, the “cruel or unusual” punishment clause of the Michigan Constitution grants every person sentenced to life in prison a meaningful right to obtain release through rehabilitation. Today, however, Michigan has among the nation’s largest populations of people serving both formal and de facto life sentences without any meaningful possibility of release.

In 1850, Michigan revised its state constitution to prohibit “cruel or unusual punishment,” creating a contrast with the conjunctive “cruel and unusual punishments” clause of the federal Eighth Amendment. This disjunctive prohibition, which subsequent Michigan constitutional conventions retained, prohibits both “cruel” sentences and “unusual” sentences. We argue …

Juvenile Drug Offenses: Rethinking Criminal Justice Approaches And Intervention Strategies, Lucas Kelly

JCLC Online

Juveniles, whose offending nature fundamentally differs from that of adults, should not be subjected to the traditional criminal justice system for drug offenses. Juvenile drug offenders warrant heightened attention due to their diminished capacity for reasoned judgment, increased susceptibility to the effects of drugs, the profound impact that criminal drug charges have on their future, and the possible presence of Substance Use Disorder. This Comment breaks down ways in which the U.S. has handled, and currently handles, juvenile drug offenders. I will also explore the long-term and short-term effects of drug convictions for juveniles, the issue of culpability and susceptibility …

Doug Laycock And Creativity In Restitution—The Henrietta Lacks Litigation As A Test Case, Doug Rendleman, Caprice L. Roberts

Scholarly Articles

This Article explores the Henrietta Lacks litigation as a test case for Professor Laycock's writings and theories on the law of unjust enrichment and restitution remedies. A series of modern lawsuits brought by the Lacks Estate allege that defendant companies continue to make unjust profits with knowledge of the unsavory provenance of the Henrietta Lacks immortal cell line. The only count in the complaints is unjust enrichment. The core remedy is restitutionary disgorgement of unjust gains. The authors connect the novel nature of the lawsuits to foundational restitution principles. Professor Laycock's scholarly articles, books, and law reform projects bring deeper …

Letters From A Fragmented Democracy, Maureen Edobor

Scholarly Articles

This piece confronts the stakes of our current trajectory by looking to the future. It presents six fictional letters to illustrate where today’s ominous currents could lead. In this imagined tomorrow, contemporary voting restrictions, judicial erosion, and administrative manipulation have gradually hollowed out the franchise, transforming formal democracy into little more than an empty spectacle. Each letter voices a different facet of democratic erosion: a voter disenfranchised by bureaucratic hurdles, a candidate’s voice hijacked by deepfake technology, a neighbor ensnared by punitive voting laws, a community erased by gerrymandering, a campaign drowned in dark money, and even a corporate memo …

Identifying The Guilty, Protecting The Innocent: Amending The Federal Rules Of Evidence To Address Admissibility Of Eyewitness Identification, Louisa M. A. Heiny

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Mistaken eyewitness identification is among the most common factors in wrongful conviction cases. Indeed, hundreds of innocent defendants have been convicted for a crime they did not commit, their fate sealed by an eyewitness who convincingly, but mistakenly, testified, “That’s the one!”

Scientific researchers have documented the fallibility of eyewitness identification for decades. Their collective work has produced recommendations for eyewitness identification reform, focusing on procedural problems most likely to result in mistaken identification. The law in this area, however, has not kept pace with the science. Rather than representing a cohesive series of safeguards against inaccurate eyewitness identifications, federal …

Discussing The Effectiveness Of Capital Punishment And Florida's Sentencing Change From Unanimous To Eight Juror Majority, April Feeser

Nova Law Review

No abstract provided.

Vulnerability In The Law, Sara Aziz, Aisli Ali, Casey Williams, Lindsey Nye, Saya Khandhar, Sofia Bazdekis

Human Rights Brief

On Monday, February 24, 2025, the Human Rights Brief (“the Brief”) at American University Washington College of Law (“WCL”) held its annual spring symposium with the theme of “Vulnerability in the Law.” This year’s theme aimed to highlight areas where legal systems fall short in protecting vulnerable populations, as well as highlighting where the law itself is vulnerable. The symposium was organized by Symposium and Education Editor Sara Aziz, in collaboration with the Junior Symposium Staff: Asli Ali, Casey Williams, Lindsey Nye, Saya Khandhar, and Sofia Bazdekis. The team worked relentlessly to coordinate panels on legal issues, including technology, environmental …

Imperfect Justice: Gaps In The Icc’S Reparations And Victim Participation, Alyssa Price

Human Rights Brief

The International Criminal Court (ICC) made substantial efforts to establish a court system that is more inclusive and supportive of victims. Notably, the ICC provides victims with opportunities for active participation in the judicial process—far more extensive than most domestic courts—ensuring that victims have a voice. However, the mechanisms the ICC employs for victim reparations lack effectiveness. These reparations often prove logistically challenging to implement and fail to address victims’ specific and diverse needs. Consequently, this limitation threatens the ICC’s reputation as a protector of victims’ rights. By collaborating with other United Nations (UN) organizations, private corporations, and individuals, the …

(D)Evolution Of International Commercial Arbitration In Mexico, Edwin N. Á. Román

Arbitration Brief

The 1990s were a time of vibrant international rulemaking in the field of international economic law, during which Mexico transformed from a closed to an open economy. In 1993, Mexico adopted the 1985 UNICITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration. In 2011, Mexico amended its commercial code by introducing a specific proceeding to enforce and set aside arbitration awards titled “Juicio Especial sobre Transacciones Comerciales y Arbitraje.” Alongside these amendments, Mexico became an internationally relevant jurisdiction for the recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitral awards. This article analyzes the evolution of the Mexican Supreme Court of Justice’s jurisprudence concerning international …

Juror Certainty About Firearm Evidence: Examination Effects, Dr. Amelia Shooter, Dr. Paraic Scanlon, Professor Sarah L. Cooper

Criminal Law Practitioner

Firearms examiners can evaluate associations between suspect ammunition and ammunition test-fired by a suspect firearm by microscopically comparing tool marks on both projectiles. This practice has been criticized, including by the National Academy of Sciences, yet firearms examiners routinely testify as experts in the United States. Jurors must determine the weight of expert evidence, which lawyers can aim to discredit on cross-examination or rehabilitate on redirect-examination. Using online vignettes, the authors investigated how both cross-examination and redirect-examination affected potential U.S. jurors' certainty about expert firearms evidence.

Participants (n=114) were asked to rate their certainty (on a scale of 0-100) about …

Data Injustice In Global Justice, Asaf Lubin, Cherry Tang

Articles by Maurer Faculty

In May 2020, the United Nations Secretary-General unveiled a sweeping “Data Strategy for Action by Everyone, Everywhere,” seeking to unlock the UN’s “full data potential.” The International Criminal Court’s Office of the Prosecutor followed suit, declaring in 2023 its intent to acquire advanced cyber forensic tools so as to hold the “widest range of digital evidence globally.” Across international institutions, data-driven governance has become the norm, with humanitarian agencies and tribunals transforming into “data hubs and information clearinghouses.” This Article critiques the unfettered datafication of global justice by international courts and organizations. These entities have aggressively expanded their data-driven operations …

Climate Prosecution As Climate Regulation, Cindy J. Cho

Articles by Maurer Faculty

Last term, the Supreme Court weakened the federal government’s ability to regulate. Three new decisions—and one landmark case from the previous term—will affect everything from drug approvals to overtime pay to national security. One issue stands out as a political flashpoint that will prove particularly difficult to address via regulation in the wake of this term: climate change. Given the unlikelihood of congressional climate action any time soon, those concerned about the risks of a warming planet will no doubt be looking for alternatives to regulation. Private and state civil lawsuits against polluters reflect an important legal tradition that must …

Annual Report, Fiscal Year 2025, Tennessee. Department Of Correction

Annual Reports

This document is the annual report for the Tennessee Department of Correction during the fiscal year.

Criminalizing Ecocide: An Opportunity To Embed The Inseparability Of Humans From Nature Into The Law, Rebecca Hamilton

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

Amid widespread acknowledgment that we live on a planet in peril, the term “ecocide” packs a powerful rhetorical punch. Extant regulatory approaches to environmental protection feel insufficient in the face of the triple threat of climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss. International criminal prosecution for ecocide, by contrast, promises to meet the moment, and a recent proposal to introduce ecocide into the canon of core international crimes is gaining traction. Assuming the push to criminalize ecocide continues to gain momentum, this Article argues that the primary (and perhaps, sole) benefit that international criminal law can offer in this context is …

A Restorative Justice Alternative For Trafficking Survivors: The Need For A Collaborative Approach In Establishing A Pilot Program Addressing Survivor-Articulated Needs, Stephanie Richard, Suzanne S. La Pierre

Connecticut Law Review

Human trafficking survivors not only suffer physical and psychological harm during the commission of the crimes against them, but also are often further harmed through forced involvement in the criminal justice system. With the current focus on apprehending and punishing perpetrators as the primary tool promoted in the United States to prevent trafficking, survivors forced to be witnesses against their perpetrators lose their self-determination in ways replicating the abusive patterns of their traffickers. To aid investigation and prosecution of traffickers, they are required to provide testimony reliving their experiences. Forced testimony is also often the only option available for avoiding …

Generative Artificial Intelligence: Legal Ethics Issues, Kincaid Brown

Law Librarian Scholarship

Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) is transforming nearly every sector of society including the practice of law. Legal professionals are increasingly using AI tools for research, drafting, contract review, and even predicting judicial outcomes with as many as one third of respondents to a survey using GenAI daily. But with this rapid adoption come questions that go beyond efficiency and instead point to the core of legal ethics including issues such as competence, confidentiality, and professional judgment.

Critical Curriculum Design: Teaching Law In An Age Of Rising Authoritarianism, Rachel López

Minnesota Law Review Headnotes, Vols. 107 onward (2022-present)

No abstract provided.

The Great Writ Of Popular Sovereignty, William M.M. Kamin

Scholarly Articles

American habeas corpus, long conventionally known as the Great Writ of Liberty, is more properly understood as the Great Writ of Popular Sovereignty—a tool for We the People to insist that when our agents in government exercise our delegated penal powers, they remain faithful to our sovereign will. Once we grasp this conceptual shift, the implications for the law of habeas are profound.

In the past fifteen years, novel archival research has shown the Great Writ of Liberty’s founding myth to be ahistorical—that ideas about sovereignty, rather than individual liberty, drove the common-law writ’s development in the centuries of English …

Public Right And Humane Punishment, Adam J. Macleod

Scholarly Articles

Retribution is the strategic lynchpin for securing justice and the presumption of innocence. It is the justification that takes the criminal defendant to be a human being rather than a mere instrument of social engineering and political control. By contrast, modern, results-oriented theories of punishment—deterrence, incapacitation, and rehabilitation—have made our institutions of criminal justice less humane in important ways. Gerard Bradley’s contemporary, detailed account of the old idea of retribution can be cashed out in legal doctrines that secure the presumption of innocence and limit the corrosive effects of strict-liability offenses. This new articulation of an old juristic concept provides …

Is It Possible To Draft A Universal Criminal Code?, Paul H. Robinson

American University International Law Review

The world contains hundreds of distinct communities with their own traditions and values. One might assume that, despite the best efforts of international organizations, it would be impossible to draft a criminal code that could operate effectively for all countries. Is that the case? If one tried to construct a universal criminal code, what sorts of challenges and limitations with the effort face?

The Excessive Fines Clause In The Federal Courts: A Quarter-Century Of Narrowing, Michael M. O'Hear

Faculty Publications

The Eighth Amendment prohibits “excessive fines,” but what exactly does “excessive” mean? The question has taken on some urgency in recent years as American legislatures have sharply increased the economic penalties associated with criminal convictions. In 1998, in United States v. Bajakajian, the Supreme Court for the first time established a test of sorts to determine whether an economic penalty is “excessive” in violation of the Eighth Amendment. The test was not without its ambiguities but offered some potentially robust protection against the rising tide of fines, fees, forfeiture, and restitution. However, the promise of Bajakajian has been undermined …

How Pretrial Detention Deprives A Child’S Access To Education: The Convention On The Rights Of The Child And The Juvenile Justice Reform Act, Abby Groetsch

Human Rights Brief

Although the United States (“U.S.”) has not ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which specifically outlines the rights of juvenile defendants, the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments provides implicit rights for children accused of criminal acts. In 1967, the Supreme Court decided In re Gault, definitively establishing that the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment applied to juvenile defendants. The Supreme Court has also stated that children should be treated differently than adults, outlining different sentencing requirements for crimes committed while a person is under the age of eighteen.

Crippled By War: Arguing Russia’S Actions In Ukraine Constitute Disability Persecution Under Article 7(1)(H) Of The Rome Statute, Davis Hayman

American University International Law Review

During the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Russia implemented a “humanitarian aid” program which moved Ukrainian people with disabilities to Russia or Russian-controlled areas. The Prosecutor for the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants under the theory that this program constitutes war crimes.

This Comment argues this program further qualifies as the crime of persecution against Ukrainians with disabilities. This piece first analyzes the crime of persecution, its relationship with other crimes and how non-enumerated groups can receive its protection. Next, this piece analyzes international human rights developments related to people with disabilities to show they qualify for such …

From One Prison To Another: The Inordinate Criminalization Of Women Who Kill Abusive Partners And A Proposed U.N. Response, Annalie Buscarino

Case Western Reserve Journal of International Law

Paradoxically, criminal justice systems around the world punish women who kill abusive partners with inordinate sentences despite explicitly recognizing the victimization that led them to homicide. This Note examines how universally entrenched gender stereotypes lead to such overcriminalization and amount to a violation of women’s rights to equality before the law. This Note then proposes a U.N. resolution offering guidelines for criminal justice systems to craft appropriate judicial responses to women’s survival strategies.

Out Of Sight, Out Of Rights: The Human Toll Of New York's Guardianship Crisis, Quinn Decicco, Sarah Michelle Smith

City University of New York Law Review

New York’s Article 81 guardianship system, intended as a last-resort protection for individuals unable to manage their personal or financial affairs, has become a default intervention that too often strips people of autonomy and dignity. Overburdened guardians, minimal training requirements, and inadequate judicial oversight leave incapacitated persons vulnerable to neglect, exploitation, and “civil death.” This Comment uses Cody’s Story to humanize the systemic failures and evaluates Resolution 561, recently adopted by the New York City Council, which calls for a statewide public guardianship system. While the Resolution represents a critical step toward reform, it lacks the structural safeguards necessary for …

Correcting Course: How Congress Can Streamline U.S. Engagement With The International Criminal Court, Sophia N. Ramcharitar

Cardozo Law Review de•novo

Since its participation in the 1998 Rome Conference, the United States has vocalized opposition to key components of the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) jurisdiction. This opposition has informed longstanding positions taken by the executive branch and motivated anti-ICC legislation passed by Congress. Support for the ICC’s investigation in Ukraine challenged these narratives across the legislative and executive branches, but the ICC’s arrest warrants of Israeli officials in 2024 renewed Congress’s heightened skepticism of the court and sowed political divisions on efforts to sanction the ICC. Congress’s oscillation on the ICC within the past several years prompts a larger question of …

Generative Contracts, Spencer Williams

Faculty Scholarship

This Article examines how consumers can use generative artificial intelligence to write their own contracts. Popularized by “chatbots” such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT, generative AI is a form of artificial intelligence that uses statistical models trained on massive amounts of data to generate human-like content such as text, images, music, and more. Generative AI is already being integrated into the practice of law and the legal profession. In the context of contracting and transactional law, most generative AI tools are focused on reviewing and managing large volumes of business contracts. Thus far, little attention has been given to using generative AI …

(Non)Police Brutality, Shawn E. Fields

Faculty Scholarship

Local governments increasingly rely on unarmed, nonpolice experts to provide public safety services. In response to demands to reduce police violence, many municipalities have empowered paramedics, mental health counselors, social workers, and homeless outreach personnel, to triage health and safety issues without police involvement. Pilot programs reallocating police funds to these alternate responders appear to reduce arrest rates and rates of police violence. But they have not eliminated acts of violence committed by these nonpolice actors themselves. Shocking stories of paramedics chemically sedating motionless patients to death, social workers assaulting clients, and homelessness response units brutally dispersing unhoused persons after …

Lone Stars Lessons, Amy F. Kimpel

Faculty Scholarship

This Article provides the first comprehensive empirical account of Operation Lone Star (OLS), Texas Governor Abbott’s immigration enforcement initiative at the southern border. Though OLS consists of several components, including border wall construction and the busing of migrants to “blue” states, the machinery of OLS is primarily designed to apprehend recent migrants and prosecute them for violations of Texas state criminal law. The most common OLS prosecutions are for misdemeanor criminal trespass after migrants are arrested on private ranch lands near the border. As many criminal justice reforms aim to shrink the scale and scope of the criminal legal system, …