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Full-Text Articles in Law

Blaming The Victim: The Admissibility Of Sexual History In Homicides, Joan L. Brown Jan 1988

Blaming The Victim: The Admissibility Of Sexual History In Homicides, Joan L. Brown

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Note analyzes whether legislation analogous to rape-shield statutes should be enacted to limit testimony concerning the prior sexual history of a murder victim. The Note discusses the historical development of rape-shield statutes and the policies underlying their enactment, examines the constitutional of rape-shield statutes, and discusses the rationale behind state court decisions upholding the constitutionality of rape-shield statutes. The Note then considers whether existing law concerning the right of privacy and testimonial privileges may be construed to enable the family members of a murder victim to prevent the exposure of a deceased victim's sexual past. Based upon this analysis, …


The Unanimous Acquittal Instruction: A Rational Approach To Instructing Jurors On Lesser Included Offenses, David Y. Atlas Jan 1988

The Unanimous Acquittal Instruction: A Rational Approach To Instructing Jurors On Lesser Included Offenses, David Y. Atlas

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Note proposes that all courts embrace the unanimous acquittal instruction because it encourages the jury to engage in an effective and conscientious deliberative process. The disagreement instruction not only fosters imprudent decision making, but also invites the jury to abuse its power to render a compromise verdict and thus is a wholly inappropriate method for instructing jurors on their consideration of lesser included offenses. Part II of this Note explores the background of the lesser offense doctrine, the elements of each instruction and the rationale behind recent judicial precedent in this area. Part III sets forth empirical research on …


Partaker Or Prey? Futures Commission Merchants Under Civil Rico And The Commodity Exchange Act, Robert G. Lendino Jan 1988

Partaker Or Prey? Futures Commission Merchants Under Civil Rico And The Commodity Exchange Act, Robert G. Lendino

Fordham Urban Law Journal

Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) has a civil statutory scheme that broadly allows "any person" to recover damages if he has been injured in his business or property by reason of a defendant's violation of section 1962 the Act. While the statute was aimed at organized crime, it has been used far more against legitimate businesses. Courts continuously wrestle with the broad language of the statute. The author discusses two questions regarding the interpretation of Civil RICO that remain unanswered: whether the same entity can be the "culpable person" and the "enterprise" under Section 1962(a); and if so, …