Law Commons^™

The Uses Of History In Crawford V. Washington, Frank Herrmann

Frank R. Herrmann, S.J.

To a striking degree, both the majority and concurring opinions in Crawford v. Washington are replete with references to Anglo-American historical materials, used to support differing conclusions about the application of the Confrontation Clause to testimonial hearsay. This essay sets out Justice Scalia's and Chief Justice Rehnquist's historical arguments and then employs the standards of legal historians to evaluate whether the two opinions use history in a valid manner. The essay concludes that the "history" in Crawford is not that of an historian, but is a "usable past," as conceived by Cass Sunstein and Stephen Griffin.

Sharing Sacred Secrets: Is It (Past) Time For A Dangerous Person Exception To The Clergy-Penitent Privilege?, R. Michael Cassidy

R. Michael Cassidy

In this article, the author discusses the important and previously unexplored topic of whether the law should recognize a future harms exception to the clergy-penitent privilege, similar to that recognized in the area of psychotherapist-patient and attorney-client privileges. After tracing the origins and current application of the clergy-penitent privilege in America, the author discusses how the privilege as currently applied in most states admits of no exceptions, and is unnecessarily expansive in breadth. Using the hypothetical of a homicidal spouse who reveals to his minister an intent to murder his wife, the article compares the ethical and legal duties of …

Evidence And The One Liner: A Beginning Evidence Professor’S Exploration Of The Use Of Humor In The Law School Classroom, John J. Capowski

John J. Capowski

No abstract provided.

Wonders Of The Invisible World: Prosecutorial Syndrome And Profile Evidence In The Salem Witchcraft Trials, Jane Campbell Moriarty

Jane Campbell Moriarty

The primary aims of this Article are to deconstruct the evidence from the Salem witchcraft trials and to determine whether those prosecutions relied upon syndrome and profile evidence, and whether such evidence played a substantial role in the convictions. The secondary aim is to determine whether modern cases employ evidentiary methods sufficiently similar to the Salem cases such that we should reconsider prosecutorial syndrome and profile evidence. This Article concludes that prosecutorial syndrome evidence and, to a lesser degree, prosecutorial profile evidence, were relied upon in the Salem cases and were important to the convictions. Moreover, in modern cases, which …

Statements Against Interest, Reliability, And The Confrontation Clause, John J. Capowski

John J. Capowski

No abstract provided.

Protecting Criminal Defendants' Rights When The Government Adduces Scientific Evidence: The Confrontation Clause And Other Alternatives─A Response To Professor Giannelli, James W. Diehm

James W. Diehm

Nita Problems In Evidence: Student Manual, Thomas Reed

Thomas J Reed

No abstract provided.