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Full-Text Articles in Law
Justice Sonia Sotomayor: The Court’S Premier Defender Of The Fourth Amendment, David L. Hudson Jr.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor: The Court’S Premier Defender Of The Fourth Amendment, David L. Hudson Jr.
Law Faculty Scholarship
This essay posits that Justice Sonia Sotomayor is the Supreme Court’s chief defender of the Fourth Amendment and the cherished values it protects. She has consistently defended Fourth Amendment freedoms—in majority, concurring, and especially in dissenting opinions. Part I recounts a few of her majority opinions in Fourth Amendment cases. Part II examines her concurring opinion in United States v. Jones. Part III examines several of her dissenting opinions in Fourth Amendment cases. A review of these opinions demonstrates what should be clear to any observer of the Supreme Court: Justice Sotomayor consistently defends Fourth Amendment principles and values.
Justice Kennedy And The First Amendment, David L. Hudson Jr.
Justice Kennedy And The First Amendment, David L. Hudson Jr.
Law Faculty Scholarship
This essay reviews some of Justice Anthony Kennedy’s most significant contributions to First Amendment jurisprudence. These include his calls for absolute protection for pure political speech, his strong protection for commercial speech, his distaste for campaign finance reform laws that censored speech, his general concern for the silencing of sexual expression, his coercion test in Establishment Clause cases, and his significant failure in the public-employee free-speech decision Garcetti v. Ceballos.
Presidential Powers, Immunities, And Pardons, Alberto R. Gonzales
Presidential Powers, Immunities, And Pardons, Alberto R. Gonzales
Law Faculty Scholarship
This Article intends to clarify some of the more difficult legal issues in our nation’s separation of powers jurisprudence. In order to afford the President the flexibility and discretion necessary to discharge presidential duties, the courts are almost certainly going to recognize total immunity from the criminal process for the President with respect to official conduct. The treatment of unofficial conduct is less predictable. Based on precedent and our nation’s founding principles of equal justice and fairness, the courts are likely to hold that a sitting President is not above the law and thus does not enjoy immunity from criminal …
Public Pension Reform And The Takings Clause, Michael B. Kent
Public Pension Reform And The Takings Clause, Michael B. Kent
Belmont Law Review
Of the many current issues facing state and local governments, perhaps one of the most pressing is public pension reform. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there are nearly 4,000 public pension systems in the United States, the vast majority (3,742) of which are administered by local governments. As of 2014, these systems had more than 19,000,000 members and more than 9,000,000 beneficiaries receiving periodic payments. But many of these systems are in serious financial trouble, collectively facing unfunded liabilities that, by some estimates, equal approximately $4.7 trillion. In light of these shortfalls, many states have enacted a variety of …
Sensible Application Of Stare Decisis Or A Rewriting Of The Constitution: An Examination Of Helling V. Mckinney, Jeffrey S. Kinsler
Sensible Application Of Stare Decisis Or A Rewriting Of The Constitution: An Examination Of Helling V. Mckinney, Jeffrey S. Kinsler
Law Faculty Scholarship
In Helling v. McKinney, the Supreme Court held that compelled exposure to environmental tobacco smoke ("ETS") may constitute cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment. Section I of this article explores the medical evidence linking ETS to lung cancer, heart disease and certain other health risks in nonsmokers. Section II examines the history of the Eighth Amendment's ban on cruel and unusual punishment, particularly as it relates to dangerous or unhealthy prison conditions. Section III analyzes the decision in Helling v. McKinney. Section IV questions whether a judicial ban on smoking would itself constitute cruel and unusual …