Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Discipline
-
- Law and Society (9)
- State and Local Government Law (9)
- Environmental Law (8)
- Health Law and Policy (8)
- Immigration Law (8)
-
- Jurisprudence (8)
- Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility (8)
- Military, War, and Peace (8)
- Oil, Gas, and Mineral Law (8)
- Constitutional Law (2)
- Criminal Law (2)
- Human Rights Law (2)
- Civil Rights and Discrimination (1)
- Criminal Procedure (1)
- Government Contracts (1)
- Law Enforcement and Corrections (1)
- Legal Remedies (1)
- Social Control, Law, Crime, and Deviance (1)
- Social and Behavioral Sciences (1)
- Sociology (1)
- Publication Year
Articles 1 - 12 of 12
Full-Text Articles in Law
Beat The Heat: Texas’S Need To Reduce Summer Temperatures In Offender Housing, Mary E. Adair
Beat The Heat: Texas’S Need To Reduce Summer Temperatures In Offender Housing, Mary E. Adair
St. Mary's Law Journal
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice’s lack of air conditioning in offender housing areas is a violation of the Eighth Amendment and deprives offenders of humane living conditions. Unlike most Texans, offenders housed in the TDCJ are unable to adequately protect themselves from the higher, prolonged summer temperatures. Most Texas prisons do not provide air conditioning or other types of cooling systems in offender housing areas, so offenders are at the mercy of the elements with little protection against heat-related illnesses. Several jurisdictions, other than Texas, have recognized extreme temperatures in housing areas can lead to constitutional violations because the …
Certainty In A World Of Uncertainty: Proposing Statutory Guidance In Sentencing Juveniles To Life Without Parole., Sonia Mardarewich
Certainty In A World Of Uncertainty: Proposing Statutory Guidance In Sentencing Juveniles To Life Without Parole., Sonia Mardarewich
The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice
In Miller v. Alabama, the United States Supreme Court held that mandatory life sentences without parole imposed upon juveniles was unconstitutional. The Court reasoned that the sentence was cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment. The Court, however, did not hold it was unconstitutional to sentence a juvenile to life without parole if there was “transferred intent” or “reckless disregard.” Nonetheless, the Court effectively abolished state discretion and required sentencing courts to consider an offender’s youth and attendant characteristics as mitigating circumstances. The Court, however, did not specify what sentencing guidelines should dictate. Thus, states are now …
Texas Law's Life Or Death Rule In Capital Sentencing: Scrutinizing Eight Amendment Violations And The Case Of Juan Guerrero, Jr., John Niland, Riddhi Dasgupta
Texas Law's Life Or Death Rule In Capital Sentencing: Scrutinizing Eight Amendment Violations And The Case Of Juan Guerrero, Jr., John Niland, Riddhi Dasgupta
St. Mary's Law Journal
The United States Supreme Court has never explained the Eighth Amendment’s impact in noncapital cases involving a mentally retarded or brain-injured defendant. The Court has not provided guidance to legislatures or lower courts concerning the acceptable balancing of aggravating and mitigating factors and the role that mitigating factors must play in the sentencing decision. A definitive gap exists between the protections afforded to a criminal defendant facing a life sentence as opposed to those confronted with the death penalty. The Court requires sentencing procedures to consider aggravating and mitigating factors, including mental retardation and brain damage, when imposing a death …
Down And Out In San Antonio: The Constitutionality Of San Antonio's Anti-Homeless Ordinances., Justin Cook
Down And Out In San Antonio: The Constitutionality Of San Antonio's Anti-Homeless Ordinances., Justin Cook
The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice
This comment addresses the constitutionality of two San Antonio anti-homeless ordinances which prohibit camping in public and aggressive panhandling. The population of San Antonio, Texas grows at a rapid rate. Mayor Ed Garza established a task force to address the homelessness problem in San Antonio. This task force developed a ten-year plan to end homelessness in the city. The plan proposed by the year 2014 all homeless individuals would have alternatives and access to safe, decent, and affordable housing as well as resources and support to sustain housing. However, not long after approving the proposal, San Antonio’s City Council presented …
America And The World: Human Rights At Home And Abroad., Joe W. (Chip) Pitts Iii
America And The World: Human Rights At Home And Abroad., Joe W. (Chip) Pitts Iii
The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice
Multiple provisions in the Bill of Rights appear gutted around the last year. While abroad, Mr. Pitts received an outside perspective on American news which provided him with a new outlook on current events. The United Nations Social Forum brought voices into the United Nations which are not typically heard, such as poor and vulnerable populations not represented elsewhere. Concurrently, the Johannesburg Summit addressed similar issues. However, as of late, the American government suppresses the voices of the American people. The Patriot Act includes provisions which deter dissent, freedom of speech, and assembly. This Act also purported to give the …
Does Community Notification For Sex Offenders Violate The Eighth Amendment's Prohibition Against Cruel And Unusual Punishment - A Focus On Vigilantism Resulting From Megan's Law., Alex B. Eyssen
St. Mary's Law Journal
Community notification of a sex offender’s presence may be violating the Eighth Amendment’s protection from Cruel and Unusual Punishment. Under Megan’s Law and other sex offender registration statutes, individuals that have completed a prison sentence for a sex crime may have to register as a sex offender. The information of the individual including his name, address, physical description, date of birth, social security number, employer, offense, and picture, is publicly disseminated. As an unintended consequence, individuals who have served their time may have to suffer additional punishment in the form of harassment, vigilantism, and violence.
The React Security Belt: Stunning Prisoners And Human Rights Groups Into Questioning Whether Its Use Is Permissible Under The United States And Texas Constitutions Comment., Shelley A. Nieto Dahlberg
The React Security Belt: Stunning Prisoners And Human Rights Groups Into Questioning Whether Its Use Is Permissible Under The United States And Texas Constitutions Comment., Shelley A. Nieto Dahlberg
St. Mary's Law Journal
The Remote Electronically Activated Control Technology (REACT) belt infringes upon criminal defendants’ and prisoners’ fundamental rights; therefore, it cannot withstand judicial scrutiny under the United States and Texas Constitutions. This Comment attempts to address and answer issues regarding the REACT belt. The belt constitutes cruel and unusual punishment with the potential to deprive prisoners of their due process rights. The belt disrupts attorney-client communication and destroys a criminal defendant’s presumption of innocence. Furthermore, other alternatives provide effective means to prevent unruly prisoners from destroying the integrity of the courts. Part II of this Comment discusses how the belt works, and …
Capital Punishment: The Humanistic And Moral Issues Address., Helen Prejean
Capital Punishment: The Humanistic And Moral Issues Address., Helen Prejean
St. Mary's Law Journal
Death row reminds us that justice is not equal. Death sentences, opposed to being reserved for only the most heinous crimes, are generally related to the profile of the victim and identity of those most outraged by the crime. The majority of people on death row killed a white person, even though one-half of homicide victims in the United States are people of color. Because of this, and the fact that the law almost always sides with people of wealth and power, the death penalty works to compound societal trauma instead of healing or solving anything. The skewed and harmful …
The Supreme Court Takes A Weapon From The Drug War Arsenal: New Defenses To Civil Drug Forfeiture., Scott Alexander Nelson
The Supreme Court Takes A Weapon From The Drug War Arsenal: New Defenses To Civil Drug Forfeiture., Scott Alexander Nelson
St. Mary's Law Journal
This Comment discusses the history and development of forfeiture law—emphasizing the misnomer of “guilty property”—and addresses the lack of constitutional safeguards in the civil forfeiture statutes. It outlines prospective constitutional defenses announced by the United States Supreme Court, emphasizing the Fifth Amendment guarantee of due process, the Eighth Amendment’s Excessive Fines Clause, and the “innocent owner” defense. The federal statute authorizing civil forfeiture, 21 U.S.C. § 881 (Forfeiture Statute), was initially enacted as part of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970. The Comprehensive Forfeiture Act of 1984 amended the statute to impose forfeiture on real property …
Consent Decrees Resulting From Institutional-Reform Litigation May Be Modified Upon Showing A Significant Change In Law Or Fact And A Modification Appropriately Tailored To That Change., Christy J. Lindsay
St. Mary's Law Journal
In Rufo v. Inmates of Suffolk County Jail, the Court held that courts may modify consent decrees resulting from institutional reform litigation upon showing a significant change in law or fact and a modification appropriately tailored to that change. The case of Swift v. United States set a strict standard for modification of consent decrees, requiring movants to demonstrate extreme, unexpected hardship and oppression. However, there is a modem trend toward adopting a more flexible standard. The Court deems the “flexible test” as particularly appropriate in the case of the institutional reform consent decree because of its speculative, long-term nature. …
Capital Punishment: A Critique Of The Political And Philosophical Thought Supporting The Justices' Positions., Samuel J.M. Donnelly
Capital Punishment: A Critique Of The Political And Philosophical Thought Supporting The Justices' Positions., Samuel J.M. Donnelly
St. Mary's Law Journal
Since Gregg v. Georgia, the Supreme Court has developed what could be described as a subparadigm for capital punishment. This subparadigm is now at a point of crisis for two enduring and mutually supporting reasons. The dissents by Justice Brennan and Justice Marshall represent the convergence of the better modern thought in regard to capital punishment. Even with the retirement of both Justices, the criticism found in their dissenting opinions presents a continuing challenge to the plurality’s position. Those using the plurality’s rhetoric are now split into two groups. Justices Blackmun and Stevens regularly vote against capital punishment, while focusing …
The Scope Of The Eighth Amendment Does Not Include A Per Se Bar To The Use Of Victim Impact Evidence In The Sentencing Phase Of A Capital Trial., Jimmie O. Clements Jr.
The Scope Of The Eighth Amendment Does Not Include A Per Se Bar To The Use Of Victim Impact Evidence In The Sentencing Phase Of A Capital Trial., Jimmie O. Clements Jr.
St. Mary's Law Journal
In Payne v. Tennessee, the United States Supreme Court held the scope of the Eighth Amendment does not include a per se bar to the use of victim impact evidence in the sentencing phase of a capital trial. As a result of Payne, the realm of information admissible during the sentencing phase of a capital trial now includes victim impact evidence. The use of victim impact evidence improperly diverts the sentencer’s attention away from the defendant’s moral blameworthiness to the victim’s character and reputation. Although advocates of victim’s rights may see this decision as a victory, the reasoning of the …