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Full-Text Articles in Law
Life’S Complexities: Rethinking Barnette, The Flag, Totalitarianism, And The First Amendment, Daniel Gordon
Life’S Complexities: Rethinking Barnette, The Flag, Totalitarianism, And The First Amendment, Daniel Gordon
University of Massachusetts Law Review
This article rethinks the meaning of the 1943 Barnette case and questions the canonical status of Justice Robert Jackson’s famous opinion for the majority. On the assumption that we have lost sight of the logic that had been used to uphold compulsory flag salute laws, the article traces the many state court opinions on this topic prior to World War II. Also brought under scrutiny is Jackson’s usage of the term “totalitarian” to describe flag salute laws, a quasi-theological term promoted first and foremost by the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Jackson’s opinion in Barnette, while rhetorically compelling, was out of sync with …
The Development Of Intellectual Disabilities In United States Capital Cases And The Modern Application Of Moore V. Texas To State Court Decisions, Dr. Alexander Updegrove
The Development Of Intellectual Disabilities In United States Capital Cases And The Modern Application Of Moore V. Texas To State Court Decisions, Dr. Alexander Updegrove
University of Massachusetts Law Review
Although in 1989 the Supreme Court of the United States initially held that the Eighth Amendment did not prohibit executing persons with intellectual disabilities in Penry v. Lynaugh, in 2002 it subsequently reversed this decision in Atkins v. Virginia, citing changing state legislation. Since the Atkins decision, state courts have interpreted the Court’s Atkins provisions in a variety of ways, some more faithfully than others. As a result, the Court provided additional clarification in its 2014 and 2015 Hall v. Florida and Brumfield v. Cain decisions, ruling that states must apply a Standard Error of Measurement of +5/-5 to all …
When Do The Ends Justify The Means?: The Role Of The Necessary And Proper Clause In The Commerce Clause Analysis, David Loudon
When Do The Ends Justify The Means?: The Role Of The Necessary And Proper Clause In The Commerce Clause Analysis, David Loudon
University of Massachusetts Law Review
This Article discusses the interplay between the Necessary and Proper Clause and the Commerce Clause, particularly in light of the landmark decision of National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius. First, this Article reviews the historical interaction between the two clauses, discussing the instances in which the two may have been considered together, and introducing the Supreme Court jurisprudence of each clause, setting the legal landscape for the NFIB v. Sebelius decision. Next, this Article details the three opinions from the NFIB v. Sebelius decision, Chief Justice Roberts’ holding, the joint concurrence, and Justice Ginsberg’s dissent, specifically as they …
Out Of Balance: Wrong Turns In Public Employee Speech Law, Michael Toth
Out Of Balance: Wrong Turns In Public Employee Speech Law, Michael Toth
University of Massachusetts Law Review
Although scholars offer a variety of explanations for the modern Supreme Court’s public employee speech jurisprudence, they share a common presumption. According to the standard account, the modern era of public employee free speech law began in 1968, with the Court’s adoption of a balancing test in Pickering v. Board of Education. Contrary to this view, this Article argues that Pickering balancing is better characterized as a relic from a bygone era rather than the start of a new one. Balancing was once the Court’s standard method of judging First Amendment claims. When Pickering was decided, however, balancing was under …