Criminal Law Commons^™

Punishment In Prison: Constituting The "Normal" And The "Atypical" In Solitary And Other Forms Of Confinement, Judith Resnik, Hirsa Amin, Sophie Angelis, Megan Hauptman, Laura Kokotailo, Aseem Mehta, Madeline Silva, Tor Tarantola, Meredith Wheeler

Northwestern University Law Review

What aspects of human liberty does incarceration impinge? A remarkable group of Black and white prisoners, most of whom had little formal education and no resources, raised that question in the 1960s and 1970s. Incarcerated individuals asked judges for relief from corporal punishment; radical food deprivations; strip cells; solitary confinement in dark cells; prohibitions on bringing these claims to courts, on religious observance, and on receiving reading materials; and from transfers to long- term isolation and to higher security levels.

Judges concluded that some facets of prison that were once ordinary features of incarceration, such as racial segregation, rampant violence, …

A Wrong Without A Right? Overcoming The Prison Litigation Reform Act's Physical Injury Requirement In Solitary Confinement Cases, Maggie Filler, Daniel Greenfield

Northwestern University Law Review

This Essay argues against applying the so-called “physical injury” requirement of the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA) to deny monetary compensation to solitary confinement survivors. The Essay identifies three ways in which misapplication of the PLRA’s physical injury requirement limits the ability of solitary confinement survivors to receive monetary compensation for psychological harm suffered. First, some courts applying the PLRA wrongly dismiss damages claims for alleging “de minimis” physical injury. Second, some courts have been reluctant to find that physical injury caused by psychological trauma satisfies the PLRA’s physical injury requirement. Third, courts do not distinguish between “garden …

Is Solitary Confinement A Punishment?, John F. Stinneford

Northwestern University Law Review

The United States Constitution imposes a variety of constraints on the imposition of punishment, including the requirements that the punishment be authorized by a preexisting penal statute and ordered by a lawful judicial sentence. Today, prison administrators impose solitary confinement on thousands of prisoners despite the fact that neither of these requirements has been met. Is this imposition a “punishment without law,” or is it a mere exercise of administrative discretion? In an 1890 case called In re Medley, the Supreme Court held that solitary confinement is a separate punishment subject to constitutional restraints, but it has ignored this …

Authority And The Globalisation Of Inclusion And Exclusion: Author Meets Readers, Hand Lindahl, Christine Bell Prof, Friedrich Kratochwil, Hans-W. Micklitz, Carlos Thiebaut, Bert Van Roermund

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

Authority is written against the background of intense resistance to globalization processes by a range of political movements and grassroots organizations. These processes are complex and have a variety of dimensions. One of these is the emergence of global legal orders, which I define, in a rough and ready manner, as relatively autonomous legal orders that claim or aspire to claim global validity for themselves. They too-most obviously the World Trade Organization (WTO)-are the butt of resistance. Whatever its forms and aspirations, resistance to globalization is fueled by their peculiar dynamic. Indeed, emergent global legal orders spawn massive exclusion when …

When Freedom Of Speech Comes At A Cost: A Case Study Of E.S. V. Austria, Rachael Taylor

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

In the fall of 2018, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) issued a decision upholding the criminal conviction of an Austrian national (E.S.) in violation of Austria's Criminal Code against the disparagement of religious doctrines. Her initial conviction in the Austrian court was based on statements she made about the Prophet Muhammad while teaching a series of seminars entitled "Basic Information on Islam." In upholding her conviction, the ECtHR found that there had been no violation of the Austrian's right to freedom of expression under Article 10 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights (Convention), and …

The Need For A Historical Exception To Grand Jury Secrecy In The Federal Rules Of Criminal Procedure, Daniel Aronsohn

Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review

No abstract provided.

Thailand V. Does 1-5 Of The Organization For Thai Federation, Human Rights Institute, Demetra Sorvatzioti

Human Rights Institute

From November 2019 to January 2020, the Human Rights Clinic at Columbia Law School monitored the trial of five individuals on charges of sedition and membership in a secret society, the latter predicated on the defendants’ alleged affiliation with the Organization for Thai Federation (OTF), an organization whose political platform includes changing the existing political system from a constitutional monarchy to republicanism. Specifically, the defendants were accused of a range of nonviolent activities in support of OTF, from distributing flyers and t-shirts to communicating with other supporters of OTF — all activities protected by their right to freedom of expression …

Turkey Vs. Ahmet Tuna Altınel, René Provost, Human Rights Institute

Human Rights Institute

Ahmet Tuna Altınel is a Professor of Mathematics at the University of Lyon-1 in France. During a visit to Turkey, his passport was seized. When he inquired as to its whereabouts, he was arrested on suspicion of “propaganda for a terrorist organization,” soon thereafter charged with “membership in a terrorist organization,” and detained for nearly three months. The predicate for this charge was social media posts inviting attendance at an event in France entitled “Cizre — the Story of a Massacre” and interpretation assistance Mr. Altınel provided at the event. After his eventual release from pre-trial detention, the prosecution again …

National, Military, And College Reports On Prosecution Of Sexual Assaults And Victims' Rights (White Paper), David A. Schlueter, Lisa Schenck

Faculty Articles

In response to recent calls for major reforms to the American military justice system, which are apparently based on continuing Congressional concerns about sexual assaults in the military, the authors present statistical data on sexual assaults from a number of sources: national crime statistics; military crime statistics; crime statistics from several states, and statistics from a university. The authors also present information on the tremendous strides that have been made in recent years to protect the rights of military victims of sexual assault, noting that some of those rights are not found in federal or state criminal justice systems. Finally, …

Law Library Blog (August 2020): Legal Beagle's Blog Archive, Roger Williams University School Of Law

Law Library Newsletters/Blog

No abstract provided.

Mass Solitary And Mass Incarceration: Explaining The Dramatic Rise In Prolonged Solitary In America's Prisons, Jules Lobel

Northwestern University Law Review

In the last two decades of the twentieth century, prisons throughout the United States witnessed a dramatic rise in the use of solitary confinement, and the practice continues to be widespread. From the latter part of the nineteenth century until the 1970s and ’80s, prolonged solitary confinement in the United States had fallen into disuse, as numerous observers and the United States Supreme Court recognized that the practice caused profound mental harm to prisoners. The reasons for this dramatic rise in the nationwide use of solitary confinement and the development of new supermax prisons have not been explored in depth. …

The Science Of Solitary: Expanding The Harmfulness Narrative, Craig Haney

Northwestern University Law Review

The harmful effects of solitary confinement have been established in a variety of direct observations and empirical studies that date back to the nineteenth century, conducted in many different countries by researchers with diverse disciplinary backgrounds. This Essay argues that these effects should be situated and understood in the context of a much larger scientific literature that documents the adverse and sometimes life- threatening psychological and physical consequences of social isolation, social exclusion, loneliness, and the deprivation of caring human touch as they occur in free society. These dangerous conditions are the hallmarks of solitary confinement. Yet they are imposed …

Consensus Statement From The Santa Cruz Summit On Solitary Confinement And Health

Northwestern University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Covid-19 Provincially Incarcerated Individuals - A Policy Report, Adelina Iftene

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

This document is the result of an investigation into the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on provincially incarcerated individuals and the Nova Scotia government’s responses relating to its prison population. It was supported by the Nova Scotia COVID-19 Health Research Coalition. In this memorandum, we describe the results of the investigation and propose solutions to better prepare for the second wave of COVID-19 or an alike pandemic situation.

How Do We Reach A National Tipping Point In The Campaign To Stop Solitary?, Amy Fettig

Northwestern University Law Review

The use and abuse of solitary confinement in American prisons, jails, and juvenile detention centers is at epidemic levels. On any given day 80,000 to 100,000 people in prisons are subjected to a practice considered inhumane and degrading treatment—even torture under international human rights standards. Despite widespread international condemnation, decades of research demonstrating the harm it inflicts on human beings, and a growing chorus from the medical community raising alarms about its impact on the brain, solitary confinement remains a routine prison-management strategy in correctional institutions nationwide. In the past decade, however, a growing movement has emerged to challenge the …

Child Abuse And Cannabis Use: How A Prima Facie Standard Mischaracterizes Parental Cannabis Consumption As Child Neglect, Jasmine Harris

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Tasing The Constitution: Conducted Electrical Weapons, Other Forceful Arrest Means, And The Validity Of Subsequent Constitutional Rights Waivers, Andreas Kuersten

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

Conducted electrical weapons (CEWs)—the most famous and widely used of which are offered under the TASER brand—are ubiquitous tools of law enforcement, carried by the vast majority of law enforcement officers and routinely deployed. These devices subdue targets by coursing electric current through their bodies, thereby causing individuals to collapse as their muscles involuntarily contract. Yet this method of operation has raised concerns—voiced by researchers, advocates, and criminal defendants alike—that CEWs influence cognitive capacity in addition to muscle function as electric current potentially transits through the brain via the central nervous system. In the context of an arrest, this implicates …

Consent In Marriage: A Radical Feminist Analysis Of Pakistani Law, Iqra Saleem Khan

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

In Abdul Kadir v. Salima, Mahmood J summarised the nature of a Pakistani wife’s duties under Islamic Law. The nikkah contract “imposes submission on the wife when summoned to the couch and confers on him the power of correction when she is disobedient or rebellious.” Earlier, a similar pronouncement was made across the ocean in the United Kingdom by Sir Matthew Hale that through the marriage contract the “wife hath given herself to the husband, consent of which she cannot retract.” Marital rape was later recognised as an offence in the UK by the House of Lords in R …

Edwards V. Vannoy: Brief Of Law Professors And Social Scientists As Amici Curiae In Support Of Petitioner, Phoebe C. Ellsworth, Richard O. Lempert

Appellate Briefs

Amici are law professors and social scientists whose research and teaching address the Sixth Amendment right to a unanimous jury verdict and the demonstrated benefits that right produces. They have a strong interest in ensuring that this Court understands the full extent of those benefits when determining whether the rule announced in Ramos v. Louisiana, 140 S. Ct. 1390 (2020), requiring jury unanimity in state and federal criminal trials, applies retroactively to cases on federal collateral review. In particular, they have an interest in affirming the wisdom of the Ramos rule and demonstrating that the rule is necessary to …

The Iccpr, Non-Self-Execution, And Daca Recipients' Right To Remain In The United States, Timothy E. Lynch

Faculty Works

The United States is a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Article 12.4 states, “No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of the right to enter his own country.” Citizens clearly enjoy the rights of Article 12.4, but this Article demonstrates that this right reaches beyond the citizenry. Using customary methods of treaty interpretation, including reference to the ICCPR’s preparatory works and the jurisprudence of the Human Rights Committee, I demonstrate that Article 12.4 also forbids states from deporting long-term resident non-citizens – both documented and undocumented – except under the rarest circumstances. As a result, …

Fight Or Flight: The Ninth Circuit's Advancement Of Textualism During An Era Of Intentionalism In United States V. Lozoya, Zachary Remijas

Pepperdine Law Review

The modern complexities of global interaction and accessibility have recently forced some federal courts to reconsider standards for determining proper venue for criminal defendants who commit offenses while engaged in transportation, particularly those involving interstate commerce and crimes spanning multiple districts. These courts’ application of two adversarial schools of statutory interpretation—textualism and intentionalism—has driven conflict between textualist jurisdictions adhering to the plain meaning of established constitutional and statutory sources, and intentionalist jurisdictions refraining from the “creeping absurdity” of establishing venue for certain in-transit offenses under the literal meaning of such provisions. This Note endorses the sensibility and superiority of the …

Conspiracy Liability And The Fcpa: The Second Circuit's Rare Interpretation Of The Fcpa In United States V. Hoskins And Its Potential Implications, Morgan R. Knudtsen

William & Mary Business Law Review

The scope of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) is inherently difficult to ascertain. Over time, the SEC and DOJ have privately settled claims under the FCPA, leaving most interpretation to government agencies. Though agency interpretation happens frequently, there has been little interpretation over major questions such as who is subject to the FCPA’s jurisdiction and how far that jurisdiction extends. United States v. Hoskins, which was decided in August 2018, involved the FCPA, conspiracy, and foreign corporate officials. The Second Circuit in its decision subsequently limited the scope of the FCPA, holding that liability cannot extend to foreign …

Syllabus For Issues In Law Enforcement: Cybersecurity And Public Interest Technology, Amy J. Ramson

Open Educational Resources

This is a syllabus for a course in Issues in Law Enforcement. The curriculum is a public interest technology course in cybersecurity. Principally, the federal government handles cybersecurity investigations along with some state governments and the FBI acts as the center for all cybersecurity complaints.

The course expands beyond law enforcement and provides a comprehensive background to the field through the following presentations: a history of cybersecurity; an explanation of the Internet; an introduction to cybercrime and cybersecurity techniques; the legal environment, which includes a survey of law enforcement and prosecution departments and agencies, and federal and NY state criminal, …

Nycla Justice Center Task Force: Solving The Problem Of Innocent People Pleading Guilty

Pace Law Review

No abstract provided.

Cybersecurity-Cybercrime-The Legal Environment, Amy J. Ramson

Open Educational Resources

This presentation covers the legal environment of cybercrime to date. It addresses: the challenges of law enforcement; federal government vs. sate jurisdiction of cybercrime; law enforcement department and agencies which handle cybercrime; criminal statutes and privacy statutes.

Cybersecurity-Online Identity Theft, Amy J. Ramson

Open Educational Resources

This is an activity the goals of which are to facilitate team work; critical thinking; presentation skills in the area of cybersecurity and law. Students will be grouped into two teams. As a team, they will choose and analyze cases about online identity theft through the questions presented in the activity. They will present their analysis to the class.

Cybersecurity-The Internet Of Things, Amy J. Ramson

Open Educational Resources

With 38.5 billion smart devices in existence in 2020 and increasing every year, the potential for security breaches in the Internet of things is also escalating at a dramatic pace. The goal of this team activity is to facilitate team work, critical thinking, and presentation skills in the area of cybersecurity and the Internet of Things. Students will be grouped into two teams. As a team, they will analyze cases about security cameras and smart dolls through the questions presented in the activity. They will present their analysis to the class.

Cybersecurity-Corporate Espionage, Amy J. Ramson

Open Educational Resources

The goals of this team activity in the area of criminal law, cybersecurity and cyber crime are to facilitate team work, critical thinking and presentation skills. Students will be grouped into two teams. As a team, they will analyze cases about corporate espionage committed by nation states and industry competitors through the questions presented in the activity. They will present their analysis to the class.

Cybersecurity-The Silk Road Market, Amy J. Ramson

Open Educational Resources

This presentation is about the Silk Road Market, one of the largest cases of illegal drug activity on the dark web, that the federal government has prosecuted. Beyond discussing the case, the presentation adds general facts about the US Department of Justice, the FBI and the DEA, and federal sentencing. The case discussion includes information about: Ross Ulbricht the creator and head of the market; how the Silk Road operated; the involvement of the FBI and DEA; the trial; the fourth amendment violations alleged by the defense; and the sentencing.

Cybersecurity-Fake News, Amy J. Ramson

Open Educational Resources

This goals of this activity are to facilitate team work, critical thinking, and presentation skills in the area of cybersecurity and fake news. Students will be grouped into two teams. As a team, they will choose and analyze cases and ethical questions about fake news through the questions presented in the activity. They will present their analysis to the class.