Public Law and Legal Theory Commons^™

Prefatory Matter

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.

Letter From The Editor, Carley Ruival

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.

Python Patrol: Combatting The Problem Of Evasive Non-Native Snakes In Florida, Jessica Rooke

Law Student Publications

The Florida hotspot of non-native invasive species has long been recognized as a fascinating, yet perplexing environmental issue since the late 1900s. After decades of patchwork efforts by the federal and state government, it has become clear that a more holistic approach must be taken to help eradicate the Burmese Pythons that have overtaken Southern Florida. This article highlights the prior efforts taken federally and state-wide to combat this issue and assesses the current gaps in these efforts and what must be done to achieve a more holistic approach. Other states are used as points of comparison in regard to …

A Call For Change: Doing More To Protect Black And Brown Victims Of Domestic Violence, Kiana Gilcrist

Law Student Publications

Domestic violence (“DV”) disproportionately affects Black and Brown women. This article examines the tense history of law enforcement engagement with minority groups, which has caused a strain on that relationship, leaving minority groups more likely to choose to stay in their DV situations than seek out law enforcement help. The divide still impacts these groups today. Additionally, the article highlights several organizations that have formed to address the needs of minority individuals. Other organizations have been around, but their ties to law enforcement create an added barrier for Black and Brown women seeking protection. The article concludes by briefly examining …

The Legislative Graveyard: A Review Of Virginia's 2022 Regular General Assembly Session, Kaylin Cecchini, Haley Edmonds

Law Student Publications

In 2019, Democrats won a majority in the House of Delegates and the Senate, and the Commonwealth was led by a Democratic Governor. The Democrats’ majority trifecta, which they had obtained for the first time since 1992, was once again lost on November 2, 2021, when Virginians voted to renew the Republican leadership in the Office of the Governor and in the House of Delegates. Under this once again bifurcated, yet unusually polarized, assembly, legislators on either side of the political aisle faced an uphill battle getting legislation passed, with the majority of bills ending in a stalemate. As a …

Individual Funding: A Policy Solution To Family Abuse In Rural Areas Impacted By The Covid-19 Pandemic, Jessica King

Law Student Publications

Intimate partner violence is an issue in the United States experienced by more than one in three women. This article addresses the topic of intimate partner violence and the factors contributing to the perpetuation of abuse. It focuses on how these factors manifest in rural areas and in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, which increased isolation and economic abuse. This article explores policies currently used to combat intimate partner violence in these contexts. The current acts, including the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA), the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA), and the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), expressly …

State-Sanctioned Displacement: An Interstate Examination Of Felon Disenfranchisement, Claudia Leonor

Law Student Publications

In his dissent of New State Ice Co. v. Liebmann, Justice Louis Brandeis referred to the constituent states of the country as “laboratories for democracy.” He noted that, as sovereign entities within the United States, states are empowered to “try novel social and economic experiments without risk to the rest of the country.” In postbellum American society, states have grappled with Reconstruction and the concomitant dismantlement of a caste system hinging on racism. In convening constitutional assemblies, the states experimented with racism and succeeded. In Southern jurisdictions, racial animus enabled the creation of constitutional frameworks and legislation that would have …

How California's Racial Justice Act Of 2020 Protects Criminal Defendants From Racial Discrimination And Why The Equal Protection Clause Is Not Enough, Hannah Laub

Law Student Publications

The Equal Protection Clause should prevent racial discrimination in the criminal legal system, yet Black people and people of color are disproportionately arrested, prosecuted, and incarcerated in the United States. This is partially due to the heavy evidentiary burden required to demonstrate an Equal Protection violation and the failure of the Supreme Court to ease that burden in McCleskey v. Kemp. With federal law largely ineffective, states such as California have passed legislation to provide more robust civil rights protections. This article explores how the Equal Protection Clause fails to provide a remedy for criminal defendants who experience racial discrimination …

Prefatory Matter

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.

Forty Years Of Environmental Justice: Where Is The Justice?, Jon A. Mueller, Taylor Lilley

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

Environmental Justice (or“EJ”) has been recognized as a concept since

at least 1982. After decades of incremental and ineffective efforts by the federal

government, it has become clear that EJ must evolve beyond the concept

stage if it is to be an effective vehicle for social and legal change. At its heart,

EJ is a function of social inequities and environmental harms, and the disproportionate

correlation between those components can no longer be ignored

by state and federal actors. The way forward must be paved with practical

legal solutions and affirmative application of regulatory authority. This

article examines the history …

Incorporating Environmental Justice Into Benefit-Cost Analysis Of Federal Rulemakings, John D. Graham

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

President Biden proposes to revise the federal rulemaking process to advance

the values of justice and equity. This analysis offers a practical path

forward by adding an equity test to the efficiency test applied to new federal

regulations by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget. This article explores

the feasibility of the proposal with applications to regulation of hazardous

air pollutants and drinking water contaminants. The proposal seeks

to advance the interests of low-income Americans in federal rulemaking, a

subgroup that has received little historical priority in the regulatory impact

analyses prepared by federal regulatory agencies.

Deconstructing Inequality: Cumulative Impacts, Environmental Justice, And Interstate Redevelopment, Lemir Teron

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

The siting and development of Interstate 81 in Syracuse, New York, similar

to highway projects across the nation, lead to the displacement of Black

Syracusans

and has exposed thousands of remaining residents at heightened

environmental harm. As the interstate is slated to be redeveloped due to age

and safety issues, national attention has focused on the highway as a potential

exemplar for similar projects across the United States. Federal law mandates

that environmental impact analysis be conducted, and due to the prevalence

of marginalized populations, environmental justice impacts are a

critical feature in this assessment. This article evaluates both the …

Armoring The Just Transition Activist, Abigail Fleming, Catherine Dremluk

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

The fossil fuel energy system, reinforced by oppressive policies and practices,

has disproportionately harmed poor people, Indigenous people, and

Brown and Black people and driven the global climate crisis. A just transition,

which displaces fossil fuels and redistributes renewable energy resources,

requires policies that are rooted in equity and shift power back to

the hands of the most vulnerable. Just Transition Activists, leaders, organizers,

and changemakers in the just transition movement, must develop transformative

skillsets necessary to radically reimagine our world and dismantle

the current unequal system of law and policy. This analysis explores the

skills, attributes, beliefs, and attitudes …

Examining The Relationship Between Environmental Justice And The Lack Of Diversity In Environmental Organizations, Haley Walter

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

This article highlights the ongoing lack of diversity in each of the

three major types of environmental organizations—conservation and

preservation organizations, governmental agencies, and environmental

grantmaking foundations—and assesses how this lack of diversity

has historically marginalized people of color. Assessing the history of

how the environmental movement has marginalized people of color is

key because from this marginalization grew the rise of the environmental

justice movement and recognition from the legal system of environmental

issues that disproportionately impacted people of color. Last,

this article presents solutions on how environmental organizations can

increase and retain diversity in their staff and leadership …

Expanding American Indian Land Stewardship: An Environmental Solution For A Country In Crisis, Haley Edmonds

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

Land is the central foundation around which all life is formed. Therefore,

societies must have a stable connection with the land in order to be structurally

sound. If this connection is weak or inflexible, every building-block of

civilization laid on top of it will inevitably crumble. Some societies have established

stable relationships with the land by working around and responding

to nature’s rhythms in order to satisfy their needs. Whereas other societies

have ignored nature’s intricacies and instead have tried to strong-arm

nature into yielding to their whims. These two diametrically

opposed approaches to conceiving of humans’ relationship with the …

Symposium Transcript

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.

On The Horns Of A Dilemma: Climate Adaption And Legal Profession, Mark S. Davis

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

Few aspects of life will be spared disruptions attributed to climate change,

but those disruptions will not be evenly distributed or borne. While much

attention is being given to large-scale plans and programs aimed at effectively

and equitably coping with those disruptions, the fact is the burdens and

responsibility of planning and acting are falling mostly on individual families,

businesses, and communities. Those with access to resources and professional

assistance, specifically legal services, will stand a better chance of

adapting and prospering. Those without will likely fare worse—and already

are. In order to get better and more equitable outcomes, it …

Letter From The Editor, Elizabeth F. Richer

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.

Letter From The Editor, Eudora F. S. Arthur

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.

Choosing Children: Preventing Intra-Family Conflict From Feeding The Prison Pipeline, Samantha D. Mier

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

Parents struggling to raise challenging children often lack needed community

support. These parents turn to law enforcement when they feel their

child cannot be controlled. Problematically, law enforcement officers are

trained to respond to crime, not simple parent-child domestic disputes. Thus,

when parents call police during disagreements, the argument may end in arrest

and contact with the juvenile court system. Interaction with the juvenile

justice system carries a myriad of risks. This comment outlines the risks inherent

in calling the police and entering the juvenile court system. The author

evaluates existing alternatives to calling law enforcement and recommends

that communities …

Symposium Transcript

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.

A Gardener's Tale: Confronting Racial Discrimination At The Intersection Of The School-To-Prison Pipeline And Adolescent Health, Sogand Falahatpour

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

Racism is a public health crisis and it is killing Black youth. Systemic racism

in education is a root cause of a long list of inequities faced by Black

youth. These inequities compound over the years and create extreme hurdles

to academic success and, in many cases, are hazardous to overall health.

The school-to-prison pipeline is a severe health equity issue affecting

Black children and adolescents. Racism is a core social determinant of health

that has a profound impact on child and adolescent health. Moreover, health

is not just an individual matter; institutional and structural forces influence

who has access …

Appendix G: April 2 University Wide Email From President Crutcher

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.

Prefatory Matter: Symposium 2021, Eudora F. S. Arthur

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.

Letter From The Black Law Student Association President, Courtni M. Weaver

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.

Disrupting The School-To-Prison Pipeline: Reforming The Role Of The School Resource Officer, Olivia Seksinsky

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

A School Resource Officer (“SRO”) is a law enforcement officer employed

by local law enforcement agencies to provide security to public schools. As

a result of fatal and highly publicized school shootings such as Columbine

and Parkland, SROs have become a fixed aspect of many school communities.

There are tens of thousands of SROs patrolling the halls of Virginia’s

public elementary and secondary schools every year. Despite their intended

purpose to keep students safe and prevent crime, SROs too often contribute

to the school-to-prison pipeline. When SROs are brought into the classroom

to address “disruptive” behaviors, students are at an …

Appendix A: February 25 Institutional History Email From President Crutcher

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.

Appendix B: Protect Our Web: A Statement On Black Student Welfare

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.

Appendix C: March 17 Response To Bsc Statement Email From President Crutcher

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.

Appendix D: Blsa Letter To Board Of Trustees And President Crutcher

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.