Results matching “first”

News Scan

September 11, 2008 9:15 AM | Posted by CJLF Staff

3 Death Row Inmates Executed Under Japan's New Justice Minister's Orders: A news article from the Mainichi Daily News, reports that the first executions in Japan in about three months occurred Thursday, the Ministry of Justice announced. It was the first time for executions to be carried out under the orders of Justice Minister Okiharu Yasuoka since he assumed his post in August. Executions in Japan were halted for a period of about 3 years, 4 months up until March 1993, as no execution orders were issued by justice ministers during the period. Since executions resumed, 73 inmates have been put to death. There are now 102 confirmed inmates on death row. Some of the convictions of the three inmates includes stabbing in a robbery attempt, murder, assault, stealing money, breaking and entering, and arson.

Five Countries Account For All "Child" Executions In The World: According to a story from the Daily Pakistan News, Human Rights Watch (HRW) is urging an end to the practice. HRW apparently has no intention of ending its own deceptive practice of lumping 17-year-olds together with actual children in its pronouncements. The HRW states that Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Yemen are the only countries that continue to impose the death penalty on people younger than 18 after they have been convicted. The United States outlawed execution of juvenile offenders in 2005. Furthermore, the HRW states that Iran has executed 26 of the 32 juveniles put to death globally since January 2005. Iranian law allows such penalties for girls of at least nine and boys of 15 or older, said the report, adding that six juvenile offenders had been executed there this year.

'Good Judges Are More Important Than Ever', states David B. Rivkin Jr. and Lee A. Casey in an article from the Wall Street Opinion Journal. According to the article, judicial intervention has become more prevalent after 9/11. In June, the Supreme Court invalidated a careful compromise on detainee rights adopted by Congress and the president in the 2006 Military Commissions Act (MCA), which provided only limited authority for the federal courts. But it went further, framing an unprecedented role for the judiciary in wartime decision making, states the article. The Supreme Court decisions show an alarming and growing willingness by judges - who lack national security expertise and approach issues in relative isolation - to accept and decide matters left to the discretion of the president and Congress. This makes future judicial appointments all the more critical. According to the article, the next president will determine the course of the Supreme Court and lower federal courts for decades to come.

District Court Overturns Nevada's Sex Offender Law: A news story from the KTVN News Online, reports that a federal judge kept a new state sex offender law from going into effect. The law would have forced other offenders - who committed crimes and served their time long ago - to sign up with the state's sex offender registry, even though the registry may not have been around at the time of their conviction. The American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada fought this in court, and won. The A.C.L.U. thought the law was unconstitutional, because it would basically punish sex offenders a second time, for a crime they've already paid for. The new law would have meant keeping track of thousands of extra sex offenders, regardless of the nature of their crime, or the time they had already served. Unfortunately, the text of the opinion is not available on the district court's web site at this time. We are curious to know how the court got around Smith v. Doe, 538 U.S. 84 (2003), in which the Supreme Court reversed a Ninth Circuit decision striking down application of an Alaska law to existing cases. The question might also interest the lawyer who represented the State of Alaska in Smith, John G. Roberts.

News Scan

September 11, 2008 9:15 AM | Posted by CJLF Staff

3 Death Row Inmates Executed Under Japan's New Justice Minister's Orders: A news article from the Mainichi Daily News, reports that the first executions in Japan in about three months occurred Thursday, the Ministry of Justice announced. It was the first time for executions to be carried out under the orders of Justice Minister Okiharu Yasuoka since he assumed his post in August. Executions in Japan were halted for a period of about 3 years, 4 months up until March 1993, as no execution orders were issued by justice ministers during the period. Since executions resumed, 73 inmates have been put to death. There are now 102 confirmed inmates on death row. Some of the convictions of the three inmates includes stabbing in a robbery attempt, murder, assault, stealing money, breaking and entering, and arson.

Five Countries Account For All "Child" Executions In The World: According to a story from the Daily Pakistan News, Human Rights Watch (HRW) is urging an end to the practice. HRW apparently has no intention of ending its own deceptive practice of lumping 17-year-olds together with actual children in its pronouncements. The HRW states that Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Yemen are the only countries that continue to impose the death penalty on people younger than 18 after they have been convicted. The United States outlawed execution of juvenile offenders in 2005. Furthermore, the HRW states that Iran has executed 26 of the 32 juveniles put to death globally since January 2005. Iranian law allows such penalties for girls of at least nine and boys of 15 or older, said the report, adding that six juvenile offenders had been executed there this year.

'Good Judges Are More Important Than Ever', states David B. Rivkin Jr. and Lee A. Casey in an article from the Wall Street Opinion Journal. According to the article, judicial intervention has become more prevalent after 9/11. In June, the Supreme Court invalidated a careful compromise on detainee rights adopted by Congress and the president in the 2006 Military Commissions Act (MCA), which provided only limited authority for the federal courts. But it went further, framing an unprecedented role for the judiciary in wartime decision making, states the article. The Supreme Court decisions show an alarming and growing willingness by judges - who lack national security expertise and approach issues in relative isolation - to accept and decide matters left to the discretion of the president and Congress. This makes future judicial appointments all the more critical. According to the article, the next president will determine the course of the Supreme Court and lower federal courts for decades to come.

District Court Overturns Nevada's Sex Offender Law: A news story from the KTVN News Online, reports that a federal judge kept a new state sex offender law from going into effect. The law would have forced other offenders - who committed crimes and served their time long ago - to sign up with the state's sex offender registry, even though the registry may not have been around at the time of their conviction. The American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada fought this in court, and won. The A.C.L.U. thought the law was unconstitutional, because it would basically punish sex offenders a second time, for a crime they've already paid for. The new law would have meant keeping track of thousands of extra sex offenders, regardless of the nature of their crime, or the time they had already served. Unfortunately, the text of the opinion is not available on the district court's web site at this time. We are curious to know how the court got around Smith v. Doe, 538 U.S. 84 (2003), in which the Supreme Court reversed a Ninth Circuit decision striking down application of an Alaska law to existing cases. The question might also interest the lawyer who represented the State of Alaska in Smith, John G. Roberts.

Blog Scan

September 10, 2008 10:35 AM | Posted by Lauren Altdoerffer

Execution Delayed: Dan Slater at the Wall Street Journal Law Blog posted this morning on the postponed execution of Charles Dean Hood. Our News Scan has the link to the AP story. Yesterday, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted Hood a stay so that it could reconsider its previous dismissal of Hood's appeal challenging jury instructions. Last Friday, we blogged that the execution might not occur as scheduled because of allegations that the trial judge and a former district attorney had an affair during Hood's 1989 murder trial. Slater's post reports the two admitted, under oath, that they carried on a secret affair for years. When allegations first arose, the Texas AG supported inquiry into whether the affair took place. However, the affair was not the reason for the stay. Yesterday, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals dismissed claims that Hood had been denied a fair trial because of the alleged affair.

Chief Justice of the Supreme Court: For those interested in a little Supreme Court history, Eugene Volokh has a post on a N.Y. Times correction that claimed "there is no such title as chief justice of the Supreme Court." Volokh's feisty post takes us on a quick trip of the historical use of the title "Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States." Apparently, George Washington used it, Thomas Jefferson used it, and so did St. George Tucker in the 1803 Appendix to Blackstone's Commentaries. So if you use the term "Chief Justice of Supreme Court," Volokh doesn't think you need to apologize.

Courts and the Media: Tony Mauro at Blog of the LegalTimes has been posting on Justice Breyer's talks at the University of Arizona's Rogers College of Law recently. Tuesday's post discussed Justice Breyer's new book, and today's post discusses the important interaction between courts and the media. According to Mauro, the judges on the panel "seemed to embrace" the idea that informing the public in judicial decisions was "now part of their job description." In fact, many courts are already taking it on themselves to put "court documents, streamed audio of hearings, everything except what the judge ate for lunch" on the Internet. Mauro states that with the popularity of internet coverage, the media is going to need to step up its own coverage of the courts. If not, "the courts — not usually viewed as cutting-edge in terms of technology — might find their own ways of bypassing the media and communicating directly with the public." Mauro also promises more posts on this topic.

Blog Scan

September 10, 2008 10:35 AM | Posted by Lauren Altdoerffer

Execution Delayed: Dan Slater at the Wall Street Journal Law Blog posted this morning on the postponed execution of Charles Dean Hood. Our News Scan has the link to the AP story. Yesterday, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted Hood a stay so that it could reconsider its previous dismissal of Hood's appeal challenging jury instructions. Last Friday, we blogged that the execution might not occur as scheduled because of allegations that the trial judge and a former district attorney had an affair during Hood's 1989 murder trial. Slater's post reports the two admitted, under oath, that they carried on a secret affair for years. When allegations first arose, the Texas AG supported inquiry into whether the affair took place. However, the affair was not the reason for the stay. Yesterday, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals dismissed claims that Hood had been denied a fair trial because of the alleged affair.

Chief Justice of the Supreme Court: For those interested in a little Supreme Court history, Eugene Volokh has a post on a N.Y. Times correction that claimed "there is no such title as chief justice of the Supreme Court." Volokh's feisty post takes us on a quick trip of the historical use of the title "Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States." Apparently, George Washington used it, Thomas Jefferson used it, and so did St. George Tucker in the 1803 Appendix to Blackstone's Commentaries. So if you use the term "Chief Justice of Supreme Court," Volokh doesn't think you need to apologize.

Courts and the Media: Tony Mauro at Blog of the LegalTimes has been posting on Justice Breyer's talks at the University of Arizona's Rogers College of Law recently. Tuesday's post discussed Justice Breyer's new book, and today's post discusses the important interaction between courts and the media. According to Mauro, the judges on the panel "seemed to embrace" the idea that informing the public in judicial decisions was "now part of their job description." In fact, many courts are already taking it on themselves to put "court documents, streamed audio of hearings, everything except what the judge ate for lunch" on the Internet. Mauro states that with the popularity of internet coverage, the media is going to need to step up its own coverage of the courts. If not, "the courts — not usually viewed as cutting-edge in terms of technology — might find their own ways of bypassing the media and communicating directly with the public." Mauro also promises more posts on this topic.

News Scan

September 10, 2008 10:09 AM | Posted by CJLF Staff

Texas Death Row Inmate Gets Execution Postponed: AP writer, Schuyler Dixon, reports that the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals postponed Charles Dean Hood's execution, scheduled for Wednesday, because it wanted to reconsider whether the jury instructions were flawed. Hood is a former bouncer at a topless club who was 20 when he was arrested in Indiana for the fatal shootings of Tracie Lynn Wallace, 26, an ex-dancer, and her boyfriend, Ronald Williamson, 46, at Williamson's home in Plano in 1989. The lawyers of the death row inmate argued that a secret romantic relationship between retired judge Verla Sue Holland and former Collin County District Attorney Tom O'Connel tainted his trial. In an earlier ruling the Austin-based appeals court dismissed claims by Hood's attorneys citing procedural reasons for the rejection. But on Tuesday the Court said it would be "prudent to reconsider the decision we issued" in previously dismissing Hood's appeal that challenged jury instructions.

NYC Emergency Hot Lines Accepting Photos, Videos: According to a story from CBS online news, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that photos and video can now be transmitted to the hotline. Operators will notify the NYPD when callers have cell phone images of accidents or crimes. Callers with a cell phone video or photo of a crime also can notify the emergency operator, and a detective will call back to receive the images. Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said major improvements to technology within the department in the past six years have helped reduced crime, which is down more than 3 percent so far this year. While hundreds of cities around the country accept text messages to emergency hot lines, New York is believed to be the first with the capability to accept images, which may be used as evidence when prosecuting criminals, officials said.

Students Can Send Text Message Tips To Cops: CBS journalists, Rosalind Rossi and Frank Main, report that students who see a gun or overhear plans about an after-school fight can now tip off authorities by anonymously text-messaging police under a program announced Monday involving 10 Chicago public high schools. Crime Stoppers of Cook County is even offering rewards to tipsters whose information produces arrests. For murder cases, that can involve up to $1,000. "Practically every student these days has a cell phone. Students are texting each other messages faster than they can dial a number,'' Police Supt. Jody Weis said in announcing the pilot program with Chicago Public Schools CEO Arne Duncan.

Sex Offender Sent To Prison After Violating Probation Within 40 Minutes: A news story from the Poughkeepsie Journal reports that a convicted sex offender who violated the terms of probation less than an hour after he left the courtroom in July received 1 1/2 to five years prison sentence today. Walter Freeman, 72, of Lent Street, City of Poughkeepsie, had been placed on probation July 15 after he admitted he had failed to notify police he had changed his address, as required by state law for most sex offenders. Freeman acknowledged last month he had violated the terms of his probation by approaching two children in a bank in Poughkeepsie and offering to buy them ice cream. The incident occurred about 40 minutes after Freeman had been placed on probation. Under the terms of his probation, Freeman was prohibited from having any contact with children.

News Scan

September 10, 2008 10:09 AM | Posted by CJLF Staff

Texas Death Row Inmate Gets Execution Postponed: AP writer, Schuyler Dixon, reports that the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals postponed Charles Dean Hood's execution, scheduled for Wednesday, because it wanted to reconsider whether the jury instructions were flawed. Hood is a former bouncer at a topless club who was 20 when he was arrested in Indiana for the fatal shootings of Tracie Lynn Wallace, 26, an ex-dancer, and her boyfriend, Ronald Williamson, 46, at Williamson's home in Plano in 1989. The lawyers of the death row inmate argued that a secret romantic relationship between retired judge Verla Sue Holland and former Collin County District Attorney Tom O'Connel tainted his trial. In an earlier ruling the Austin-based appeals court dismissed claims by Hood's attorneys citing procedural reasons for the rejection. But on Tuesday the Court said it would be "prudent to reconsider the decision we issued" in previously dismissing Hood's appeal that challenged jury instructions.

NYC Emergency Hot Lines Accepting Photos, Videos: According to a story from CBS online news, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that photos and video can now be transmitted to the hotline. Operators will notify the NYPD when callers have cell phone images of accidents or crimes. Callers with a cell phone video or photo of a crime also can notify the emergency operator, and a detective will call back to receive the images. Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said major improvements to technology within the department in the past six years have helped reduced crime, which is down more than 3 percent so far this year. While hundreds of cities around the country accept text messages to emergency hot lines, New York is believed to be the first with the capability to accept images, which may be used as evidence when prosecuting criminals, officials said.

Students Can Send Text Message Tips To Cops: CBS journalists, Rosalind Rossi and Frank Main, report that students who see a gun or overhear plans about an after-school fight can now tip off authorities by anonymously text-messaging police under a program announced Monday involving 10 Chicago public high schools. Crime Stoppers of Cook County is even offering rewards to tipsters whose information produces arrests. For murder cases, that can involve up to $1,000. "Practically every student these days has a cell phone. Students are texting each other messages faster than they can dial a number,'' Police Supt. Jody Weis said in announcing the pilot program with Chicago Public Schools CEO Arne Duncan.

Sex Offender Sent To Prison After Violating Probation Within 40 Minutes: A news story from the Poughkeepsie Journal reports that a convicted sex offender who violated the terms of probation less than an hour after he left the courtroom in July received 1 1/2 to five years prison sentence today. Walter Freeman, 72, of Lent Street, City of Poughkeepsie, had been placed on probation July 15 after he admitted he had failed to notify police he had changed his address, as required by state law for most sex offenders. Freeman acknowledged last month he had violated the terms of his probation by approaching two children in a bank in Poughkeepsie and offering to buy them ice cream. The incident occurred about 40 minutes after Freeman had been placed on probation. Under the terms of his probation, Freeman was prohibited from having any contact with children.

News Scan

September 9, 2008 9:52 AM | Posted by CJLF Staff

Wales Has The Third Highest Rate Of Violent Crime In The World, according to a story written by David James from the Western Mail. Alcohol-fuelled fights in Welsh towns and city centres has been a primary cause. Only England and Northern Ireland have recorded higher levels of violent crime, according to a report compiled by Welsh Assembly Government statistician. There were 1,950 incidents of violent crime recorded in Wales per 100,000 people, compared to 2,200 and 2,000 in England and Northern Ireland, respectively. The only other three countries that recorded more than 1,000 incidents are Austria, New Zealand and Sweden. The international crime comparison figures also revealed the murder rate in Wales was just over 10 per 100,000 people, slightly below England, and half the level in Scotland. Lithuania topped the table with nearly 90 murders per 100,000 people.

Study Finds Returning Deported Illegal Immigrants Commit More Crimes: Anna Gorman from LA Times reports that illegal immigrants who have been deported at least once from the United States are far more likely than other immigrants to repeatedly commit crimes, according to a study by the nonprofit Rand Corp. Overall, however, illegal immigrants were not a greater crime risk, according to the study, which looked at all inmates released from Los Angeles County Jail for a month in 2002. But among those who previously had been deported, reentered the U.S. and were arrested and released from jail, nearly 75% went on to commit another crime within a year. And 28% were arrested three or more times during the one-year period. The recidivism rate was much lower for illegal immigrants who had not been previously deported, with 32% of those inmates being rearrested within a year and 7% arrested three or more times during that year.

Washington County Sheriff's Department Emphasizes Crime-Education Link Study: According to a story written by Diana Graettinger from the Bangor Daily News, Sheriff Donnie Smith said "high school dropouts are more likely to turn to crime." A recent report released by "Fight Crime: Invest in Kids" shows that high school dropouts are 3 1/2 times more likely than high school graduates to be arrested, and more than eight times more likely to be incarcerated. Nationwide, 68 percent of state prison inmates have not received a high school diploma. This also holds true in the Washington County Jail, Smith said. A study by two prominent economists found that a 10 percent increase in graduation rates would reduce murder and assault rates by about 20 percent. This prevents more than 20 murders and more than 900 aggravated assaults in Maine every five years, the sheriff says.

Death Penalty - Pros And Cons Debated By 200 Experts At ProCon.org: An article from the MarketWatch states that today ProCon.org announces its newest nonpartisan website, deathpenalty.procon.org, to help Americans decide whether or not to abolish the death penalty. The website lists 25 important questions related to the death penalty and presents answers to those questions from over 200 diverse experts including sociologists, law enforcement officials, religious leaders, legal scholars, activists, academics, government agencies, and even a few convicted criminals. Sources range from Barack Obama to John McCain, from the American Bar Association to the U.S. Department of Justice, and from the Dalai Lama to Eliot Spitzer. Also provided are all federal and state capital laws, execution statistics, a glossary, a reader comments page, and more research in development. No site like deathpenalty.procon.org had previously been created to simultaneously help legislators, policy makers, clergy, students, and the general public inform themselves about the death penalty in a nonpartisan pro-con manner.

Mother Convicted In Kids' Drownings Free On Parole: An AP story reports a woman convicted in the drowning deaths of her three children who has been released on parole after serving part of a 10-year sentence. Illinois Department of Corrections spokesman Derek Schnapp says Amanda Hamm left the Dwight Correctional Center Tuesday morning. Hamm was convicted of child endangerment in 2006 in the deaths of 6-year-old Christopher Hamm, 3-year-old Austin Brown and 23-month-old Kyleigh Hamm. Hamm's boyfriend, Maurice LaGrone Jr., is serving a life sentence after being convicted of first-degree murder. Prosecutors say Hamm and LaGrone planned the drownings at the lake near their home in Clinton because the children were in the way of their relationship.

News Scan

September 9, 2008 9:52 AM | Posted by CJLF Staff

Wales Has The Third Highest Rate Of Violent Crime In The World, according to a story written by David James from the Western Mail. Alcohol-fuelled fights in Welsh towns and city centres has been a primary cause. Only England and Northern Ireland have recorded higher levels of violent crime, according to a report compiled by Welsh Assembly Government statistician. There were 1,950 incidents of violent crime recorded in Wales per 100,000 people, compared to 2,200 and 2,000 in England and Northern Ireland, respectively. The only other three countries that recorded more than 1,000 incidents are Austria, New Zealand and Sweden. The international crime comparison figures also revealed the murder rate in Wales was just over 10 per 100,000 people, slightly below England, and half the level in Scotland. Lithuania topped the table with nearly 90 murders per 100,000 people.

Study Finds Returning Deported Illegal Immigrants Commit More Crimes: Anna Gorman from LA Times reports that illegal immigrants who have been deported at least once from the United States are far more likely than other immigrants to repeatedly commit crimes, according to a study by the nonprofit Rand Corp. Overall, however, illegal immigrants were not a greater crime risk, according to the study, which looked at all inmates released from Los Angeles County Jail for a month in 2002. But among those who previously had been deported, reentered the U.S. and were arrested and released from jail, nearly 75% went on to commit another crime within a year. And 28% were arrested three or more times during the one-year period. The recidivism rate was much lower for illegal immigrants who had not been previously deported, with 32% of those inmates being rearrested within a year and 7% arrested three or more times during that year.

Washington County Sheriff's Department Emphasizes Crime-Education Link Study: According to a story written by Diana Graettinger from the Bangor Daily News, Sheriff Donnie Smith said "high school dropouts are more likely to turn to crime." A recent report released by "Fight Crime: Invest in Kids" shows that high school dropouts are 3 1/2 times more likely than high school graduates to be arrested, and more than eight times more likely to be incarcerated. Nationwide, 68 percent of state prison inmates have not received a high school diploma. This also holds true in the Washington County Jail, Smith said. A study by two prominent economists found that a 10 percent increase in graduation rates would reduce murder and assault rates by about 20 percent. This prevents more than 20 murders and more than 900 aggravated assaults in Maine every five years, the sheriff says.

Death Penalty - Pros And Cons Debated By 200 Experts At ProCon.org: An article from the MarketWatch states that today ProCon.org announces its newest nonpartisan website, deathpenalty.procon.org, to help Americans decide whether or not to abolish the death penalty. The website lists 25 important questions related to the death penalty and presents answers to those questions from over 200 diverse experts including sociologists, law enforcement officials, religious leaders, legal scholars, activists, academics, government agencies, and even a few convicted criminals. Sources range from Barack Obama to John McCain, from the American Bar Association to the U.S. Department of Justice, and from the Dalai Lama to Eliot Spitzer. Also provided are all federal and state capital laws, execution statistics, a glossary, a reader comments page, and more research in development. No site like deathpenalty.procon.org had previously been created to simultaneously help legislators, policy makers, clergy, students, and the general public inform themselves about the death penalty in a nonpartisan pro-con manner.

Mother Convicted In Kids' Drownings Free On Parole: An AP story reports a woman convicted in the drowning deaths of her three children who has been released on parole after serving part of a 10-year sentence. Illinois Department of Corrections spokesman Derek Schnapp says Amanda Hamm left the Dwight Correctional Center Tuesday morning. Hamm was convicted of child endangerment in 2006 in the deaths of 6-year-old Christopher Hamm, 3-year-old Austin Brown and 23-month-old Kyleigh Hamm. Hamm's boyfriend, Maurice LaGrone Jr., is serving a life sentence after being convicted of first-degree murder. Prosecutors say Hamm and LaGrone planned the drownings at the lake near their home in Clinton because the children were in the way of their relationship.

Blog Scan

September 5, 2008 2:23 PM | Posted by Lauren Altdoerffer

No Action in Kennedy v. Louisiana: Lyle Denniston at SCOTUSblog reports that while the Supreme Court issued its final round of summer recess orders today, there was "no action announced" on whether it would reconsider Kennedy v. Louisiana. The State of Louisiana had asked the Court to consider the effect, if any, of the Court's failure to address the federal military law that allows the death sentence for child rape. The Justice Department then asked the Court to allow it to join Louisiana in its plea for rehearing. Today's orders did not mention either request.

More On Today's Orders: Tony Mauro at The BLT has this post on the Supreme Court's decision to deny the SG's request for time to argue in Locke v. Karass. The case will address the dispute over the use of mandatory union dues. According to Mauro, the Justice Department had filed a brief supporting neither side in the case and had requested a total of 10 minutes, 5 minutes for each side, during oral argument. The Supreme Court denied the request without explanation.

Executions Next Week in Texas: Grits for Breakfast has a post on the two executions scheduled next week in Texas. In his post, Scott Henson wonders if either will go through. The first execution, of Gregory Wright, has been reported to be postponed, to allow testing of DNA evidence. The second, of Charles Dean Hood, may not occur because of allegations that the trial judge and the prosecutor were having an affair during his trial. As Kent noted this morning, the Texas AG has supported inquiry into whether the alleged affair took place.

Third Circuit Rules on Searches of Cruise Ship Cabins: Orin Kerr, at Volokh Conspiracy, posted today on a Third Circuit decision that held the search of a cruise ship cabin requires reasonable suspicion. The decision, United States v. Whitted, addressed "whether the Fourth Amendment requires any level of suspicion to justify a border search of a passenger cabin aboard a cruise liner arriving in the United States from a foreign port." The Third Circuit ruled yesterday that it does. The case involved the search of a cruise ship cabin that had been docked in St. Maarten and then in St. Thomas. After the ship was docked in St. Thomas, United States Customs and Border Protection boarded the boat and searched the cabins of suspects the officers had reason to believe were bringing narcotics into the United States. The defendant wasn't present when the officers searched her room. They uncovered heroin stuffed in perfume and shaving containers. The Fourth Amendment issue in this case is interesting because it treats the search of a cruise ship cabin as a non-routine border search, which requires reasonable suspicion, instead of a routine border search, which does not. As Kerr notes, "[s]o far, the only kinds of searches that courts have found to be non-routine searches are invasive searches of the person." Kerr's post notes the "fish[iness]" of this decision in light of precedent, and then addresses how narrow the decision really is. Once the same suspects disembark at the border those perfume bottles and shaving containers can be searched without suspicion.

Former Virginia ACLU President Disbarred: Yesterday, the BLT had this post on the D.C. Court of Appeals decision to disbar former VA ACLU President Charles Rust-Tierney. On July 1, 2007, Rust-Tierney pleaded guilty to charges of receiving child pornography through his home computer. He was sentenced to serve seven years in federal prison in September 2007. Apparently Rust-Tierney consented to disbarment. That means the details of the ethical violations filed against him by the Board on Professional Responsibility remain sealed.

Blog Scan

September 5, 2008 2:23 PM | Posted by Lauren Altdoerffer

No Action in Kennedy v. Louisiana: Lyle Denniston at SCOTUSblog reports that while the Supreme Court issued its final round of summer recess orders today, there was "no action announced" on whether it would reconsider Kennedy v. Louisiana. The State of Louisiana had asked the Court to consider the effect, if any, of the Court's failure to address the federal military law that allows the death sentence for child rape. The Justice Department then asked the Court to allow it to join Louisiana in its plea for rehearing. Today's orders did not mention either request.

More On Today's Orders: Tony Mauro at The BLT has this post on the Supreme Court's decision to deny the SG's request for time to argue in Locke v. Karass. The case will address the dispute over the use of mandatory union dues. According to Mauro, the Justice Department had filed a brief supporting neither side in the case and had requested a total of 10 minutes, 5 minutes for each side, during oral argument. The Supreme Court denied the request without explanation.

Executions Next Week in Texas: Grits for Breakfast has a post on the two executions scheduled next week in Texas. In his post, Scott Henson wonders if either will go through. The first execution, of Gregory Wright, has been reported to be postponed, to allow testing of DNA evidence. The second, of Charles Dean Hood, may not occur because of allegations that the trial judge and the prosecutor were having an affair during his trial. As Kent noted this morning, the Texas AG has supported inquiry into whether the alleged affair took place.

Third Circuit Rules on Searches of Cruise Ship Cabins: Orin Kerr, at Volokh Conspiracy, posted today on a Third Circuit decision that held the search of a cruise ship cabin requires reasonable suspicion. The decision, United States v. Whitted, addressed "whether the Fourth Amendment requires any level of suspicion to justify a border search of a passenger cabin aboard a cruise liner arriving in the United States from a foreign port." The Third Circuit ruled yesterday that it does. The case involved the search of a cruise ship cabin that had been docked in St. Maarten and then in St. Thomas. After the ship was docked in St. Thomas, United States Customs and Border Protection boarded the boat and searched the cabins of suspects the officers had reason to believe were bringing narcotics into the United States. The defendant wasn't present when the officers searched her room. They uncovered heroin stuffed in perfume and shaving containers. The Fourth Amendment issue in this case is interesting because it treats the search of a cruise ship cabin as a non-routine border search, which requires reasonable suspicion, instead of a routine border search, which does not. As Kerr notes, "[s]o far, the only kinds of searches that courts have found to be non-routine searches are invasive searches of the person." Kerr's post notes the "fish[iness]" of this decision in light of precedent, and then addresses how narrow the decision really is. Once the same suspects disembark at the border those perfume bottles and shaving containers can be searched without suspicion.

Former Virginia ACLU President Disbarred: Yesterday, the BLT had this post on the D.C. Court of Appeals decision to disbar former VA ACLU President Charles Rust-Tierney. On July 1, 2007, Rust-Tierney pleaded guilty to charges of receiving child pornography through his home computer. He was sentenced to serve seven years in federal prison in September 2007. Apparently Rust-Tierney consented to disbarment. That means the details of the ethical violations filed against him by the Board on Professional Responsibility remain sealed.

Demonstrations in St. Paul

September 4, 2008 12:29 PM | Posted by Kent Scheidegger

The WSJ has this article by T. W. Farnam on "demonstrations" aimed at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul. Although I didn't think so at first, on reflection I believe that "demonstration" is the correct word. These people have demonstrated that they think they have the right to interfere with and violate other people's rights. They have demonstrated that America needs strong law enforcement. They have demonstrated that we need a President who will appoint judges who will back up the police when they need to use force, not wring their hands over injuries to people whose intentional violations of the rights of others are the root cause of their own complaints. Here are some excerpts.

Demonstrations this week have been the most violent at a national party convention in recent memory, with protesters smashing windows, slashing tires, throwing bags of urine and excrement and physically confronting Republican delegates in the streets.
* * *
Police have responded to some of the demonstrations with pepper spray, tear gas, smoke canisters and what they called "distraction devices" that give a loud bang and a flash of light, said Doug Holtz, a commander with the St. Paul Police Department.
* * *
Monday, protesters blocked members of the Connecticut delegation from proceeding to the convention, said Heath Fahle, executive director of the state party. The demonstrators spat on the delegates and squirted bleach on at least six of them. "There are some people out there that only care about being disruptive," Mr. Fahle said.
* * *
"I think it really exposes that we live in a police state," said a woman who gave her name as Loaf Owls, her age as 20 years old, and said she was a professional clown. "Someone at the march said yesterday that anarchists are protectors of the people, and that pretty much sums up why I'm here."
"We'll protest the grass being green," shouted Robert Wilson, 45, who said he is homeless. "I love protesting. My favorite cologne is pepper spray."

Demonstrations in St. Paul

September 4, 2008 12:29 PM | Posted by Kent Scheidegger

The WSJ has this article by T. W. Farnam on "demonstrations" aimed at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul. Although I didn't think so at first, on reflection I believe that "demonstration" is the correct word. These people have demonstrated that they think they have the right to interfere with and violate other people's rights. They have demonstrated that America needs strong law enforcement. They have demonstrated that we need a President who will appoint judges who will back up the police when they need to use force, not wring their hands over injuries to people whose intentional violations of the rights of others are the root cause of their own complaints. Here are some excerpts.

Demonstrations this week have been the most violent at a national party convention in recent memory, with protesters smashing windows, slashing tires, throwing bags of urine and excrement and physically confronting Republican delegates in the streets.
* * *
Police have responded to some of the demonstrations with pepper spray, tear gas, smoke canisters and what they called "distraction devices" that give a loud bang and a flash of light, said Doug Holtz, a commander with the St. Paul Police Department.
* * *
Monday, protesters blocked members of the Connecticut delegation from proceeding to the convention, said Heath Fahle, executive director of the state party. The demonstrators spat on the delegates and squirted bleach on at least six of them. "There are some people out there that only care about being disruptive," Mr. Fahle said.
* * *
"I think it really exposes that we live in a police state," said a woman who gave her name as Loaf Owls, her age as 20 years old, and said she was a professional clown. "Someone at the march said yesterday that anarchists are protectors of the people, and that pretty much sums up why I'm here."
"We'll protest the grass being green," shouted Robert Wilson, 45, who said he is homeless. "I love protesting. My favorite cologne is pepper spray."

News Scan

September 4, 2008 10:12 AM | Posted by CJLF Staff

Detroit Mayor Pleads Guilty And Agrees To Resign: According to a story in today's New York Times by Susan Saulny, the mayor of Detroit, Kwame M. Kilpatrick, 38, has pleaded guilty and agreed to resign this morning after months of refusal as part of a deal with prosecutors. He agreed to plead guilty to two felony counts of obstruction of justice and no contest to a felony count of assault on a police officer; to pay restitution to the city of $1 million; to surrender his law license; forfeit his state pension to the city and be barred from elective office for five years; and to serve 120 days in the Wayne County jail, followed by five years’ probation.

Ohio Mom Spared Death Penalty After Microwaving Baby: A story, by James Hannah from the Associated Press, reports that China Arnold, convicted of murdering her infant daughter by microwaving her, was spared from the death penalty Wednesday when a jury couldn't reach a unanimous decision. Ohio law provides for a life sentence, rather than retrying the penalty phase, when the jury cannot agree. The defense had argued that Arnold was drunk when the offense occurred and had no motive, while prosecutors had called the crime "heinous" as they argued for the death penalty. Montgomery County Judge Mary Wiseman is now limited to sentencing Arnold to life in prison without parole, life without parole for at least 30 years, or life without parole for at least 25 years. The sentence will be announced on Monday. Assistant Prosecutor David Franceschelli said: "If this is not the time for the death penalty, when is the time?" It's time to scrap the single-juror-veto rule.

Principal Pleads No Contest To Not Reporting Sex: A South Gate principal has pleaded no contest to charges of failing to report a sexual encounter between a student and a substitute teacher, according to a story from The Associated Press. While the incident occurred in March 2007, authorities say the two administrators learned about it seven months later. The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office says 35-year-old Jesus Angulo, principal of South East High School, entered the plea Wednesday to one misdemeanor count of failure to report child abuse. Angulo was sentenced to two years of probation and 100 hours of community service. The school's assistant principal Maria Sotomayor faces a similar charge and is due to appear in court Sept. 9. The teacher, Jesus Saenz, was fired and faces a felony charge.

Guilty Plea In Bomb Plot That Killed Pizza Man: A story by AP writer Ramit Plushnick-Masti reports that Kenneth Barnes, 54, admitted in federal court Wednesday that he helped plot a bizarre bank robbery that ended when a bomb strapped around a pizza deliveryman's neck exploded and killed him. This is the first conviction in the 5-year-old case. Barnes pleaded guilty to conspiracy and a charge of aiding and abetting at a hearing in which prosecutors also revealed new details, based on a statement by Barnes, about deliveryman Brian Wells' involvement in the scheme. According to Barnes, Wells got cold feet on the day of the robbery, refusing to put on the collar bomb after realizing it was real. Another plotter then fired a single shot from a gun, scaring him into putting it around his neck. Barnes could be sentenced to life in prison. Wells walked into a PNC Bank on the outskirts of Erie on Aug. 28, 2003, with a pipe bomb locked onto his neck and left with about $8,700. He was cornered by police a short time later and told officers the bomb had been put on his neck at gunpoint. It exploded, killing him, as police waited for a bomb squad to arrive.

News Scan

September 4, 2008 10:12 AM | Posted by CJLF Staff

Detroit Mayor Pleads Guilty And Agrees To Resign: According to a story in today's New York Times by Susan Saulny, the mayor of Detroit, Kwame M. Kilpatrick, 38, has pleaded guilty and agreed to resign this morning after months of refusal as part of a deal with prosecutors. He agreed to plead guilty to two felony counts of obstruction of justice and no contest to a felony count of assault on a police officer; to pay restitution to the city of $1 million; to surrender his law license; forfeit his state pension to the city and be barred from elective office for five years; and to serve 120 days in the Wayne County jail, followed by five years’ probation.

Ohio Mom Spared Death Penalty After Microwaving Baby: A story, by James Hannah from the Associated Press, reports that China Arnold, convicted of murdering her infant daughter by microwaving her, was spared from the death penalty Wednesday when a jury couldn't reach a unanimous decision. Ohio law provides for a life sentence, rather than retrying the penalty phase, when the jury cannot agree. The defense had argued that Arnold was drunk when the offense occurred and had no motive, while prosecutors had called the crime "heinous" as they argued for the death penalty. Montgomery County Judge Mary Wiseman is now limited to sentencing Arnold to life in prison without parole, life without parole for at least 30 years, or life without parole for at least 25 years. The sentence will be announced on Monday. Assistant Prosecutor David Franceschelli said: "If this is not the time for the death penalty, when is the time?" It's time to scrap the single-juror-veto rule.

Principal Pleads No Contest To Not Reporting Sex: A South Gate principal has pleaded no contest to charges of failing to report a sexual encounter between a student and a substitute teacher, according to a story from The Associated Press. While the incident occurred in March 2007, authorities say the two administrators learned about it seven months later. The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office says 35-year-old Jesus Angulo, principal of South East High School, entered the plea Wednesday to one misdemeanor count of failure to report child abuse. Angulo was sentenced to two years of probation and 100 hours of community service. The school's assistant principal Maria Sotomayor faces a similar charge and is due to appear in court Sept. 9. The teacher, Jesus Saenz, was fired and faces a felony charge.

Guilty Plea In Bomb Plot That Killed Pizza Man: A story by AP writer Ramit Plushnick-Masti reports that Kenneth Barnes, 54, admitted in federal court Wednesday that he helped plot a bizarre bank robbery that ended when a bomb strapped around a pizza deliveryman's neck exploded and killed him. This is the first conviction in the 5-year-old case. Barnes pleaded guilty to conspiracy and a charge of aiding and abetting at a hearing in which prosecutors also revealed new details, based on a statement by Barnes, about deliveryman Brian Wells' involvement in the scheme. According to Barnes, Wells got cold feet on the day of the robbery, refusing to put on the collar bomb after realizing it was real. Another plotter then fired a single shot from a gun, scaring him into putting it around his neck. Barnes could be sentenced to life in prison. Wells walked into a PNC Bank on the outskirts of Erie on Aug. 28, 2003, with a pipe bomb locked onto his neck and left with about $8,700. He was cornered by police a short time later and told officers the bomb had been put on his neck at gunpoint. It exploded, killing him, as police waited for a bomb squad to arrive.

News Scan

September 2, 2008 11:32 AM | Posted by CJLF Staff

Australia's Approach to Serial Child Sex Offenders: A serial sex offender already jailed indefinitely for previous sexual crimes, has been sentenced to another 12 months' imprisonment according to a story written by Christine Flatley from The Australian. In the District Court in Brisbane, 66-year-old Keith Albert Beattie pleaded guilty today to the indecent treatment and unlawful sodomy of a 15-year-old boy in Brisbane between November 1995 and February 1996. The court was told the charges against Beattie were made after the complaintant saw him in the prison system last year. Beattie has been in jail since July 1996 for child sex offenses and today marked his ninth appearance before a court for sexual offences against a minor. Judge Michael Shanahan today sentenced Beattie to an additional 12 months jail for the latest offenses.

Death Penalty Upheld for Killer In Hate Crime: A story, written by Mike Anton from The Los Angeles Times reports that the California Supreme Court upheld the conviction and death sentence of Gunner Lindberg. Lindberg, 33, was convicted in the 1996 slaying of Thien Minh Ly, 24, who was stabbed more than 50 times and had his throat slashed. Lindberg was convicted in Orange County Superior Court of first-degree murder with a special circumstance that the crime was based on the victim's race and is the first person in the state condemned to die for a racially motivated murder. Ly, who was a graduate of UCLA and Georgetown University wanted to become the United States ambassador to Vietnam.

Bay Area Robberies Indicate A National Trend: According to a story from today's San Francisco Chronicle, written by Erin McCormick, the bay area robberies follow a national surge. The Chronicle examined location records in San Francisco and Oakland since 2004, as well as statistics for other Bay Area cities, and found that robberies spiked in the region, going from 11,264 a year to 15,698. "More than 40 robberies occur everyday in the Bay Area," states the article. Furthermore, the steep national economic downturn of 2007 and 2008 indicates a crime increase, according to University Missouri-St. Louis criminologists Richard Rosenfeld and Brian Oliver. Local communities are warned of a new crime increase in the years ahead.

News Scan

September 2, 2008 11:32 AM | Posted by CJLF Staff

Australia's Approach to Serial Child Sex Offenders: A serial sex offender already jailed indefinitely for previous sexual crimes, has been sentenced to another 12 months' imprisonment according to a story written by Christine Flatley from The Australian. In the District Court in Brisbane, 66-year-old Keith Albert Beattie pleaded guilty today to the indecent treatment and unlawful sodomy of a 15-year-old boy in Brisbane between November 1995 and February 1996. The court was told the charges against Beattie were made after the complaintant saw him in the prison system last year. Beattie has been in jail since July 1996 for child sex offenses and today marked his ninth appearance before a court for sexual offences against a minor. Judge Michael Shanahan today sentenced Beattie to an additional 12 months jail for the latest offenses.

Death Penalty Upheld for Killer In Hate Crime: A story, written by Mike Anton from The Los Angeles Times reports that the California Supreme Court upheld the conviction and death sentence of Gunner Lindberg. Lindberg, 33, was convicted in the 1996 slaying of Thien Minh Ly, 24, who was stabbed more than 50 times and had his throat slashed. Lindberg was convicted in Orange County Superior Court of first-degree murder with a special circumstance that the crime was based on the victim's race and is the first person in the state condemned to die for a racially motivated murder. Ly, who was a graduate of UCLA and Georgetown University wanted to become the United States ambassador to Vietnam.

Bay Area Robberies Indicate A National Trend: According to a story from today's San Francisco Chronicle, written by Erin McCormick, the bay area robberies follow a national surge. The Chronicle examined location records in San Francisco and Oakland since 2004, as well as statistics for other Bay Area cities, and found that robberies spiked in the region, going from 11,264 a year to 15,698. "More than 40 robberies occur everyday in the Bay Area," states the article. Furthermore, the steep national economic downturn of 2007 and 2008 indicates a crime increase, according to University Missouri-St. Louis criminologists Richard Rosenfeld and Brian Oliver. Local communities are warned of a new crime increase in the years ahead.

News Scan

August 29, 2008 10:53 AM | Posted by CJLF Staff

New Hearing for Mississippi Murderer: Daily Journal reporter Patsy Brumfield has this story on the Mississippi Supreme Court decision to grant a hearing to review claims raised by Marlon Howell, convicted in 2000 of murdering a 61-year-old retiree who supplemented his income by delivering newspapers. Howell, on felony probation at the time, told friends that he needed money to pay supervision and other fees to his probation officer. He said that he “needed to make a sting” and that he was looking for “an easy lick” to rob in order to avoid being “locked up.” The U.S. Supreme Court rejected Howell's attack on state jury instructions in its 2005 decision in Howell v. Mississippi when it found he had not properly presented his federal claim to the state court first.

Ohio Murderer Richard Cooey, who is scheduled for execution on October 14 for killing two college students in 1986, says he committed another murder in the 1980s according to this AP story by Andrew Welsh-Huggins. Cooey recently filed a federal lawsuit arguing that he was too fat to be executed.

News Scan

August 29, 2008 10:53 AM | Posted by CJLF Staff

New Hearing for Mississippi Murderer: Daily Journal reporter Patsy Brumfield has this story on the Mississippi Supreme Court decision to grant a hearing to review claims raised by Marlon Howell, convicted in 2000 of murdering a 61-year-old retiree who supplemented his income by delivering newspapers. Howell, on felony probation at the time, told friends that he needed money to pay supervision and other fees to his probation officer. He said that he “needed to make a sting” and that he was looking for “an easy lick” to rob in order to avoid being “locked up.” The U.S. Supreme Court rejected Howell's attack on state jury instructions in its 2005 decision in Howell v. Mississippi when it found he had not properly presented his federal claim to the state court first.

Ohio Murderer Richard Cooey, who is scheduled for execution on October 14 for killing two college students in 1986, says he committed another murder in the 1980s according to this AP story by Andrew Welsh-Huggins. Cooey recently filed a federal lawsuit arguing that he was too fat to be executed.

News Scan

August 22, 2008 1:31 PM | Posted by CJLF Staff

SF Dog Mauling defendant Marjorie Knoller's conviction for second degree murder was reinstated today. A SF Chronicle story by Bob Egelko reports that Knoller had been charged with second-degree murder after her two 100lb+ attack dogs mauled 33-year-old Dianne Whipple to death while she watched. Knoller did not bother to call anyone after the mauling, but first responders summoned by a neighbor found the victim stripped of her clothes with 75 major wounds on her body. After the trial court and court of appeals disagreed on the standard for implied malice murder, the state Supreme Court announced the correct standard, held that "the trial court abused its discretion in granting defendant Knoller a new trial on the second degree murder charge," and sent the case back for reconsideration. Today's order is the formal reinstatement of the conviction. She is being held without bail awaiting the possibility of receiving a 15 to life sentence at a hearing next month.

Kentucky murderer Marco Allen Chapman, who pleaded guilty in 2004 to murdering two children and attacking their mother and sister, has been fighting for three years to get the state public defender to stop appealing his case so that he can be executed. An AP story by writer Brett Barrouquere quotes Chapman saying "The only thing I can do is . . . tell the judges to do their job and end this now. Quit dragging this on for everybody." After a two-day crack cocaine binge in 2002, Chapman broke into Carolyn Marksberry's home, raped her and stabbed her, then stabbed her three young children. Carolyn and one of her daughters survived the attack. The Kentucky Supreme Court declined to rehear the public defender's appeal of his case yesterday. The Court's 2005 decision to uphold his conviction and sentence is here.

Prison is not fun for disgraced Illinois Governor George Ryan according to this Chicago Sun Times story by Rummana Hussain. Ryan, who is doing 6-1/2 years for taking bribes, became the darling of the anti-death penalty crowd when he emptied out Illinois' death row on his last day in office.

News Scan

August 22, 2008 1:31 PM | Posted by CJLF Staff

SF Dog Mauling defendant Marjorie Knoller's conviction for second degree murder was reinstated today. A SF Chronicle story by Bob Egelko reports that Knoller had been charged with second-degree murder after her two 100lb+ attack dogs mauled 33-year-old Dianne Whipple to death while she watched. Knoller did not bother to call anyone after the mauling, but first responders summoned by a neighbor found the victim stripped of her clothes with 75 major wounds on her body. After the trial court and court of appeals disagreed on the standard for implied malice murder, the state Supreme Court announced the correct standard, held that "the trial court abused its discretion in granting defendant Knoller a new trial on the second degree murder charge," and sent the case back for reconsideration. Today's order is the formal reinstatement of the conviction. She is being held without bail awaiting the possibility of receiving a 15 to life sentence at a hearing next month.

Kentucky murderer Marco Allen Chapman, who pleaded guilty in 2004 to murdering two children and attacking their mother and sister, has been fighting for three years to get the state public defender to stop appealing his case so that he can be executed. An AP story by writer Brett Barrouquere quotes Chapman saying "The only thing I can do is . . . tell the judges to do their job and end this now. Quit dragging this on for everybody." After a two-day crack cocaine binge in 2002, Chapman broke into Carolyn Marksberry's home, raped her and stabbed her, then stabbed her three young children. Carolyn and one of her daughters survived the attack. The Kentucky Supreme Court declined to rehear the public defender's appeal of his case yesterday. The Court's 2005 decision to uphold his conviction and sentence is here.

Prison is not fun for disgraced Illinois Governor George Ryan according to this Chicago Sun Times story by Rummana Hussain. Ryan, who is doing 6-1/2 years for taking bribes, became the darling of the anti-death penalty crowd when he emptied out Illinois' death row on his last day in office.

Blog Scan

August 22, 2008 10:58 AM | Posted by Lauren Altdoerffer

Detainee Habeas Cases Heard In Federal Court: At SCOTUSblog, Lyle Denniston reports that U.S. District Court Judge Richard J. Leon will hear the first detainee habeas case on Monday, October 6th, 2008. Denniston notes this is the very same day the U.S. Supreme Court will return from their summer recess. Interestingly, the Boumediene case will be the first case heard by District Judge Leon in October. Judge Leon stated it was "mostly by coincidence" that Lakhdar Boumediene, one of the detainees prevailing in Boumediene v. Bush, would be the first to receive his habeas hearings.


D.C. Circuit Appointment's Clause Decision: For those interested in separation of powers cases, Eugene Volokh and Jonathan Adler have posts at Volokh Conspiracy on the three-judge panel's decision in Free Enterprise Fund v. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board. Volokh's post notes that the decision is "very interesting," while Adler cites excerpts from the decision to explain why the decision is so interesting. The case challenged the constitutionality of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) on appointments clause grounds. The plaintiffs challenged the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, claiming its statutory scheme violated the Appointments Clause because it did not permit adequate Presidential control of the PCAOB. The plaintiffs claimed the Act stripped the President of his authority to remove members of the Board. The majority opinion, authored by Judge Rogers, and joined by Judge Brown, found that the Act did "not contravene separation of powers, as that principle embraces independent agencies like the Commission and their exercise of broad authority over their subordinates."

Blog Scan

August 22, 2008 10:58 AM | Posted by Lauren Altdoerffer

Detainee Habeas Cases Heard In Federal Court: At SCOTUSblog, Lyle Denniston reports that U.S. District Court Judge Richard J. Leon will hear the first detainee habeas case on Monday, October 6th, 2008. Denniston notes this is the very same day the U.S. Supreme Court will return from their summer recess. Interestingly, the Boumediene case will be the first case heard by District Judge Leon in October. Judge Leon stated it was "mostly by coincidence" that Lakhdar Boumediene, one of the detainees prevailing in Boumediene v. Bush, would be the first to receive his habeas hearings.


D.C. Circuit Appointment's Clause Decision: For those interested in separation of powers cases, Eugene Volokh and Jonathan Adler have posts at Volokh Conspiracy on the three-judge panel's decision in Free Enterprise Fund v. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board. Volokh's post notes that the decision is "very interesting," while Adler cites excerpts from the decision to explain why the decision is so interesting. The case challenged the constitutionality of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) on appointments clause grounds. The plaintiffs challenged the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, claiming its statutory scheme violated the Appointments Clause because it did not permit adequate Presidential control of the PCAOB. The plaintiffs claimed the Act stripped the President of his authority to remove members of the Board. The majority opinion, authored by Judge Rogers, and joined by Judge Brown, found that the Act did "not contravene separation of powers, as that principle embraces independent agencies like the Commission and their exercise of broad authority over their subordinates."

Blog Scan

August 8, 2008 3:23 PM | Posted by Lauren Altdoerffer

Justice Department Seeks to Limit District Court Authority to Transfer Detainees: At SCOTUSblog, Lyle Denniston posts that the Justice Department has filed two appeals seeking resolution of whether District Court Judges have the authority to issue orders that regulate the potential transfer of detainees out of Guantanamo Bay. The first appeal was filed on July 25, 2008 and asked the D.C. Circuit Court to rule on Senior District Court Judge Thomas F. Hogan's authority to require the government to give thirty days notice to a detainee's lawyer before the detainee is transferred from Guantanamo. The second appeal, filed today, questions District Judge Rosemary M. Collyer's authority to temporarily bar transfer of a detainee to his home country because he fears torture there. Both appeals argue Congress removed this power from district judges in 2006, and Boumediene v. Bush did not disturb this limit on district court judge authority. The appeals also argued that even without the law, district courts do not have the authority to interfere with Executive control of detainee affairs - aside from examining the basis of detention.

And Can Federal Judges Police Themselves?: Ironically, the Justice Department's second appeal was filed the same day Dan Slater, at Wall Street Journal's Law Blog, asked whether "the System" can "Deal with Incorrigible Judges?" The post discusses Nathan Koppel's article on U.S. District Judge Manuel Real. Judge Real is a federal judge in Los Angeles who was ordered removed from a patent-infringement case against Microsoft because he improperly ignored evidence and failed to state reasons for his decision. Both Slater's post, and Koppel's article, criticize life tenure for judges like Real. Slater writes that "any public shaming appears to have left Judge Real undeterred." Slater also quotes Charles Geyh, a judicial ethics professor at Indiana University, as stating the federal system is not well equipped to deal with incorrigible judges when their behavior does not rise to the level of impeachment.

California Begins to Desegregate Prisons: Bert Deixler, guest blogging at Sentencing Law and Policy, reports that the State of California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) has finally taken tentative steps toward integrating its prisons. The Supreme Court ruled California's practice to be unconstitutional in Johnson v. California, 543 U.S. 499 (2005). Deixler represented the plaintiff. According to Deixler, "Sierra Conservation Center and Mule Creek State Prison are the first California institutions to integrate, and there are plans for integration to spread statewise by January. It is anticipated that all 30 of California’s prisons will make the transition by 2010." He further states, "California will surely benefit when its prisons are de-segregated.... In short, all sound penalogic policies will be advanced by getting California out of the practice of racially segregating its prisoners." Commenter "Large County Prosecutor" opines that this is "One of the most truly naive statements ever to appear on this site."

Blog Scan

August 8, 2008 3:23 PM | Posted by Lauren Altdoerffer

Justice Department Seeks to Limit District Court Authority to Transfer Detainees: At SCOTUSblog, Lyle Denniston posts that the Justice Department has filed two appeals seeking resolution of whether District Court Judges have the authority to issue orders that regulate the potential transfer of detainees out of Guantanamo Bay. The first appeal was filed on July 25, 2008 and asked the D.C. Circuit Court to rule on Senior District Court Judge Thomas F. Hogan's authority to require the government to give thirty days notice to a detainee's lawyer before the detainee is transferred from Guantanamo. The second appeal, filed today, questions District Judge Rosemary M. Collyer's authority to temporarily bar transfer of a detainee to his home country because he fears torture there. Both appeals argue Congress removed this power from district judges in 2006, and Boumediene v. Bush did not disturb this limit on district court judge authority. The appeals also argued that even without the law, district courts do not have the authority to interfere with Executive control of detainee affairs - aside from examining the basis of detention.

And Can Federal Judges Police Themselves?: Ironically, the Justice Department's second appeal was filed the same day Dan Slater, at Wall Street Journal's Law Blog, asked whether "the System" can "Deal with Incorrigible Judges?" The post discusses Nathan Koppel's article on U.S. District Judge Manuel Real. Judge Real is a federal judge in Los Angeles who was ordered removed from a patent-infringement case against Microsoft because he improperly ignored evidence and failed to state reasons for his decision. Both Slater's post, and Koppel's article, criticize life tenure for judges like Real. Slater writes that "any public shaming appears to have left Judge Real undeterred." Slater also quotes Charles Geyh, a judicial ethics professor at Indiana University, as stating the federal system is not well equipped to deal with incorrigible judges when their behavior does not rise to the level of impeachment.

California Begins to Desegregate Prisons: Bert Deixler, guest blogging at Sentencing Law and Policy, reports that the State of California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) has finally taken tentative steps toward integrating its prisons. The Supreme Court ruled California's practice to be unconstitutional in Johnson v. California, 543 U.S. 499 (2005). Deixler represented the plaintiff. According to Deixler, "Sierra Conservation Center and Mule Creek State Prison are the first California institutions to integrate, and there are plans for integration to spread statewise by January. It is anticipated that all 30 of California’s prisons will make the transition by 2010." He further states, "California will surely benefit when its prisons are de-segregated.... In short, all sound penalogic policies will be advanced by getting California out of the practice of racially segregating its prisoners." Commenter "Large County Prosecutor" opines that this is "One of the most truly naive statements ever to appear on this site."

Blog Scan

August 6, 2008 3:05 PM | Posted by Lauren Altdoerffer

Commentary on Medellin Execution: Lyle Denniston posted a commentary on the Supreme Court's recent decisions of Medellin, Kennedy, and the "meaning of silence" at SCOTUSblog today. Denniston finds it significant that in these two recent death penalty cases, the silence of the U.S. Solicitor General and Congress has or will play a role in the Court's decisions. In the case of Kennedy v. Louisiana, the U.S. Solicitor General and the state of Louisiana have asked the Supreme Court to reopen the case to address the gap left in the ruling regarding the death penalty for child rape. In Medellin, the majority denied Medellin's petition for a stay of execution in part because of the U.S. Solicitor General's decision not "to seek our intervention" in Medellin's execution. Denniston believes the implication of these cases is "obvious" "on an issue as volatile as capital punishment, every last argument — including an argument not made — may turn out to be weighty authority." Of course, Denniston also notes this is not the norm, as the Court does not normally address issues not raised in the lower courts. According to Denniston "the role of the two political branches of the federal government — including roles not played — could be seen as one crucial factor" in the decisions.

Seventh Circuit Decision on Standard of Proof: Sentencing Law and Policy has Guest Bloggers from the criminal defense firm of Proskauer Rose posting while Doug Berman is on vacation. Today's post is on the Seventh Circuit's decision to vacate and remand the district court's decision in United States v. Schroeder, because the district court failed to apply the correct standard of proof. According to the post, the decision clarified the distinction between the government’s burden of proof with respect to a disputed fact and the standard for admissibility of evidence at sentencing. Schroeder's first sentence had been reversed by the Seventh Circuit because the sentence was six months longer than the statutory maximum. Schroeder was resentenced in a second hearing, and appealed his second sentence arguing the prosecution had not met its burden of proving the improper tax deductions for which he was being sentenced were his fault. The Seventh Circuit's decision reversed the district court's finding that disputed fact was "based on information of sufficient reliability," and noted "that although the standard for admissibility at sentencing is whether 'the information has sufficient indicia of reliability to support its probable accuracy,' a disputed fact must nonetheless be proved by a preponderance of the evidence."

Free Access to Psychology and Psychiatry Journals from Sage: Hattip to Psychology and Crime News for letting us know that from August 1 through September 30th, Sage will make a set of their Journals in Psychology and Psychiatry available for free. All you have to do is register.

Blog Scan

August 6, 2008 3:05 PM | Posted by Lauren Altdoerffer

Commentary on Medellin Execution: Lyle Denniston posted a commentary on the Supreme Court's recent decisions of Medellin, Kennedy, and the "meaning of silence" at SCOTUSblog today. Denniston finds it significant that in these two recent death penalty cases, the silence of the U.S. Solicitor General and Congress has or will play a role in the Court's decisions. In the case of Kennedy v. Louisiana, the U.S. Solicitor General and the state of Louisiana have asked the Supreme Court to reopen the case to address the gap left in the ruling regarding the death penalty for child rape. In Medellin, the majority denied Medellin's petition for a stay of execution in part because of the U.S. Solicitor General's decision not "to seek our intervention" in Medellin's execution. Denniston believes the implication of these cases is "obvious" "on an issue as volatile as capital punishment, every last argument — including an argument not made — may turn out to be weighty authority." Of course, Denniston also notes this is not the norm, as the Court does not normally address issues not raised in the lower courts. According to Denniston "the role of the two political branches of the federal government — including roles not played — could be seen as one crucial factor" in the decisions.

Seventh Circuit Decision on Standard of Proof: Sentencing Law and Policy has Guest Bloggers from the criminal defense firm of Proskauer Rose posting while Doug Berman is on vacation. Today's post is on the Seventh Circuit's decision to vacate and remand the district court's decision in United States v. Schroeder, because the district court failed to apply the correct standard of proof. According to the post, the decision clarified the distinction between the government’s burden of proof with respect to a disputed fact and the standard for admissibility of evidence at sentencing. Schroeder's first sentence had been reversed by the Seventh Circuit because the sentence was six months longer than the statutory maximum. Schroeder was resentenced in a second hearing, and appealed his second sentence arguing the prosecution had not met its burden of proving the improper tax deductions for which he was being sentenced were his fault. The Seventh Circuit's decision reversed the district court's finding that disputed fact was "based on information of sufficient reliability," and noted "that although the standard for admissibility at sentencing is whether 'the information has sufficient indicia of reliability to support its probable accuracy,' a disputed fact must nonetheless be proved by a preponderance of the evidence."

Free Access to Psychology and Psychiatry Journals from Sage: Hattip to Psychology and Crime News for letting us know that from August 1 through September 30th, Sage will make a set of their Journals in Psychology and Psychiatry available for free. All you have to do is register.

Medellin Execution

August 5, 2008 4:34 PM | Posted by Kent Scheidegger

As of 6:16 CDT, the Houston Chronicle reports that Texas is waiting to hear from the U.S. Supreme Court before proceeding with the execution of Jose Medellin.

Update: The Supreme Court denied the habeas petition and stay 5-4, and Medellin was executed and pronounced dead at 9:57 CDT. SCOTUSblog has the opinion is on the Court's website here. The opinion is somewhat cryptic, but it appears that the majority is convinced there was no prejudice, as Judge Cochran wrote in a concurring opinion in the Texas CCA, and as the trial court ruled long ago. The per curiam opinion says,

The beginning premise for any stay, and indeed for the assumption that Congress or the legislature might seek to intervene in this suit, must be that petitioner’s confession was obtained unlawfully. This is highly unlikely as a matter of domestic or international law. Other arguments seeking to establish that a violation of the Convention constitutes grounds for showing the invalidity of the state court judgment, for instance because counsel was inadequate, are also insubstantial, for the reasons noted in our previous opinion. Id., at ___ (slip op., at 5).
The Department of Justice of the United States is well aware of these proceedings and has not chosen to seek our intervention. Its silence is no surprise: The United States has not wavered in its position that petitioner was not prejudiced by his lack of consular access.

The first sentence refers to the original, sole ground of prejudice Medellin claimed in his pre-Avena state habeas petition. The second sentence appears to refer to both the holdings of the ICJ in Avena itself and the Supreme Court in Sanchez-Llamas v. Oregon, rejecting the notion that the Vienna Convention imposes some Miranda-like prerequisite to interrogation.

It is good that this execution has finally been carried out. It would have been better to have a clear statement by the Court that there was no prejudice from the Vienna Convention violation or that there has been a post-notification determination by another court that there was no prejudice, and that is all the United States is obligated to do. The lack of a clear statement of one or both of these grounds will result in unwarranted criticism of the United States.

Medellin Execution

August 5, 2008 4:34 PM | Posted by Kent Scheidegger

As of 6:16 CDT, the Houston Chronicle reports that Texas is waiting to hear from the U.S. Supreme Court before proceeding with the execution of Jose Medellin.

Update: The Supreme Court denied the habeas petition and stay 5-4, and Medellin was executed and pronounced dead at 9:57 CDT. SCOTUSblog has the opinion is on the Court's website here. The opinion is somewhat cryptic, but it appears that the majority is convinced there was no prejudice, as Judge Cochran wrote in a concurring opinion in the Texas CCA, and as the trial court ruled long ago. The per curiam opinion says,

The beginning premise for any stay, and indeed for the assumption that Congress or the legislature might seek to intervene in this suit, must be that petitioner’s confession was obtained unlawfully. This is highly unlikely as a matter of domestic or international law. Other arguments seeking to establish that a violation of the Convention constitutes grounds for showing the invalidity of the state court judgment, for instance because counsel was inadequate, are also insubstantial, for the reasons noted in our previous opinion. Id., at ___ (slip op., at 5).
The Department of Justice of the United States is well aware of these proceedings and has not chosen to seek our intervention. Its silence is no surprise: The United States has not wavered in its position that petitioner was not prejudiced by his lack of consular access.

The first sentence refers to the original, sole ground of prejudice Medellin claimed in his pre-Avena state habeas petition. The second sentence appears to refer to both the holdings of the ICJ in Avena itself and the Supreme Court in Sanchez-Llamas v. Oregon, rejecting the notion that the Vienna Convention imposes some Miranda-like prerequisite to interrogation.

It is good that this execution has finally been carried out. It would have been better to have a clear statement by the Court that there was no prejudice from the Vienna Convention violation or that there has been a post-notification determination by another court that there was no prejudice, and that is all the United States is obligated to do. The lack of a clear statement of one or both of these grounds will result in unwarranted criticism of the United States.

Medellin Has Already Received the Review Required by Avena

August 5, 2008 12:21 PM | Posted by Kent Scheidegger

"The Bush administration, the Mexican government and much of the diplomatic community have warned of an international backlash if the execution goes forward without a hearing on Medellin’s claim that he was denied an opportunity to contact the Mexican consulate after his arrest," reports Dave Montgomery for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. This is fairly typical of the coverage. But all the International Court of Justice's Avena decision requires is a judicial determination of whether there was prejudice from the failure of the police to inform the defendant of his right to have the consulate notified. Missing from the article is the fact that Medellin has already had such a determination, made after the consulate had notice and provided assistance, many years ago.

Continue reading Medellin Has Already Received the Review Required by Avena.

Medellin Has Already Received the Review Required by Avena

August 5, 2008 12:21 PM | Posted by Kent Scheidegger

"The Bush administration, the Mexican government and much of the diplomatic community have warned of an international backlash if the execution goes forward without a hearing on Medellin’s claim that he was denied an opportunity to contact the Mexican consulate after his arrest," reports Dave Montgomery for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. This is fairly typical of the coverage. But all the International Court of Justice's Avena decision requires is a judicial determination of whether there was prejudice from the failure of the police to inform the defendant of his right to have the consulate notified. Missing from the article is the fact that Medellin has already had such a determination, made after the consulate had notice and provided assistance, many years ago.

Continue reading Medellin Has Already Received the Review Required by Avena.
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