_{Posts February  14,  2018}

_{These are the 2,18 that are accumulated in our weekly newsletter which goes out throughout the school year. The posts are organized by the major units in our Constitutional Law (5th ed.) student textbook}

_{I.                Introduction to Law, the Constitution, and the Supreme Court [See TOPICS 1-10 in the 5th edition of Constitutional Law] Some recent articles that are relevant to this unit}

The judiciary must deal with #MeToo -- and with what I know [ABA Jpournal, 2/13/18]: Time magazine recently named “The Silence Breakers” as its 2017 Person of the Year in recognition of the #MeToo movement and the people who have spoken out about sexual assault. Some of the Silence Breakers led to national storylines chronicling the downfall of powerful men who used their positions to commit sexual assaults and get away with it—until now. And some of the Silence Breakers simply tweeted or posted #metoo, often sharing for the first time, with that simple hashtag, a hint at what they’d suffered.

http://www.abajournal.com/voice/article/the_judiciary_must_deal_with_metoo_and_with_what_i_know

_{II.               Defining the Political System: Federalism and Checks and Balances [See TOPICS 11-15 in the 5th edition of Constitutional Law] Some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:}

Iowa Supreme Court to hear challenge to 72-hour waiting period for abortions

 _{[Des Moines Register, 2/13/18]:} The Iowa Supreme Court will hear a challenge this week to a provision in a law passed last year that would require women to wait a minimum of three days before they could obtain an abortion.

_{https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/crime-and-courts/2018/02/12/iowa-supreme-court-law-shields-large-animal-operations-lawsuits/311327002/}

_{The American Presidency [TOPIC 15]}

House Republicans Open Investigation Into White House Handling Of Porter Scandal  pNPR, 2/14/18]: The White House's story about who knew what when about accusations of domestic violence against former White House staff secretary Rob Porter has been anything but clear.

https://www.npr.org/2018/02/14/585725682/house-republicans-open-investigation-into-white-house-handling-of-porter-sca https://www.npr.org/2018/02/14/585617976/4-big-questions-raised-by-the-latest-white-house-scandalndal

Second federal judge blocks DACA repeal

 [Jurist, 2/14/18]: A judge for the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York has blocked the Trump administration from ending the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which gives undocumented immigrants brought into the US as children, known as "Dreamers," protection from deportation. The lawsuit was originally filed by 17 state …

_{http://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2018/02/second-federal-judge-blocks-daca-repeal.php}

_{III. The Political System: Voting and Campaigns}

Suited up: Do voters have a right to wear political garb at the polling booth? [The Economist, 2/13/18]: A Minnesota law barring politics at the polls arrives at the Supreme Court.

_{https://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2018/02/suited-up}

_{Legislation and the Legislative Process  [TOPICS 16-20]}

A look at the new whistleblower protections [Capitol Weekly, 2/13/18]: Gov. Jerry Brown has signed into law whistleblower protections for Capitol staffers. Now, legislative employees will have the same protections as all other state employees. But a question arises: Will the new law, which passed both Democrat-controlled houses without a dissenting vote, really make much of a difference?

_{http://capitolweekly.net/whistleblower-protection-capitol-employees/}

Walters: Capitol harassment cases handled inconsistently [CalMatters, 2/13/18]: Four years ago, the state Senate was thrown into turmoil by the simultaneous prosecution of three senators on unrelated felony charges. 

_{https://calmatters.org/articles/commentary/commentary-capitol-harassment-cases-handled-inconsistently/}

California's Legislature should require a formal vote to kill bills, Republican lawmaker says [LA Times, 2/13/18]: Republican state lawmaker whose bill to protect legislative staff from workplace retaliation was killed four times without a formal vote says it’s time to change the rules of the Legislature. “Don’t keep passing the buck,” said Assemblywoman Melissa Melendez (R-Lake Elsinore). “That’s a cowardly way of doing business.”

_{http://www.latimes.com/politics/essential/la-pol-ca-essential-politics-updates-california-s-legislature-should-no-1518553858-htmlstory.html}

_{IV.              Cminal Law and Procedure (4th, 5th, 6th, and 8th amendments) [See TOPICS 21-28 in the 5th edition of Constitutional Law] Some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:}

_{V.               1st Amendment (Speech, Religion, Press and Assembly) [See TOPICS 29-33 in the 5th edition of Constitutional Law] Some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:}

_{Podcast: The First Amendment and Symbolic Speech [Newseum, 2/13/18]:} Expressive acts, like kneeling during the national anhem or burning the American flag, are considered “symbolic speech” — but are they protected under the First Amendment?

_{http://www.newseuminstitute.org/2018/02/13/the-first-amendment-and-symbolic-speech/}

San Ramon high school students ban national anthem from rallies [SF Chron, 2/13/18]: Students at California High School in San Ramon decided at a recent pep rally that the national anthem will no longer be played, bucking tradition and drawing the school into a national controversy about what and whom the anthem represents. 

_{https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/San-Ramon-high-school-students-ban-national-anthem-12611370.php}

_{VI.              14th Amendment, Discrimination, Privacy, Working, Citizenship & Immigration [See TOPICS 34-41 in the 5th edition of Constitutional Law] Some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:}

Court rules Gardendale can't form school system, finds racial motives; city to appeal [Birmingham News, 2/13/18]: A federal appeals court ruled today that Gardendale can't form its own school system and agreed with a judge's finding that racial motives were involved in the attempt to split from the Jefferson County system.

_{http://www.al.com/news/birmingham/index.ssf/2018/02/federal_appeals_court_rules_ga.html}

In Alabama Case, Desegregation History Defeats District's Secession

_{[School Law Blog, 2/14/18]:} This week's federal appeals court decision rejecting a predominantly white Alabama community's effort to secede from a larger, more racially diverse county school district was a case of desegregation history triumphing over a purported effort to restore "local control."

_{http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/school_law/2018/02/in_closely_watched_ala_case_ap.html?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzRss&utm_campaign=theschoollawblog}

The Bogus 'Free Speech' Argument Against Unions [The Atlantic, 21418]: The latest attempt to use the Supreme Court to eviscerate a key liberal constituency seems like a thoroughly partisan operation.

_{https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/02/the-bogus-free-speech-argument-against-unions/553205/?utm_source=twb}

_{Posts February  13,  2018}

_{These are the 2,18 that are accumulated in our weekly newsletter which goes out throughout the school year. The posts are organized by the major units in our Constitutional Law (5th ed.) student textbook}

_{I.                Introduction to Law, the Constitution, and the Supreme Court [See TOPICS 1-10 in the 5th edition of Constitutional Law] Some recent articles that are relevant to this unit}

_{II.               Defining the Political System: Federalism and Checks and Balances [See TOPICS 11-15 in the 5th edition of Constitutional Law] Some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:}

_{The American Presidency [TOPIC 15]}

Trump takes aim at blue states in infrastructure plan –[Politico, 2/12/18]:Major transportation projects in blue states may be in jeopardy in President Donald Trump’s 10-year infrastructure plan, which critics say favors little-populated rural areas to the detriment of urban America.

_{https://www.politico.com/story/2018/02/12/trump-infrastructure-blue-states-transit-405993}

_{III. The Political System: Voting and Campaigns}

California Could Get Tougher Penalties For Handling Phones While Driving Under New Bill [CPR, 2/12/18]: California drivers who talk, text or in any way operate a hand-held device would be charged with a moving violation under a bill proposed at the state Capitol this week.

_{http://www.capradio.org/109816}

_{IV.              Cminal Law and Procedure (4th, 5th, 6th, and 8th amendments) [See TOPICS 21-28 in the 5th edition of Constitutional Law] Some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:}

_{About the Anglo-American Heritage of Law Enforcement []Marshall Project, 2/12/18]: Attorney General Jeff Sessions} was technically correct when he lauded the office of sheriff as “a critical part of the Anglo-American heritage of law enforcement” before a gathering of those officeholders on Monday. Assuming he was speaking etymologically, the word can be traced to the Old English scirgerefa, a combination of scir or shire, and gerefa, for reeve or chief, as the “representative of royal authority in a shire”

_{https://www.themarshallproject.org/2018/02/13/about-the-anglo-american-heritage-of-law-enforcement?ref=hp-1-111}

Baltimore Police Found Guilty in Massive Corruption Probe [CNS, 2/13/18]: A jury convicted two Baltimore detectives on Monday evening of what has been called the country’s worst police-corruption scandal.

_{https://www.courthousenews.com/baltimore-police-found-guilty-in-massive-corruption-probe/\}

_{V.               1st Amendment (Speech, Religion, Press and Assembly) [See TOPICS 29-33 in the 5th edition of Constitutional Law] Some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:}

No Immunity for Sheriff Who Fired His Deputy After Election [Newseum, 2/13/18]: A Washington County, Nebraska, sheriff who terminated a deputy sheriff who ran against him in a political campaign is not entitled to qualified immunity, a federal appeals court has ruled. The decision is significant, because it reaffirms the right of public employees to make statements as citizens on matters of public importance. 

_{http://www.newseuminstitute.org/2018/02/12/no-immunity-for-sheriff-who-fired-his-deputy-after-election/}

Ideas still flowing on how to save local news [FAC, 2/12/18\: News of layoffs and downsizing are common these days, the latest source the Bay Area News Group that owns the San Jose Mercury News and several local Bay Area newspapers.

_{https://firstamendmentcoalition.org/2018/02/ideas-still-flowing-save-local-news/}

_{VI.              14th Amendment, Discrimination, Privacy, Working, Citizenship & Immigration [See TOPICS 34-41 in the 5th edition of Constitutional Law] Some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:}

Here are some answers about the ‘Race and IQ’ science project that caused an uproar [Sac Bee, 2/12/18]: A student in a prestigious college preparatory program at a Sacramento city high school last week made international headlines after the news of his science fair project on “Race and IQ” went viral.

_{http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article199773129.html}

Former Students Ask How A Small-Town Teacher Dodged Assault And Sexual Misconduct Allegations For Decades –[CPR, 2/12/18]:For decades, a Yuba City native, who has worked simultaneously as a teacher and a county supervisor, has dodged accusations of assault, sexual misconduct and bullying. Now, former students are going public — and asking what happened to their complaints.

_{http://www.capradio.org/109931}

Mill Valley teacher alleges sexual harassment by students [Marin I-J, 2/12/18]: With a nod to the national “#MeToo movement,” Tamalpais High School teacher Eva Rieder has gone public with allegations that male students have sexually harassed her more than a dozen times with physical touching and obscene emails, letters and phone calls — and that school administrators and staff failed to respond to her reports or take any action to stop it. 

_{http://www.marinij.com/social-affairs/20180212/mill-valley-teacher-alleges-sexual-harassment-by-students}

_{Posts February  12,  2018}

_{These are the 2,18 that are accumulated in our weekly newsletter which goes out throughout the school year. The posts are organized by the major units in our Constitutional Law (5th ed.) student textbook}

_{I.                Introduction to Law, the Constitution, and the Supreme Court [See TOPICS 1-10 in the 5th edition of Constitutional Law] Some recent articles that are relevant to this unit}

_{II.               Defining the Political System: Federalism and Checks and Balances [See TOPICS 11-15 in the 5th edition of Constitutional Law] Some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:}

_{The American Presidency [TOPIC 15]}

Trump unveils11th round of judicial nominees [Wash Times  _{/ Texas Tribune}, 2/12/18]: 

President Trump announced his 11th wave of judicial nominees on Monday, intending to nominate nine federal judges including four federal circuit court picks.

Since taking office roughly one year ago, Mr. Trump faced an unprecedented amount of vacancies on the federal bench.

_{https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/feb/12/donald-trump-unveils-11th-round-judicial-nominees/}

_{https://www.texastribune.org/2018/02/12/donald-trump-nominates-texas-gov-greg-abbott-advisor-andrew-oldham-5th/}

The mysterious oppo researcher working in the White House lawyer's office [Politico, 2/11/18]: Michael Roman, best known as a shadowy operative who oversaw a research unit for the Koch network, now occupies an unusual and undefined role in the Trump administration. 

_{https://www.politico.com/story/2018/02/11/trump-oppo-researcher-roman-403138}

Trump shifts meaning of 'Drain the Swamp' [LA Times, 2/11/18]: Rather than kill the catchphrase he didn't love to begin with, Trump has done something more subversive: drained it of its meaning.

_{http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-swamp-20180209-story.html}

_{III. The Political System: Voting and Campaigns}

How to Kill Partisan Gerrymandering [Slate, 2/12/18]: The Pennsylvania Supreme Court just gave state courts a blueprint to strike down political redistricting.

_{https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2018/02/pennsylvania-gave-state-courts-a-blueprint-to-strike-down-partisan-gerrymandering.html}

_‘Contempt for Court [Slate, 2/12/18]: Republican lawmakers are increasingly showing disdain for decisions made by the judicial branch -- and by extension the rule of law.

_{https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/02/contempt-for-court/553046/?utm_source=twb}

_{IV.              Cminal Law and Procedure (4th, 5th, 6th, and 8th amendments) [See TOPICS 21-28 in the 5th edition of Constitutional Law] Some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:}

Do Defendants Have the Right to Make Bad Decisions? [Justia, 2/12/18]: Professor Colb comments on the case before the US Supreme Court, McCoy v. Louisiana, in which the Court will decide whether a criminal defendant has a Sixth Amendment right to stop his attorney from announcing to a jury that his client killed the victims for whose murder he is standing trial. Colb considers the argument that the lawyer's behavior constituted deficient performance counsel and argues that in that case, the defendant's conviction should be reversed and remanded for a new trial.

_{https://verdict.justia.com/2018/02/12/defendants-right-make-bad-decisions}

_{V.               1st Amendment (Speech, Religion, Press and Assembly) [See TOPICS 29-33 in the 5th edition of Constitutional Law] Some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:}

_{VI.              14th Amendment, Discrimination, Privacy, Working, Citizenship & Immigration [See TOPICS 34-41 in the 5th edition of Constitutional Law] Some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:}

Masterpiece Cakeshop: Beware the False Equivalence [“Take Care” blog, 2/12/18]:  Earlier this week, a California state court held that under the First Amendment, a bakery owner may refuse to bake a cake for a same-sex couple. The question is currently before the Supreme Court in Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colorado Civil Rights Commissionand there’s a good chance that Justice Kennedy will determine its outcome. Unfortunately, Justice Kennedy may be in the grip of a false equivalence.

https://takecareblog.com/blog/masterpiece-cakeshop-beware-the-false-equivalence