Posts for April 28, 2015

These are the posts that are accumulated in our newsletter which goes out every 4-6 days during the school year. The posts are organized by the major units in our Con Law (5^th ed.) student textbook.

Access online the audio from today's Supreme Court oral argument in Obergefell v. Hodges:

http://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/audio/2014/14-556-q1

Divided U.S. Supreme Court wrestles with gay marriage case [Reuters, 4/28/15]:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/04/28/usa-court-gaymarriage-idUSL1N0XP1UU20150428

Marriage Equality Arguments First Reaction [Slate, 4/28/15]: Ginsburg Strikes, Kennedy Wavers.

http://www.slate.com/blogs/outward/2015/04/28/marriage_equality_arguments_first_reaction_ginsburg_strikes_kennedy_wavers.html

I. Introduction to Law, the Constitution, and the Supreme Court [See TOPICS 1-10 in the 5^th edition of Constitutional Law] Here are some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) discusses cameras in the Supreme Court [C-SPAN video clip, 4/27/15]:

http://www.c-span.org/video/?c4535764/sen-chuck-grassley-discusses-cameras-supreme-court

Dear John Letters [Slate, 4/27/15]: A taxonomy of gay marriage arguments aimed at Chief Justice John Roberts.

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2015/04/chief_justice_john_roberts_vote_on_gay_marriage_lobbying_and_bullying_on.html

Taming the Butterflies Before a Supreme Court Argument [NLJ, 4/27/15]: Lawyers in the same-sex marriage cases and veteran advocates reveal their routines.

http://www.nationallawjournal.com/home/id=1202724607082/Taming-the-Butterflies-Before-a-Supreme-Court-Argument?mcode=1202615432992&curindex=0

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

III. The Political System: Voting and Campaigns [See TOPICS 16-20 in the 5^th edition of Constitutional Law] Here are some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:

Legislation and the Legislative Process (TOPIC 20)

 

Greenhut: Education bills squelch any reform agenda [San Diego U-T, 4/27/15]:  After court setbacks, teachers’ union strikes back in Capitol.

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2015/apr/27/vergara-sacramento-teachers-union-capitol-bills/

IV. Criminal Law and Procedure (4^th, 5^th, 6^th, and 8^th amendments) [See TOPICS 21-28 in the 5^th edition of Constitutional Law] Here are some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:

A Free Kick In [Slate, 4/27/15]: How does the Constitution protect innocent people who are stuck in jail?

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/supreme_court_dispatches/2015/04/kingsley_v_hendrickson_oral_arguments_supreme_court_considers_jail_guard.html

Court weighs excessive force against inmates awaiting trial [AP, 4/27/15]: Amid a growing national debate over police use of force, the Supreme Court struggled Monday with a related question of claims of excessive force against jail officials by people who are accused but not yet convicted of crimes.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_SUPREME_COURT_EXCESSIVE_FORCE

Crime, sentencing reforms gain traction [Capitol Weekly, 4/28/15]: For decades, Californians and their representatives in the state Capitol had a “lock-‘em-up-and-throw-away-the-key” approach to lawbreakers. But that view is changing. 

http://capitolweekly.net/crime-proposition47-gain-traction-california-reforms-sentencing/

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

Hundreds protest San Francisco archbishop’s push on morality clauses [SF Chron, 4/28/15]: Hundreds of Catholic-school teachers and supporters gathered outside the San Francisco Archdiocese on Monday afternoon waving rainbow banners and preaching acceptance of gays and lesbians — all in protest of efforts by the archbishop to require employees to embrace church opposition to “homosexual relations,” “fornication” and other “gravely evil” sexual activities.

http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Hundreds-protest-S-F-archbishop-s-push-on-6227635.php

Pa. high school students protest warnings to avoid ‘irresponsible’ speech [SPLC, 4/27/15]: About two dozen students at a suburban Pittsburgh high school staged a protest Monday after school and police officials told students they could face criminal charges if they spoke about teachers’ pending sexual assault and victim intimidation investigations.

http://www.splc.org/article/2015/04/pa-high-school-students-protest-warnings-to-avoid-irresponsible-speech

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

Why Massachusetts Led the Way on Same-Sex Marriage [NY Times, 4/27/15]: Margaret Marshall, the former chief justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, has heard the question before: Did she ever imagine that the nation’s attitudes toward same-sex marriage would change so fast?

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/27/opinion/why-massachusetts-led-the-way-on-same-sex-marriage.html?_r=0

How gay-marriage case was born of a divided Ohio [Cinn. Enquirer, 4/27/15]:

http://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/politics/2015/04/25/gay-marriage-case-born-divided-ohio/26261633/

Interstate Marriage Recognition: When History Meets the Supreme Court [Justia, 4/28/15]: Grossman discusses one aspect the same-sex marriage case that the U.S. Supreme Court is hearing today, Obergefell v. Hodges. Specifically, Grossman considers whether the Fourteenth Amendment requires a state to recognize out-of-state marriages in the context of the history of interstate marriage recognition laws. 

https://verdict.justia.com/2015/04/28/interstate-marriage-recognition-when-history-meets-the-supreme-court