Tuesday, June 23, 2015

Posts for June 23, 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 (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] Here are some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:

Rulings on raisins and hotel registries favor individual rights [PBS / NPR, 6/22/15]: The Supreme Court issued a set of rulings today with a unifying theme, restricting government power and boosting individual rights. View the broadcast.

The Roberts Court's Surprising Move Leftward [“Upshot,” in the NY Times, 6/23/15]: This term so far shows potential for a greater percentage of liberal decisions than any since 1969.

At U.S. top court, when justices take the bench, it's story hour [Reuters, 6/22/15]: The justices read excerpts of their opinions from the tall mahogany bench. For some among the nine, these renditions rise to an art form, a compelling way to relate facts and explain the law. The recitations usually last about five minutes apiece but, as evidenced on Monday, can reveal a justice's personality, sense of humor, or, in a dissenting opinion, temper.

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

Opinion analysis: Is the New Deal in new trouble? [SCOTUS blog / Fresno Bee, 62215]: One of the more durable legacies of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal in the 1930s was the idea that the farm economy can be bolstered by paying growers to keep some of their crop off the market, or paying them not to grow some of it at all.  One of those programs ran into a high constitutional fence on Monday, raising at least some question about how long the idea can continue unchanged. Depending on how farmers, and their lawyers, interpret the new decision in Horne v. U.S. Department of Agriculture, it could pose a threat to a wide range of government subsidy programs that seek to keep crop prices up by keeping supply down.  

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

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

 

Saunders: The church shooter and capital punishment [SF Chron, 6/22/15]: It is fitting, if late, that South Carolina’s political leaders seem ready to evict the Confederate flag from the grounds of their state capitol in response to the vile shooting that left nine African Americans dead in Charleston’s AME Church last week. 

http://www.sfgate.com/opinion/saunders/article/The-church-shooter-and-capital-punishment-6342777.php

 

Constitution Check: Did hotel or motel guests just gain more privacy? [Constitution Daily, 6/23/15]: Lyle Denniston, the National Constitution Center’s constitutional literacy adviser, looks at how a Monday Supreme Court ruling provides a new layer of privacy protection to hotel guests and owners.

Supreme Court rules in favor of inmate with excessive force claim [Politico / Slate, 6/22/15]: The Supreme Court on Monday made it easier for pre-trial inmates to bring claims against jail officials for using excessive force, ruling that officers will be held to an objective standard about whether the use of force was reasonable.
http://www.politico.com/story/2015/06/jail-inmate-excessive-force-supreme-court-119283.html

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

Court ruling against gay marriage could cause legal 'chaos' [AP, 6/23/15]: Among the 36 states in which same-sex couples can now marry are 20 in which federal judges invoked the Constitution to strike down marriage bans.

7 former McDonald’s employees in Northridge sue over age discrimination [LA Daily News, 6/22/15]: Seven former employees of a McDonald’s restaurant in Northridge sued the company, alleging they were fired because they were over 40 years old. 

International Law, Citizenship and Immigration [TOPIC 40-42]


UN finds evidence of war crimes by both Israel and Hamas in conflict [Jurist, 6/23/15]: The 51 day Gaza Conflict resulted in widespread destruction and over a thousand dead. 

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