Posts for July 4,, 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.

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:

The biggest surprises of this term [Slate’s “Supreme Court Breakfast Table, 7/3/15]: Now that the Supreme Court term has ended, there’s a natural inclination to try to characterize it as a whole, or at least to view the results of the past few months as a harbinger of important future trends. This year, the consensus view appears to be that the court is unexpectedly leaning to the left or, at a minimum, that the court proved itself to be wildly unpredictable this term. Count me as a skeptic.

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/the_breakfast_table/features/2015/scotus_roundup/supreme_court_surprises_obamacare_marriage_jerusalem_passport_arizona_judicial.html

Why Obamacare’s Future is Secure [New Yorker, 7/3/15]: It hasn't been quite as dramatic as Justice Owen Roberts's legendary 1937 'switch in time that saved nine,' which flipped the Supreme Court from overturning New Deal legislation to ruling its initiatives constitutional.

http://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/why-obamacares-future-is-secure

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:

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

 

Amnesty International Report on Police Use of Force [Jurist, 7/2/15]: Amnesty International last week harshly criticized the US for not providing standards strictly limiting the use of lethal force by police to those occasions when no other options are available and such force is essential to save lives.

http://jurist.org/forum/2015/07/wesley-oliver-amnesty-report.php

Try, Try Again: The most outrageous decision of this Supreme Court term [Slate,7/3/15]: Just before the Supreme Court closed out its term on Monday, it condemned a man to death. Richard Jordan, who has been on Mississippi’s death row for 38 years had asked the justices to reconsider an appeals court’s ruling that blocked his access to the courts. Without explanation, they declined. The justices’ refusal to examine Jordan’s case clears the way for his execution. It may be remembered as their most gallingly unjust decision this term.

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2015/07/richard_jordan_death_penalty_joe_sam_owen_prosecution_let_stand_by_supreme.html

 

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:

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:

Greenhut: High court mulls future of forced dues [San Diego U-T, 7/3/15]: California Republican officials are accustomed to having their legislation killed, given their lack of clout in the Capitol. But the recent derailment of six out of seven bills in their modest education-reform package — and the seventh was gutted — speaks not just of their minority status, but of the power of the state’s teachers’ unions. 

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/2015/jul/03/supreme-court-compulsory-union-dues-teachers-case/

 

US court: Unpaid internships legal if they boost education [Jurist / CNS, 7/3/15]: The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on Thursday ruled that unpaid internships are legal when they are tied to the intern's education.

http://jurist.org/paperchase/2015/07/us-court-unpaid-internships-legal-if-they-boost-education.php

http://www.courthousenews.com/2015/07/02/fox-prevails-on-appeal-in-intern-class-action.htm

 

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

A look at San Francisco's status as a sanctuary city [SJ Merc, 7/3/15]: What does it mean to be a sanctuary city? According to the Federation for American Immigration Reform, sanctuary cities have policies in place to "bar any local official, including law enforcement officials, from asking people about their immigration status, reporting them to federal immigration authorities, or otherwise cooperating with or assisting federal immigration authorities."

http://www.mercurynews.com/california/ci_28430845/look-at-san-franciscos-status-sanctuary-city?source=rss