Posts for June 14, 2016
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:
The Judge Garland Oversight [NY Sun, 6/14/16]: There really is something unique about the position Republican
senators are taking with respect to the Scalia vacancy.
Even After Trump
Loses, Constitutional Democracy in the United States Will Still Be in Peril
[Justia, 6/14/16]: Professor Buchanan explains
why, whether Donald Trump wins or loses the presidency, constitutional
democracy in the United States is seriously threatened. Buchanan argues that Trump’s
stated plans for the country would effectively destroy our constitutional
democracy, but even a Republican-caused gridlocked Congress under a President
Hillary Clinton could cause a debt crisis and economic collapse.
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:
Gun Laws and Terrorism: An
American Nightmare [The New Yorker, 6/13/16]: The suspect had legally purchased a
pistol and an assault rifle a few days prior to the attack.
The Second Amendment Hoax [Slate, 6/13/16]: How the NRA and conservatives have
perverted the meaning of the right to bear arms.
Federal courts are quietly
allowing gun control -- and SCOTUS is letting them [Reuters, 6/13/16]: Later this week, the justices of the U.S. Supreme
Court are scheduled to consider a petition by Connecticut gun rights advocates who want
the court to strike down the state’s restrictions on military-style
semiautomatic weapons – the type of firearm used in this weekend’s horrific
mass shooting at a nightclub in Florida and in the 2012 massacre of first
graders at Sandy Hook elementary school.
The
American Presidency [TOPIC 15]
Obama eye-rolls at Trump’s attacks [Politico,
6/13/16]: The White House is swatting away Trump's suggestion that Obama is
sympathetic to terrorists.
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:
Trump's terrorism address, fact-checked [Politico,
6/13/16]: The presumptive GOP nominee laid into Hillary Clinton following the
mass shooting in Orlando, but how far did he stretch the truth to do it?
Legislation and the Legislative
Process (TOPIC 20)
After Orlando, California lawmakers push for action on
gun control [CPR, 6/13/16]: On the eve of key votes on a package of 11 gun
control bills, California lawmakers on Monday cited the Orlando massacre as a
call for approval of the measures, and opponents of the measures accused the
legislators of exploiting a tragedy.
Female Lawmakers Seek to Expand California’s
Definition of Rape [KQED,
6/13/16]: Some California lawmakers are seeking
to broaden the state’s definition
of rape. The move comes after a former
Stanford student received
just six months in jail despite being convicted on three counts of felony
sexual assault.
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
Supreme Court upholds
use of tribal-court convictions as predicate offenses [Jurist, 6/14/16]: he US Supreme Court ruled unanimously Monday in United
States v. Bryant that the use of
tribal-court convictions as predicate offenses in substitute prosecution does
not necessarily violate the constitution. The court held that when such
convictions occur in proceedings under the Indian
Civil Rights Act of 1968, those convictions were valid when entered.
The decision in U.S. v. Bryant is at:
For 50 Years, You’ve
Had “The Right to Remain Silent” [The Marshall Project, 6/12/16]: Miranda was
the culmination of 30 years of Supreme Court cases that were designed to
protect criminal suspects from abuse in police interrogations. The earliest of
these decisions prohibited violence and torture. The first concern was to
prevent confessions that are “unreliable”—that is, false.
Would you waive your Miranda rights? [The Marshall
Project, 6/12/16]: The fact that we can all
recite the words of our Miranda rights — “You have a right to remain silent” —
probably owes more to Law &
Order creator Dick Wolf than to the actual author of the
words, Chief Justice Earl Warren. But do we really understand those rights? Not
so much, suggests at least one expert. Test yourself with our
quiz — and if you want to know more, check out our curated coverage of Miranda n the news.
Federal inmates sentenced
for crack can seek reduced sentences [SF Chron / CNS, 6/13/16]: The disputed issue in the * * * case was the effect of
a 2011 U.S. Supreme Court ruling reducing the crack sentence of another inmate.
Four justices voted for potential reductions in all such cases, four voted for
none, and the ninth, Sonia Sotomayor, agreed to reductions in specific types of
cases, including the one the justices were considering.
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:
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