Posts for September 7, 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 (5^th ed.) student textbook.

Kindergarten teacher who let student be kidnapped isn't immune from lawsuit, U.S. court says [Harrisburg (Pa.) Patriot-News, 9/6/16]: A kindergarten teacher who allowed a 5-year-old student to leave school with a stranger who then sexually molested the child isn't entitled to legal immunity from a lawsuit the victim's mother filed, a federal appeals court panel ruled Tuesday.

http://www.pennlive.com/news/2016/09/kindergarten_teacher_who_let_s.html

The decision in J.R. v. School Dist. of Philadelphia can be read at:

http://www2.ca3.uscourts.gov/opinarch/144640p.pdf

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:

What will the presidential election mean for SCOTUS? [Erwin Chemerinsky at the ABA Journal blog, 9/6/16]: Whether one identifies as Democrat or Republican, liberal or conservative, there is no issue more important in the coming election than who will fill the vacancies that are sure to exist on the Supreme Court in the next several years.

http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/chemerinsky_what_will_the_coming_election_mean_for_scotus

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:

Pivots and Other Pathologies of American Democracy [Justia, 9/7/16]: Professor Dorf comments on the widely accepted phenomenon in United States elections known as the “pivot,” whereby candidates in both parties change positions between the primary and general elections to appeal to the voters in those particular elections. Dorf explains why candidates commonly pivot, and why general acceptance of this practice should be troubling.

https://verdict.justia.com/2016/09/07/pivots-pathologies-american-democracy

California Counts Poll: Big Leads for Kamala Harris, Yes on 64 [CPR, 9/7/16]:  California Attorney General Kamala Harris continues to hold a big lead in the state’s open U.S. Senate race over congresswoman Loretta Sanchez. More than half of respondents, 51 percent, say they would vote for Harris in a new poll commissioned by the California Counts public media collaboration. Just 19 percent favor Sanchez.

http://www.capradio.org/articles/2016/09/07/california-counts-poll-big-leads-for-kamala-harris,-yes-on-64/

A new 50-state poll shows exactly why Clinton holds the advantage over Trump [Wash Post, 9/6/16]: With nine weeks until Election Day, Donald Trump is within striking distance in the Upper Midwest, but Hillary Clinton’s strength in many battlegrounds and some traditional Republican strongholds gives her a big electoral college advantage, according to a 50-state Washington Post-SurveyMonkey poll.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/a-new-50-state-poll-shows-exactly-why-clinton-holds-the-advantage-over-trump/2016/09/05/13458832-7152-11e6-9705-23e51a2f424d_story.html?hpid=hp_hp-top-table-main_50statepoll-720a%3Ahomepage%2Fstory

Green Party Won't Be on Nevada Ballot [CNS, 9/7/16]: Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein won't be on the Nevada ballot, a federal judge decided.

http://www.courthousenews.com/2016/09/07/green-party-wont-be-on-nevada-ballot.htm

Legislation and the Legislative Process (TOPIC 20)

Harry Reid Vows To Jam Up Committee Meetings Until GOP Moves On Supreme Court Vacancy [Huff Post / Reuters, 9/6/16]: Democrats are renewing their push for Merrick Garland's Supreme Court nomination.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/merrick-garland-scotus_us_57cf3054e4b06a74c9f15393

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-court-garland-idUSKCN11C2HM

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

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:

San Francisco official suggests taking slaveholders’ names off schools [SF Chron, 9/6/16]: The president of the San Francisco school board thinks it’s time to consider renaming schools that bear the names of slave owners — including Washington and his friends and fellow presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe.

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/SF-official-suggests-taking-slaveholders-names-9206217.php

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

France court upholds local burkini ban [Jurist, 9/7/16]: A French court in Bastia on the island of Corsica upheld a local ban on full-body "burkini" swimsuits on Tuesday. This decision was handed down despite last month's Council of State ruling in the French city of Cannes.

http://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2016/09/france-court-upholds-local-burkini-ban.php