Category: Courts

Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Free Speech, Justice, Lawyering, Politics, Supreme Court

It’s All About the Judges

Carl_J__Barbier

Respectfully submitted by Lawrence E. Rafferty (rafflaw)-Guest Blogger

Over the years we have heard the stories about Supreme Court justices coming under fire for attending political rallies and symposiums and for taking gifts from political organizations.  Abe Fortas and his subsequent resignation from the Supreme Court is one instance that comes to mind.  More recently, of course,  Justice Clarence Thomas’ exploits come to mind.  “Justice Clarence Thomas is an ethics problem in a black robe. Just eight months after ThinkProgress broke the story of Thomas’ attendance at a Koch-sponsored political fundraiser, we learn that Thomas doesn’t just do unethical favors for wealthy right-wing donors — they also do expensive favors for him.

Leading conservative donor Harlan Crow, whose company often litigates in federal court, provided $500,000 to allow Thomas’s wife to start a Tea Party group and he once gave Thomas a $19,000 Bible that belonged to Frederick Douglass. The American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank which frequently files briefs in Thomas’ Court, also gave Thomas a $15,000 gift.”  Think Progress

What we may have missed in those earlier discussions is how important the lower courts and appeals court judges are in enforcing corporate or political legislation and policies.  What would you say if corporations and partisan foundations or think tanks and oil companies were deeply involved in making sure the judges know who their real “friends” are? Continue reading “It’s All About the Judges” →

Academia, Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Free Speech, International, Justice, Military, Politics, Religion, Society, Supreme Court, Uncategorized

The Father of Our Country

Submitted by: Mike Spindell, guest blogger

Gilbert_Stuart_Williamstown_Portrait_of_George_WashingtonThe idea for this guest blog came from Anonymously Yours, who has been around at Jonathan Turley’s Blog, for at least as long as I have. We have had an E Mail relationship, offline for many years. He sent me the link that I’ll be basically using and I think his judgment was on the money. The topic is George Washington’s Farewell Address, how prescient our First President was and how much good advice he gave that we should heed today, after the passage of 218 years.

Like every other American child what I learned about George Washington came from school and little else. When I started learning about him and the revolutionary war, it was common when speaking about him to call him “The Father of Our Country”. As the years passed this description has seemingly fallen out of consciousness and we usually only see him referenced wearing a white wig and a tri-corn hat on President’s Day selling cars. Certainly too, as my education progressed through High School and College, the view of Washington as one of our Founding Father’s was diminished as compared to his more glamorous and brilliant cohort among the Founding Fathers, Jefferson, Franklin and Madison. It is easy to see why this change came about. When you think of Washington, most would see the famous portrait I’ve used as a picture above. The portrait shows a prim-mouthed, rather dour man with a wig. History has given us certain personal details like his famous wooden false teeth. History has also supplied a childish, hagiographic mythology that he never told a lie and threw a coin across the Potomac. There is even some debate about his competence as a General. Indeed, the traitor Benedict Arnold is considered by many to be the best military mind on our side during the Revolution.

So when AY sent me his E Mail, I was at first skeptical about the project until I read the link. While in some sense I knew about his Farewell Address in the back of my mind, rereading it and the commentary on it caused me to rethink George Washington. As I see now he was a great man, in a true sense and he at least gave this country a good start. He also made a contribution regarding how he felt this country should comport itself that is relevant today, although certainly not heeded. Let’s explore Washington’s message and see what wisdom we can draw from it today, or should have drawn in the ensuing 218 years since it was written. Continue reading “The Father of Our Country” →

Bizarre, Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Society

Texas Court Declares Over A Dozen Individuals Public Nuisances And Bars Them From Neighborhood

gavel2There is a troubling case out of Harris County, Texas where a court has issued an order barring 16 individuals from a Houston neighborhood on the ground that prosecutors alleged that they are gang members up to no good. However, this was a civil proceeding where the 16 individuals were neither given representation nor were present. The precedent established by such a public nuisance ruling is chilling if prosecutors can bar citizens from neighborhoods based on associations or future conduct.

Continue reading “Texas Court Declares Over A Dozen Individuals Public Nuisances And Bars Them From Neighborhood” →

Columns, Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Free Speech, Justice, Lawyering, Media, Politics, Society

FIRE ERIC HOLDER

holderericHere is today’s column in USA Today calling for the firing of Attorney General Eric Holder (I have added a couple lines removed in editing). Holder is not the only individual who needs to leave federal office but he is the first. Equally responsible are his deputy, James Cole, and Ronald Machen Jr., the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia who played critical roles in the investigation of journalists with Associated Press and Fox News. Notably, Obama reportedly “fired” IRS Director Steve Miller (who was reportedly already leaving) over the IRS scandal though there is no indication of any knowledge on his part. In Holder’s case, he was personally involved in targeting journalists (in the Fox case) and launched an attack on the media that has been condemned by a wide array of public interest and media groups. Yet, Holder has been asked to hold a simple meeting with aggrieved media representatives by Obama.

Continue reading “FIRE ERIC HOLDER” →

Animals, Constitutional Law, Courts, Environment

PETA Accused Of Pursuing Bloggers After Criticism Of Its Animal Shelter

100px-Peta.svg People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is famous for its public displays designed to shock and sometimes disgust people (here and here and here). However, PETA appears a bit thin skinned this week with legal attacks on critics who accused the organization of killing animals in a Virginia shelter. PETA reportedly is asking a court to give it the personal information, email addresses, phone numbers, and other data for three bloggers who reacted to an April 2 posting by a no-kill shelter advocate. One of the bloggers called PETA “animal Kevorkians.”

Continue reading “PETA Accused Of Pursuing Bloggers After Criticism Of Its Animal Shelter” →

Academia, Congress, Courts, International, Justice, Politics, Society

Do the Big Banks Control Everything?

100px-US-GreatSeal-Obverse_svg

Respectfully submitted by Lawrence E. Rafferty (rafflaw)-Guest Blogger

Recently I wrote an article that discussed how the FDIC and the Bank of England had written a joint paper agreeing on how to deal with failing large banks in the post Dodd-Frank world.  Banksters  In my research for a follow-up to that article, I discovered that Congress was busy at work trying to do everything in its power to water down or eviscerate Dodd-Frank.  I guess I should not be surprised that Congress might be trying to defeat a law that was passed in an attempt to make sure that ordinary citizens would not be asked to bail out the large banks once again.  While Dodd-Frank is far from perfect, it is a step in the right direction.  At least for the taxpayers. Continue reading “Do the Big Banks Control Everything?” →

Academia, Columns, Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Free Speech, Media, Politics, Society, Supreme Court

The Rise of the Fourth Branch of Government

3branchesBelow is today’s column in the Washington Post’s Outlook Section on the dangers of America’s growing administrative state. Ask any elementary student and you will hear how the Framers carefully designed a tripartite, or three-branch, system to govern the United States. This separation of powers was meant to protect citizens from tyranny by making every branch dependent on each other to carry out the functions of government. These three branches held together through a type of outward pressure – each holding the other in place through their countervailing forces. Add a fourth branch and the structure begins to collapse. That is precisely what is happening as federal agencies grow beyond the traditional controls and oversight of the legislative and executive branches. The question is how a tripartite system can function as a quadripartite system. The answer, as demonstrated by the last two decades, is not well. The shift from a tripartite to a quadripartite system is not the result of simply the growth in the size of the government. Rather, it is a concern with the degree of independence and autonomy in the fourth branch that led me to write this column.

Continue reading “The Rise of the Fourth Branch of Government” →

Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Free Speech, International, Justice, Lawyering, Media, Military, Politics, Society, Supreme Court, Uncategorized

Eric Holder Should Go!

Submitted by: Mike Spindell, guest blogger

200px-HK_Central_Statue_Square_Legislative_Council_Building_n_Themis_sAbout one year into Barack Obama’s first term as President I began calling the White House demanding that Attorney General Eric Holder should be fired. I was disturbed by the lack of prosecutions and by the trend towards stricter enforcement of the Drug Laws. Clearly this was not the change I envisioned from a Constitutional Law professor, or his Attorney General. I guess my support in the election wasn’t important enough to get The President to hear my plea to rid himself and us, of both Holder and Geithner. Here we are now more than four years later and both of these bozos are still on the job and doing harm to our Constitution and our economy. With the Associated Press eavesdropping scandal we have just the latest contretemps committed by the Justice Department and its hapless leader. Having lived through Attorney General’s John Mitchell and Ed Meese, I understand full well the importance of the position and how if it is filled with the wrong man mischief will arise. Eric Holder is in the tradition of both these men since he too seems nonplussed when it comes to upholding the constitution. This article was in reaction to reading about Holder signing off on the AP probe in Thursday’s Huffington Post, I give credit to them for this story and I will provide links.  Here are six instances of Holder’s using his office to achieve what I see as disastrously wrong actions. Continue reading “Eric Holder Should Go!” →

Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Politics, Society, Supreme Court

Obama Recess Appointments Found Unconstitutional By Second Appellate Court

President_Barack_ObamaI have previously testified and written about President Barack Obama’s use of recess appointments, which I viewed as flagrantly unconstitutional. Recently, the D.C. Circuit agreed with that view and found that the Obama Administration had violated the recess appointment powers. Now a second appellate court has joined that view, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. I have two law review articles coming out on these appointments and more broadly the abuse of recess appointment powers in modern presidencies. See Jonathan Turley, Recess Appointments in the Age of Regulation, 93 Boston University Law Review ___ (2013) and Jonathan Turley, Constitutional Adverse Possession: Recess Appointments and the Role of Historical Practice in Constitutional Interpretation, 2103 Wisconsin Law Review ___ (2013)

Continue reading “Obama Recess Appointments Found Unconstitutional By Second Appellate Court” →

Courts, Justice, Politics, Society

ALEC in Wonderland, An Act In Two Plays (Part 1)

 

By Mike Appleton, Guest Blogger

“Be what you would seem to be-or, if you’d like it put more simply-Never imagine yourself not to be otherwise than what it might appear to others that what you were or might have been was not otherwise than what you had been would have appeared to them to be otherwise.”

-Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

The late Paul Weyrich is generally regarded as the principal architect of the new conservative coalition that emerged with the ascendancy of Ronald Reagan.  He was a co-founder of the Heritage Foundation.  He even created the phrase “moral majority” for Pat Robertson.  But his most important creation was the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) in 1973.  In the course of 30 years that body has become the most powerful force in state legislative bodies throughout the country.

Weyrich was not a fan of voting rights.  “I don’t want everybody to vote,” he said in 1980. “Elections are not won by a majority of the people.  They never have from the beginning of our country and they are not now.  As a matter of fact, our leverage in the elections quite candidly goes up as the voting populace goes down.”  Weyrich understood that voters are problematic for two reasons.  First, they are fickle and  unpredictable.  Second, they cannot be held accountable for their decisions.  In short, they cannot be controlled, making democracy an uncertain endeavor.

But Weyrich also understood that lobbying is not an effective antidote to an independent electorate.  It is expensive and subject to restrictions and regulations that vary from state to state.  ALEC operates in a manner that enables it to surmount those problems.  Powerful corporate interests provide the funding necessary to research and draft model bills serving their interests.  The approximately 2,000 state legislator members of ALEC sponsor those model bills in their respective states.  And the electorate? Well, anyone is free to join and have his or her voice heard by paying an annual membership fee ranging from $7,000.00 to $25,000.00.

As you will see, ALEC’s ability to get its way in spite of the voting public is indeed a wonder to behold. Continue reading “ALEC in Wonderland, An Act In Two Plays (Part 1)” →

Bizarre, Courts, Criminal law, Lawyering

Peerless: Oklahoma Man Repeatedly Shows Up Late For Jury Duty . . . And Then Misses Hearing On Contempt Of Court

w300-30b82aa492bc3fd1f4d83001853185e2Rickey Christopher, 23, obviously does not like jury duty. Many people feel the same but he is fast making jury duty into the worst chapter of his life. Christopher was previously dismissed from jury duty for repeatedly showing up late. Then when he was ordered to appear for possible contempt of court, stemming from his jury duty, he failed to appear. There is now a warrant out for his arrest from Oklahoma County District Judge Ray C. Elliott. It is a good thing that such charges are generally handled without a jury. It would be hard to find 12 peers of Christopher to appear on time to try the case.

Continue reading “Peerless: Oklahoma Man Repeatedly Shows Up Late For Jury Duty . . . And Then Misses Hearing On Contempt Of Court” →

Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Free Speech, Lawyering, Media, Politics, Society

Nixonian or Obamaesque? Obama Administration Spied On Associated Press Editors and Reporters

220px-Richard_NixonPresident_Barack_ObamaI recently published a column on how Barack Obama has publicly assumed many of the powers that were once cited as the basis for the investigation and attempted impeachment of Richard Nixon. One of those areas was the Obama Administration’s crackdown on journalists. This week Attorney General Eric Holder appears to have yet again added to this ignoble record. It appears that the Justice Department secretly obtained two months of telephone records of reporters and editors for The Associated Press. This disclosure follows another recent disclosure that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) targeted conservative groups associated with the Tea Party. Yet, once again, most Democrats remain silent in a type of cult of personality where principle is discarded in favor of loyalty to the President.

Continue reading “Nixonian or Obamaesque? Obama Administration Spied On Associated Press Editors and Reporters” →

Courts, Criminal law, Lawyering, Media, Politics, Society

Judge In Casey Anthony Case Publicly Proclaims His Belief In Her Guilt and Dishes On Case

Perry-Belvin-circuit_smallJudge Belvin Perry appears to believe that, as Oscar Wilde advised, “the only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it.” Perry decided to get his 15 minutes of fame by granting an interview on the Casey Anthony murder trial during which he attacked Anthony as “very manipulative.” I will remind you that Anthony was acquitted of the first-degree murder of her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee. There are also judicial ethical rules meant to bar such commentary by judges. The question is whether the state bar will take action after this grossly inappropriate interview. Perry is the chief judge on Florida’s Ninth Judicial Circuit.

Continue reading “Judge In Casey Anthony Case Publicly Proclaims His Belief In Her Guilt and Dishes On Case” →

Courts, Lawyering, Society, Torts, Uncategorized

Jury Awards Family $20 Million Against Toys R Us For Slide Injury

0b4e4da1fb51e90e300f6a7067001284-3_4_r536_c534200px-Toys_%22R%22_Us_logo.svgToys R Us has vowed to appeal a $20 million verdict in Massachusetts in favor of the family of Robin Aleo who was killed after slamming her head on a concrete pool deck when a 6-foot inflatable pool slide deflated. The major issue in the appeal is likely to be the argument that the slide did not comply with federal safety standards. Toys R Us claims the federal standards were written for solid slides and that inflatable slides did not exist when the regulations were written.

Continue reading “Jury Awards Family $20 Million Against Toys R Us For Slide Injury” →

Academia, Courts, Criminal law, Free Speech, International, Justice, Media, Military, Politics, Society

Kent State 43 Years Later

Kent_State_massacre

Respectfully submitted by Lawrence E. Rafferty (rafflaw)-Guest Blogger

Yesterday was the 43rd anniversary of the day when time stood still for me.  As a freshmen in college at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale,  Illinois, I was stunned to learn of the killing of 4 young people by the Ohio National Guard during protests on the campus of Kent State University.  The protestors were using their First Amendment rights to voice their opinion on the United States participation in the Vietnam War and the military’s recent incursion into Cambodia upon orders from then President Richard Nixon.   Those events not only scarred me, but they also opened my eyes to the power of the government and more importantly, the power of the people.  Continue reading “Kent State 43 Years Later” →