Constitutional Law

Verdict: Padilla is Guilty, Faces Life in Prison

Updated: In a verdict today in a controversial American anti-terrorism trial, Jose Padilla and two co-defendants have been found guilty on all charges. Following a three-month trial and not quite two days of deliberation, a seven-man, five-woman federal court jury in Miami found the three guilty today, reports CNN. The…

Aug 16, 2007 5:10 PM CDT

Paris Hilton & Mel Gibson Protection Act?

A bill being considered in the California legislature attempts to regulate checkbook journalism and private investigators who pay for confidential information. The legislation, AB 920, would make it a misdemeanor for law enforcement personnel and court employees to profit by releasing confidential information or permitting photographs of a person in…

Aug 16, 2007 4:08 PM CDT

State Secrets Weighed in Wiretap Case

Three judges appeared skeptical of government arguments yesterday in an appeal of two consolidated cases challenging terrorism surveillance tactics. All three indicated they were inclined to allow the case to proceed, at least on a limited basis, the New York Times reports. However, the Recorder says the judges were more…

Aug 16, 2007 11:06 AM CDT

Tale of 2 Cities: Tampa Porn Dorm Legal, But Miami’s Isn’t

A so-called porn dorm in Tampa, in which women live and participate in sexual activities that are videotaped and publicized over the Internet, is apparently legal. But that doesn’t mean that a comparable business—featuring buffed-up young men who are paid $1,200 plus room and board to live in a house…

Aug 15, 2007 4:34 PM CDT

Schools Fret Over Race-Based Assignments

Schools throughout the country are having to parse a June Supreme Court decision to decide if they will continue to assign students to schools based on race. While the high court struck down race-based assignments in Seattle in Louisville, Ky., National Public Radio reports that other districts are counting on…

Aug 15, 2007 4:29 PM CDT

Secret-Case Strategy: Guess US Argument

In 27 years of practice, Jon Eisenberg has never had a more difficult case than Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation v. George W. Bush. One reason why is the extraordinary secrecy imposed on the litigation process because of terrorism-related national security concerns. When it came time to file one brief in his…

Aug 15, 2007 3:12 PM CDT

If Horses Win, Lions Lose: All-Beef Diet?

A possible federal ban on slaughtering horses for their meat isn’t supported by at least one group of animal-lovers: lion-keepers and other fans of big cats. It turns out that zoos, which often feed horse meat to their carnivorous animals, are the biggest consumer of domestic horse meat. Nonetheless, some…

Aug 14, 2007 11:05 PM CDT

Spy Challenge Before 9th Circuit

A federal appeals court will hear arguments tomorrow on whether to dismiss two lawsuits challenging a National Security Administration surveillance program based on the government’s assertion of a state secrets privilege. Whatever the ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the U.S. Supreme Court is likely to have…

Aug 14, 2007 2:31 PM CDT

Circuit City-Initiated Search OK’d

A Pennsylvania appeals court has upheld a police search for computer files of child pornography done after employees at a Circuit City store spotted suspicious downloads. The defendant had no expectation of privacy in video files on the computer, the court ruled in its Aug. 9 opinion. The ruling reversed…

Aug 14, 2007 10:58 AM CDT

Spitzer Probe Spotlights NY Ethics Group

The ongoing investigation of New York Governor Eliot Spitzer’s office concerning a reported effort by his aides to discredit the Senate majority leader has put an unaccustomed spotlight on what until now was a low-profile government group–the State Ethics Commission. On the verge of a major reorganization, the commission is…

Aug 13, 2007 8:53 PM CDT

Secrecy Shrouds Wiretap Case

A pending appeal in a wiretaps case is so secret that the lawyer for the plaintiffs wasn’t permitted to see the government’s full brief and had to write his own arguments under the watchful eye of a Justice Department security officer. Lawyer Jon B. Eisenberg says the government inadvertently disclosed…

Aug 13, 2007 2:52 PM CDT

Breyer: Nat’l Legal Systems Are Finding Common Ground

Updated: The laws of the United States and other nations are increasingly becoming pieces of a larger fabric as they seek to address issues of common interest, said U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen G. Breyer this afternoon in a speech at the 2007 ABA Annual Meeting in San Francisco. “Law…

Aug 12, 2007 3:20 AM CDT

Nat’l Security Panel: Constitution is Key

Paying attention to the U.S. Constitution and involving Congress in setting American policy on anti-terrorism measures isn’t just the right thing to do, legally. It’s also the best way to ensure an effective national security program, according to a panel discussion today at the ABA Annual Meeting. From conducting warrantless…

Aug 10, 2007 8:52 PM CDT

Trying Times for Civil Liberties Lawyer

Life as a civil liberties lawyer isn’t easy for Christopher Dunn, who focuses on First Amendment issues as associate legal director for the New York Civil Liberties Union. He says the government has been trampling free speech and assembly rights through policies such as secret surveillance and mass detentions of…

Aug 10, 2007 3:56 PM CDT

Report May Help Torture Appeal

Previously classified information suggests that U.S. intelligence officials sent Maher Arar to Syria, where he was tortured and jailed, even though neither the FBI nor Canadian officials were convinced the Syrian-born Canadian was a significant threat. The Canadian report says the CIA was involved in the decision to deport Arar.…

Aug 10, 2007 1:25 PM CDT