For me, these cases brought to mind Chief Justice Roberts' famous mockery of the contribution of scholars to actual law: “Pick up a copy of any law review that you see, and the first article is likely to be, you know, the influence of ...

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Reply-to: federalbureauinvestigation_fbi@washington.usa.com
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OFFICIAL LETTER FROM FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION FBI
ROBERT MUELLER III EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FBI FEDERAL BUREAU OF
INVESTIGATION FBI.WASHINGTON DC.
FBI SEEKING TO WIRETAP INTERNET
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ATTENTION: BENEFICIARY
...

Much as I thought Mark O'Mara's handling of the bail hearing, providing George Zimmerman an opportunity to apologize publicly for killing Trayvon Martin, was a brilliant move, I'm not nearly as clear on his latest venture.

Now, defense attorneys for George Zimmerman, the Neighborhood Watch volunteer charged in the teen's death, have entered the virtual conversation. In an unusual move, Mark O'Mara has started a blog and accompanying Twitter and Facebook accounts ...

Admittedly, I had no idea what lawyers did on a regular basis. I had only met small town lawyers in my neighborhood. Most of them seemed pretty interesting. My view of lawyers was shaped by John Grisham novels, Law ...

At Concurring Opinions, visiting Penn State lawprof Erica Goldberg writes about the unfortunate and intellectually bankrupt intersection between free speech and content on campus.

Almost everyone agrees that university campuses should be bastions of free speech. Fervent disagreement, however, exists just below the surface of that statement. Depending on how values are prioritized, individuals may differ on when speech becomes harassment, when speech becomes punishable conduct, and when speech is too controversial, extreme, or offensive to be permitted in the ...

The first time Toronto police Det. Scott Aikman deceived the court, a judge denounced his “misleading” testimony and threw out a cocaine charge against a man.

The second time, Det. Aikman’s story explaining why he and his partner searched a minivan led to the acquittal of four suspects accused of masterminding an international credit-card data-theft ...

“If a generation is going ...

My old pal Niki Black took time off from singing the praises of clouds to post at Sui Generis about a New York State Bar Association ethics opinion on lawyers being mean to other lawyers. For you sad people who aren't New Yorkers, bear in mind that the NYSBA is a volunteer organization with no power whatsoever over anyone. Unlike other jurisdictions, lawyer licensure and discipline is handled ...

A call came in a few days ago from a young lawyer who was feeling kinda lost. His question was simple: How do you do it?  The background to the question was key. He was trying to do his job, to play by the rules, to represent his clients competently or better, and get them something reasonably close to a fair shake. The problem was the judge wasn't playing along.

He had ...

The case is People v. Moreno (Mich. Apr. 23, 2012) (5 to 2). A 2004 Michigan Court of Appeals decision had held the contrary, but the Michigan Supreme Court overruled that precedent.

Under the old common law rule, ...

Jessica Funk-Haslam was found in the dugout of a baseball field at Rosemont Park on March 5. Investigators say the girl had argued with her mother and left home the night before. She boarded a nearby light-rail train, transferred to a bus and got off near the park. ...

We’ve become accustomed to a ...

You probably wonder what exactly are the criteria for having a great future in forensics. Years of college and post graduate studies? Years of experience in the trenches?  Brilliant articles published in respected scientific journals? 

How about the ability to draw a picture on the back of a match book? Not even that much.

Via Keith Lee, Leah Bartos reveals the  deal at ProPublica:

...

The word "sorry," in all its varied permutations, raises all sorts of problems when there's  war going on. If the words are said, it blunts the anger. It makes the speaker appear kinder, and forces the hearer to temper anger with grace or look lose the moral high ground.

Of course, it's also an admission, if not handled gingerly.

Mark O'Mara handled it with skill.He put Zimmerman on the stand in a bail hearing ...

Plenty of cop "beat downs" can be found online, but how often does the officer who stops others from handing ...

I’ll repeat that shall I … if only to try and convince myself that I’m not dreaming … calling someone the C word is a terrible crime that will see you in court, prosecuted, found guilty and facing a custodial sentence. That’s official because the blogger and tweeter,

Airport security in America is broken. I should know. For 3½ years—from my confirmation in July 2005 to President Barack Obama's inauguration in January 2009—I served as the head of the Transportation Security Administration.

You know the TSA. We're the ones who ...

For a while, the big question was whether it was appropriate for someone to write a comment when they were too frightened to put their name to it. Ah, the good old days. Then it was a question of the government gaining access to whatever it is you said, whether for its own account or on behalf of the person whose tush was hurting a bit. Good times.

Quietly, however, we are ...

Americans saw the anguish of the boy’s father and the tears of his mother. America saw a child who was its own. America saw ...

On March 15, ...

The proper sentence has long been one of the great mysteries of the system. There is the question of why someone will be sentenced to, say, 17 years rather than a nice round 15 (or 20, for that matter). Then there is the question of why a sentence of imprisonment is imposed at all, when the option of probation is available.

Kings County Supreme Court Justice Gus Reichbach had that ...

The Unwashed Advocate and parent of a pathetic sharp cheddar, Eric Mayer, reveals his shame and humiliation at watching his "spawn" in the school cafeteria in a love story between cheese and rat.

I’d like to say that the story warmed my heart and made me a better person, but I can’t. In fact, I barely noticed the gist of the story. Why? I was preoccupied with the fact that my child–my offspring–my pride and joy–watched ...

Excellent post, Michael.

Posted by: Orin Kerr | Apr 5, 2012 12:19:01 AM

At PrawfsBlawg, where I think Dan Markel has banned me for life for violating his comment policy of only praising scholars, a post by Michael J.Z. Mannheimer, a lawprof at Northern Kentucky University ("Ubi homines sunt homines, et oves timidus") diminishing the implications of Florence v. Board of Chosen ...

IN 2009 President Obama signed a federal bias crimes law named for the victims of two ...