The recent Supreme Court term has ended with a flurry of decisions, some of which can only be characterized, charitably, as "troubling." Others reaffirmed long-standing constitutional principles or–as in the internet indecency case– applied those…
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Category Archives: Criminal Justice
It Could Have Happened Here
The story from Cincinnati is a familiar one: a white police officer shoots a black teenager, later found to have been unarmed, and the African-American community erupts. A curfew is imposed, and the Mayor declares that the incident will be a catalyst for ?real? review and subsequent improvement of community-police relations.
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Seat Belts & Drug Stops
Within the past week, courts have handed down two opinions which seem contradictory: the Indiana Supreme Court upheld the law allowing police to stop and ticket drivers for failing to buckle up, while the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against drug interdiction checkpoints. I think both decisions were legally correct.
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