A commenter asked why Fred Phelps — founder of the Phelpsian funeral picketing cult — was disbarred. The answer is in State v. Phelps, 598 P.2d 180 (Kan. 1979) and In re Phelps, 459 P.2d 172 (Kan. 1969). The facts are long and not worth going into in detail (you can read them for yourselves […]
Archive | April, 2010
“Beg the Question”
Prof. Mark Liberman (Language Log) has a long post on this. It starts by explaining how the phrase “beg the question” came to mean “assume the conclusion” (I hadn’t known that story), discusses how it often came to be used to mean “raise the question,” and finishes with wise advice: Never use the phrase yourself […]
SCOTUSReport.com
The Federalist Society has launched SCOTUSReport.com, a new website focused on President Obama’s forthcoming Supreme Court nomination.
Flag Desecration
In Fall 2007, I blogged about a flag desecration prosecution involving the Phelpsians: [Shirley Phelps-Roper] appeared in Sarpy County Court to answer charges that she mutilated a flag and put her child in danger while protesting at the funeral of a Bellevue soldier…. According to Bellevue police, Phelps-Roper had her 10-year-old son stomp on an […]
Bloggers can’t agree on anything about fiscal commission, or political impact of Wall Street bill
This week’s National Journal poll of political bloggers asked about the impact of the Wall Street reform issue on the midterm elections. Ninety-four percent of the Left bloggers thought that it would help Democrats a lot or a little. The Left was evenly divided between expecting the issue to hurt Republicans a little, or to have […]
Blatant Unconstitutionality Started Early
1789: The states ratify the U.S. Constitution, which says, in relevant part, that “No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty five Years.” 1797: William C.C. Claiborne is seated as a Representative from Tennessee, at age 22. I’d love to know more about whether any constitutional objections […]
Upcoming Talks
Just a quick post to note some upcoming talks. Tomorrow I’ll be speaking at the Ohio State Bar Assocation’s 25th Annual Ohio Environment, Energy and Resources Law Seminar in Newark, Ohio. I’m on a panel at 11:15 am with Ohio Solicitor General Benjamin Mizer to discuss environmental law in the Supreme Court. The full program […]
Prof. John Eastman for California Attorney General
I just contributed to Prof. John Eastman’s campaign for California Attorney General, and I urge others to do the same. John is extremely smart and accomplished — he has a Ph.D. in government, he clerked for Justice Clarence Thomas, he has written or cowritten over 20 law review articles, and he’s a law professor and […]
Death Panels, of a Different Sort
I just came across some cases that I think our readers might find interesting (though tragic). Here’s the common fact pattern (with some minor variations among the cases): A small child is suffering from extreme medical problems, and doctors believe there is no hope for improvement. The parents have lost their parental rights, because they […]
Feds May Sue Arizona Over Immigration
Today’s Washington Post reports that the Justice Department is considering whether to challenge Arizona’s new immigration law. A key legal ground being considered, officials said, is the doctrine of “preemption” — arguing that the state’s law illegally intrudes on immigration enforcement, which is a federal responsibility. The White House probably will make the final call, […]
Kobach on Arizona’s Immigration Law
UMKC law professor Kris Kobach, who helped author Arizona’s controversial immigration law, defends the law in today’s NYT. According to Professor Kobach, the law “prohibits the harboring of illegal aliens and makes it a state crime for an alien to commit certain federal immigration crimes. It also requires police officers who, in the course of […]
The Internet, The Fourth Amendment, and Technology Neutrality: A Response to Horowitz
Defense attorney and blogger Rick Horowitz has posted an extended two-part response to my new law review article, Applying the Fourth Amendment to the Internet: A General Approach, 62 Stan. L. Rev. 1005 (2010). His posts are here: 1. Orin Kerr’s Fourth Amendment & The Internet: Foundations 2. What’s Wrong With Orin Kerr’s Technology Neutrality […]
Major Gaffe in Britain
In the runup to the elections in Britain, Labor Prime Minister Gordon Brown has just made what is being described as “major gaffe” by a host of observers. He called a woman (a Labor supporter) who raised immigration concerns with him directly a “bigoted woman.” The remark was caught on a microphone that Brown forgot […]
New Jersey Supreme Court Will Decide Whether Signature Gathering for Menendez Recall May Proceed
I blogged about the intermediate appellate decision in the case, so I thought I’d note the new development. The AP reports that “Arguments are scheduled for May 25.” Thanks to How Appealing for the pointer.
The Russian Influence on American Law
From today’s oral arguments in Doe v. Reed: JUSTICE GINSBURG: You mean if—that was over. It passed the screen of the Secretary of State. It’s disclosed to the public. If someone then said, You’ve got a lot of dead souls on these lists, the State would do nothing about it? … [Much later:] [ATTORNEY] GENERAL […]