Author Archive | Jonathan H. Adler

The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports: Kevin Egler, who was ticketed after posting an “Impeach Bush” sign in a garden near a Kent intersection last month, will not face a charge of unlawfully advertising in a public place. City Law Director James Silver asked a municipal judge on Thursday to dismiss the case, which some viewed […]

Wind power is an important source of renewable energy, but in some cases it poses unacceptable risks to local communities (or wilderness) and must be stopped. Jason Jones reports here.

Aubrey Shante Amos pled guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. At sentencing, the prosecutor sought an enhanced sentence for his three prior convictions of predicate offenses under he Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA). Two of Amos’ prior convictions clearly qualified as either a “violent felony” or serious drug offense, but the […]

Private attorneys Mark Hermann and Jim Beck have an extensive post at the Drug and Device Law blog discussing some of the practical implications of the Abigail Alliance litigation. Among other things, their post helps explain why drug manufacturers did not support the Alliance’s claims. Here’s a taste of their comments: The recognition of a […]

The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports on an interesting First Amendment case: A soft-spoken teacher posted the words “Impeach Bush” in a public garden, and Kent police cast him as an outlaw. . . . Police ticketed Egler for unlawfully advertising in a public place because he put up a free-standing sign near the intersection of […]

Over on NRO’s Bench Memos, my co-blogger Matthew Franck, was quite dismissive of the idea that an originalist appraoch to constitutional interpretation was compatible with certain legal outcomes important to contemporary liberals and progressives, such as a constitutional right to abortion. Specifically, he wrote: Perhaps I am being cynical, but this article (h/t Joe Knippenberg […]

USA Today has an extensive article on the intersection of science and public policy. While the article opens by framing the issue as one of scientists versus politicians (and the Bush Administration in particular), it also contains some worthwhile comments on the danger of politicizing science, as well as in pretending that science can resolve […]

Lyle Denniston discusses the case at SCOTUSBlog here, and the AP covers the decision here. There’s also more commentary at Hit & Run, OpenMarket, and the Drug Law Blog. UPDATE: Briefs, updates and other materials related to the case are available on the Washington Legal Foundation website here.

Judge Judith Rogers’ dissent in Abigail Alliance is quite strong. It also may be the only time she and Chief Judge Douglas Ginsburg find themselves allied against the rest of their court. Although I somewhat skeptical of the dissent’s claims, I think it is worth quoting from the opening of her 29-page opinion at length. […]

My colleague Jessie Hill, who has a forthcoming article on whether there is a constitutional right to make medical treatment decisions for oneself, offers the following thoughts about the Abigail Alliance decision. It would probably be a gross understatement to say that most legal scholars will not be shocked by today’s en banc decision in […]

Here are some of my initial thoughts and reactions to the majority opinion in today’s decision in Abigail Alliance v. Eschenbach. Next I’ll post some thoughts and reactions on the dissent. Abigail Alliance argues that terminally ill patients are typically willing to assume the risks of taking drugs that have not gone all the way […]

The Washington Post reports: The House ethics committee has suspended its investigation into Rep. William J. Jefferson, acceding to requests from federal prosecutors who believe the congressional inquiry could interfere with the criminal case against the Louisiana Democrat, who was indicted this summer on 16 corruption charges. The six-member subcommittee handling the inquiry decided to […]

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has just released its long-awaited en banc decision in Abigail Alliance v. Eschenbach. As anticipated, the Court held 8-2, against the Abigail Alliance for Better Access to Developmental Drugs. The majority opinion, written by Judge Griffith, begins: This case presents the question whether the Constitution provides […]

John Fund has an interesting article on Congressional shenanigans and heavy-handed parliamentary rule in the House of Representatives. In some respects, he notes, this is nothing new, and it’s not getting any better: The breakdown has been a long time coming. In the 1980s, after almost 40 years of control, House Democrats had become arrogant […]

As Orin noted below, one of the most significant changes to FISA is that ISPs and Telcos are now required to cooperate with the program. Yet according to today’s WSJ (subscription only), the FISA reforms do not resolve questions about ISP and Telco liability for cooperation with the program in the past. he measure lacks […]