Sep

30

Tom Goldstein visits W&M ACS

September 30, 2008 | Leave a Comment

“That was the most enjoyable hour I have spent in all of law school.”
Compliments like this have been pouring in for Tom Goldstein’s visit with W&M ACS this past Friday. His talk, titled “How a Supreme Court Practice Works”, gave us insight on Goldstein’s meteoric rise from law school “reject” to one of the nation’s [...]

Sep

29

Solicitors General: Above the Fray?

September 29, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Last week former Solicitor Generals Paul Clement and Walter Dellinger kicked off the annual Supreme Court Preview with a discussion, co-sponsored by ACS, about whether and how the Solicitor General can stay above the political fray.

Paul Clement began by explaining what the Solicitor General does. In addition to playing a crucial role in selecting [...]

Sep

26

Is the Federal Bailout Plan Enough

September 26, 2008 | Leave a Comment

This past week has not been kind to Wall Street.
Just shortly after the government takeover of mortgage buyer giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Wall Street entered into a major downward spiral. The investment bank Lehman Bros. declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy, American International Group faced a downgrade, Merrill Lynch was bought by Bank of America, [...]

Sep

26

Plea Bargains and the Role of Judges (ACS Conference Recap)

September 26, 2008 | Leave a Comment

A guest post by Tom, a 3L ACS member:
I had the good fortune to attend the ACS 2008 Convention this summer and observe, among other things, a panel discussion on plea bargaining. (Yes, this posting is incredibly late.) Those who wish to view the discussion can find a video online. The panel [...]

Sep

23

Pastors for Politicians?

September 23, 2008 | Leave a Comment

The Alliance Defense Fund is calling for Christian pastors to begin endorsing political candidates on September 28, 2008—which has been illegal since 1954. The issue stems from the First Amendment’s Free Speech Clause potentially trumping the IRS tax code 26 U.S.C § 501(c)(3), which exempts religious organizations from income tax so long as those [...]

Sep

22

Restoration of Voting Rights for Felons

September 22, 2008 | Leave a Comment

As the 2008 presidential election rapidly approaches many Americans are focused on deciding which candidate to vote for. The right to vote is one that many of us take for granted, but there are about 5.3 million Americans who are disenfranchised due to felony convictions. There is a high degree of disenfranchisement on the national [...]

Sep

17

Lawless Judges Protecting Lawless Police Officers

September 17, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Tasers were marketed to the public as an alternative to deadly force, but it seems every week there is another case where the police use them for passive non-compliance.
Excessive force claims under section 1983 are governed by an objective reasonableness standard. Factors to consider include “(1) the need for the application of force, [...]

Sep

9

Secrets, Secrets Are No Fun: Hacking and the First Amendment

September 9, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Remember the movie Hackers?  In one of Angelina Jolie’s earliest film roles, she portrays an underground computer hacker, a.k.a. “Acid Burn,” with a (micro)chip on her shoulder and a penchant for creating chaos.  The year is 1995, and the internet is just coming of age.  She and her grungy troupe of Jolt-drinking, Cheeto-scarfing computer hackers [...]