Criminal Law

Stopping the Presses: National Security Meets Freedom of Speech

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Vol. 106 No. 1 (2022) | Necessarily Engaged

There are at least two points of consensus among those who study national security secrecy: First, the government must keep some secrets in order to protect national security. Second, a […]

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Cartoon of an autopsy

Autopsy Reports and the Confrontation Clause: A Presumption of Admissibility

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Vol. 99 No. 3 (2015) | Fixing Discovery

In 2004, the Supreme Court, inĀ Crawford v. Washington,Ā restored the ā€œoriginal meaningā€ of the Sixth Amendment’s Confrontation Clause. The framers of that clause — which guarantees a criminal defendant the right […]

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Point Counterpoint

Jurors Asking Questions

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Vol. 100 No. 1 (2016) | 100 Years of Judicature

In some courtrooms, the practice of allowing jurors to pose questions to witnesses is gaining traction. Questioning witnesses allows jurors to clarify information and better understand the evidence and arguments […]

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Legal Standards By The Numbers

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Vol. 100 No. 1 (2016) | 100 Years of Judicature

Just after midnight on a warm summer night, a Caucasian woman was walking alone on the streets of Washington, D.C. All of a sudden, three young men she had never […]

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Justice Robert Jackson at the Nuremberg Trials

Justice Jackson’s Persistent Post-Nuremberg Legacy

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Vol. 105 No. 3 (2021) | Leaving Afghanistan

Justice Jackson’s post-Nuremberg legacy — his ā€œdispassionate approachā€ to criminal procedure — continues to shape modern Fourth Amendment jurisprudence.

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Benjamin Ferencz at the Einsatzgruppen Trial

Last living Nuremberg Trial prosecutor recalls his work on the Einsatzgruppen Trial

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Vol. 105 No. 3 (2021) | Leaving Afghanistan

During the Nuremberg Trials, Ferencz served as a principal trial lawyer for the U.S., working under chief prosecutors Justice Robert Jackson and Telford Taylor.

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Bail Reform in Texas

Monitoring the Misdemeanor Bail Reform Consent Decree in Harris County, Texas

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Vol. 105 No. 2 (2021) | Judicial Independence

Maranda ODonnell was driving to her mother’s house to pick up her four-year-old daughter when she was stopped by police and arrested for driving with a suspended license. As was […]

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Privacy Protection

The Burden of Privacy In Discovery

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Vol. 105 No. 2 (2021) | Judicial Independence

With the proliferation of social media platforms and other new technologies has come a renewed legal focus on privacy. Most of that focus has centered on data collection, storage, sharing, […]

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Who appointed me God? Reflections of a Judge on Criminal Sentencing

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Vol. 100 No. 3 (2016) | Who appointed me god?

In my 14 years as a federal district judge, I estimate that I have sentenced well over 2,000 individuals.1 Sentencing is the most multifaceted, emotional, and challenging task a judge […]

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The New Rap Sheet: Prosecuting Crimes, Chilling Free Speech

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Vol. 104 No. 2 (2020) | Coping with COVID

With the Fourth Amendment gone, eyes are on the First // That’s why I’m spittin cyanide each and every verse These lyrics from American rap artist Paris’ 2003 album, Sonic […]

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