Feb
9
The Trouble with Defining Torture
Posted by: David Behm | February 9, 2012 | 10 Comments
The definition of torture, as codified in Title 18 of the United States Code Section 2340, does little to prevent what we have come to see in the news. Torture or harsh interrogation of detainees by Americans has made its way to the front pages of our papers over the past decade. From the prisoner [...]
Nov
29
Federal Jurisdiction Over Claims of Corporate Liability Under International Law
Posted by: Ryan Scoville | November 29, 2011 | 1 Comment
[Editor's Note: This month, faculty members have been posting on upcoming judicial decisions of particular interest. This is the third post in the series.] The Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”) creates federal jurisdiction over “any civil action by an alien for a tort only, committed in violation of the law of nations or a treaty of the United [...]
Oct
10
The Extrajudicial Killing of Anwar al-Awlaki
Posted by: Christopher Ehrfurth | October 10, 2011 | 1 Comment
On Friday, September 30, 2011, Anwar al-Awlaki (Aulaqi), a U.S. citizen and well-known al-Qaeda figure, was targeted and killed during a U.S. drone strike in Yemen. Samir Khan, also a U.S. citizen, was killed in the same attack. Khan was the editor of Inspire, an English-Language al-Qaeda magazine that, among other things, publishes how-to articles [...]
Jun
27
Department of Justice Files Fair Housing Act Suit Against City of New Berlin
Posted by: Garrett Soberalski | June 27, 2011 | 2 Comments
On Thursday, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a complaint against the City of New Berlin. The complaint arises out of a series of events that led to the City’s denial of a “workforce” housing development proposal made by MSP Real Estate, Inc. (MSP). The DOJ alleges that the City of New Berlin ultimately denied the [...]
May
27
Do Criminals Count?
Posted by: Michael M. O'Hear | May 27, 2011 | Leave a Comment
Do criminals count? Are they really “one of us”? That is the big question that hangs over all of the Supreme Court’s Cruel and Unusual Punishments Clause cases, including the Court’s decision earlier this week in Brown v. Plata, which affirmed a lower-court order requiring California to reduce its prison population. Do we regard criminals as [...]
May
17
Ratner: Even Osama Should Have Had Criminal Rights
Posted by: Alan J. Borsuk | May 17, 2011 | Leave a Comment
Michael Ratner would have treated the pursuit of Osama bin Laden as a law enforcement matter, not as a matter of war. He would rather have seen bin Laden arrested, brought to trial, and given the rights of a criminal defendant than shot on the spot by Navy SEALS. This almost certainly doesn’t put Ratner [...]
Apr
9
Israel Reflections–Use of Force & Civilian Targets
Posted by: Andrea K. Schneider | April 9, 2011 | Leave a Comment
In light of the events in Israel earlier this week – Hamas launched a missile attack on an Israeli schoolbus and the Israelis responded with missile attacks into Gaza – one of the speakers from our trip to Israel is particularly on point today. How do you determine an “appropriate” response to the Hamas attack? Here are [...]
Apr
5
Israel Reflections–Restorative Justice
Posted by: Andrea K. Schneider | April 5, 2011 | Leave a Comment
In honor of the RJ conference that Marquette is hosting today (link here for the agenda on clergy abuse and healing), I thought I would post several student reflections on our meeting with the restorative justice group Parent’s Circle when we were in Jerusalem. The Parent’s Circle is a group of bereaved family members on [...]
Apr
1
Israel Reflections & Lessons: The Cycle of Violence & Fear
Posted by: Andrea K. Schneider | April 1, 2011 | Leave a Comment
In the next few days, I will post several blogs compiled of postings from my students who were asked this week to reflect on what they learned from the trip to Israel (earlier posts on our trip can be found on the blog starting here). I’ll start tonight with third-year student Katie Bricco’s overall take on the [...]
Dec
10
Human Rights Day 2010
Posted by: Jessica E. Slavin | December 10, 2010 | Leave a Comment
Today is Human Rights Day, a United Nations celebration that marks the date, December 10, 1948, when the General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The current High Commissioner for Human Rights in the United Nations, Navi Pillay, gave a speech at a special event in Geneva to mark the day. One of [...]
Dec
3
Most Important United States Supreme Court Case in Refugee Law: I.N.S. v. Elias-Zacarias
Posted by: Jessica E. Slavin | December 3, 2010 | 2 Comments
[Editor's note: This is a sixth installment in the "what is the most important Supreme Court case in your subject area" series.] One of my subject areas is refugee law. There are only a handful of Supreme Court decisions in the area, but instead of making the selection easier, the paucity of case law only [...]
Oct
13
Best of the Blogs Part II: Drugs, Immigration, and the Hotel “Death Ray”
Posted by: Jessica E. Slavin | October 13, 2010 | 1 Comment
If that title doesn’t increase readership of my posts, I don’t know what will. My contribution this week to our “best of the blogs” feature (which I have taken license to interpret as “best of the blogs and other news read online…”) is even more random than usual. First, the drug-related story that caught my [...]
Blog Editors
- Alan Borsuk
- Bruce E. Boyden
- Edward A. Fallone
- Melissa L. Greipp
- Scott C. Idleman
- Lisa Mazzie
- Michael M. O'Hear
- Ryan Scoville
