Public – Page 531 – Marquette University Law School Faculty Blog

Notice Anything Different About the Blog?

Post author:Michael M. O'Hear
Post published:August 19, 2012
Post category:Public

With the Marquette Law Faculty Blog about to celebrate its fourth anniversary, we thought it was time for a makeover. Do you notice any of the changes? The banner now includes three images from our wonderful new home, Eckstein Hall, in addition to the old image of the stained glass in Sensenbrenner Hall. All of the old links and pages are still here, but reorganized in new ways that will prove (we hope) more helpful to readers and that will better highlight dynamic aspects of the Blog. There are also a couple of new features in the navigation bar. “Scholarly Resources” will take you to the Marquette Law Scholarly Commons, a terrific new repository of law review articles and other resources that was launched earlier this month. (Read the announcement here.) “Legal Resources” will take you to a list of useful links to free on-line resources, including court websites and Wisconsin statutory and administrative law.

Thanks to Ed Fallone and Melissa Greipp, who spearheaded the redesign; to Dax Phillips, who managed the technical side of things; and to Patricia Cervenka and the Law Librarians for their suggestions for the Legal Resources page.

California Answers Some of the Graham/Miller Questions, Sort Of

Post author:Michael M. O'Hear
Post published:August 17, 2012
Post category:Criminal Law & Process Public U.S. Supreme Court

As I discussed in a recent post, the United States Supreme Court left many questions unanswered in its two recent decisions on life without parole for juveniles. In the first case, Graham v. Florida (2010), the Court banned LWOP for juveniles convicted of nonhomicide offenses. Then, in Miller v. Alabama (2012), the Court banned mandatory LWOP even for juveniles convicted of homicide. These were important Eighth Amendment decisions, but the lower courts have been left to implement them without much guidance.

Yesterday, the California Supreme Court began to address some of the unanswered questions in People v. Caballero. I think Caballero got things right, as far as it went, but the case left much open for future litigation.

Gu Kailai Trial and China’s Rule by Law

Post author:Anna High
Post published:August 16, 2012
Post category:Criminal Law & Process International Law & Diplomacy Public

On Thursday, August 9, 2012, in China’s Anhui province, the murder trial of Gu Kailai, wife of a high-profile former Communist Party official, for the murder of British businessman, Neil Heywood, ended after seven hours. The trial is regarded as the highest profile political trial in decades, Gu Kailai being the wife of disgraced former Communist Party official Bo Xilai.

Heywood, a family friend of Gu and Bo, was found dead in his Chongqing hotel room in November 2011, the morning after dining with Gu. The trial has garnered international attention, with many China law scholars asking what light the proceedings shed on China’s purported pursuit of a law-based society (法治国家).