June 6, 2020

Law News

OC Courts
ABA Journal
Stanford Legal Aggregate Blog
  • Police Use of Force, Training, and a Way Forward After the Death of George Floyd

    Horrifying images of George Floyd dying on a Minneapolis street while a police officer knelt on his neck have sparked peaceful protests and rioting throughout the country. The latest in a string of killings of unarmed black Americans, the incident once again raises questions about training and the use of force by police and the

  • The Legal Authority for States’ Stay-at-Home Orders

    (This op-ed was first published in The New England Journal of Medicine on June 3, 2020.) In March 2020, when many U.S. states and localities issued their first emergency orders to address Covid-19, there was widespread acceptance of the government’s legal authority to respond quickly and aggressively to this unprecedented crisis. Today, that acceptance is fraying.

  • Invoking “Terrorism” Against Police Protestors

    This commentary was cross-published at Just Security and the American Constitution Society’s blog on June 3, 2020. On Sunday, President Donald Trump tweeted, “The United States of America will be designating ANTIFA as a Terrorist Organization.”  Attorney General William Barr followed the tweet with a statement committing to use the dozens of regional FBI-led Joint Terrorism

  • PROMESA and Original Understandings of the Territories’ Constitutional Status

    This piece was published first in Balkinization. For the past six years, I have been toiling away on first a dissertation and now hopefully-soon-to-be-forthcoming book on the legal history of the first U.S. territories. (You can read some of my law review articles based on this research here and here). This work has meant I

  • Mobilize Pennsylvania National Guard to Secure the June Primary

    (This op-ed was first published in The Philadelphia Inquirer on May 27, 2020.) With the June primary approaching and ballots already in the mail, Pennsylvania now finds itself in the same position as most states when it comes to running an election in a pandemic: overwhelmed and unprepared. It is already past time to take drastic action.

Law Firm Newswire
  • Department of Defense to Address Sexual Assault in the Military

    Northville, MI (Law Firm Newswire) June 26, 2019 - Acting Defense Secretary Patrick M. Shanahan announced in a memo that the Department of Defense has created the Sexual Assault Accountability and Investigation Task Force to investigate the pervasive issue of sexual assault in the military and to improve the processes surrounding it. Shanahan said that the task force was established out of necessity after the “unacceptable” results of the 2018 Report on Sexual Assault and Harassment in military academies. The task force intends to review policies and processes surrounding sexual assault and make recommendations on how to better them as

  • Corrections Officer Who Fell While Going to Her Car to Retrieve an Item Gets Benefits

    Pennsauken, NJ (Law Firm Newswire) June 25, 2019 – The Appellate Division of the New Jersey Superior Court ruled that a fall on ice by a corrections officer while on the way to her car to retrieve a hygiene item occurred during the performance of her regular or assigned duties, entitling the officer to an accidental disability pension. Kristy Bowser, a corrections officer, learned she would be working a second shift at the Mercer County Correctional Center (MCCC). During the second shift, she went to her car to retrieve a feminine hygiene product. While walking to her car in the

  • Attorney Eric Traut on Costco Shooting Controversy and Obtaining Video Footage from Inside Large Retail Chains

    Corona, CA (Law Firm Newswire) June 24, 2019 - After the contested death of a nonverbal individual left a community reeling, personal injury and wrongful death attorney Eric Traut of Traut Firm has insight into the steps that the family must take in order to get the available evidence from the Costco retail security cameras before it is too late. In April, Traut was able to obtain previously shielded retail footage by court order from a home improvement store following the life-altering injury of an employee resulting in a unanimous verdict on behalf of the person who was injured. The

  • Mortgage Lender Executive Admits Role in Nearly 9 Million Dollar Embezzlement Scheme

    New York, NY(Law Firm Newswire) June 24, 2019 – A top executive at a Long Island-based mortgage lender pleaded guilty to several charges in connection with an $8.9 million embezzlement scheme. Edward E. Bohm, former president of sales at Vanguard Funding, was charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud. The 41-year-old was also an undisclosed owner of the company. Bohm faces a prison sentence of up to 30 years along with restitution and criminal forfeiture. However, he is expected to receive a shorter sentence like his co-conspirators who pleaded guilty to the same charges. “Fraud charges of

  • Student in School Bus Hospitalized After Crash With Tractor-Trailer

    Tampa, FL (Law Firm Newswire) June 24, 2019 - In September 2018, an 8-year-old student was injured in a school bus crash with an overturned semi-truck. The accident occurred on State Road 60 in Plant City, Florida at the intersection of Horton Road. The crash was caused by the Hillsborough County School District bus driver pulling in front of the truck causing the tractor-trailer to overturn. The bus driver then failed to stop in time, crashing into the semi-truck. The student, who attends Knights Elementary School, was transported to the hospital for treatment. The boy was the only student on