A military commission has convicted Salim Hamdan of giving Material Support for Terrorism. It acquitted him of the primary charge he faced: Conspiracy to Commit Terrorist Acts. Looking at these proceedings is like reading the autopsy report on the American Legal System.
Even if this defendant had been acquitted of all the charges, he [...]House Resolution 5843 would end the federal prohibition of possession of up to 100 grams of marijuana. and for the non-profit sale of up to an ounce. HR 5843 would provide a $100 fine for public use of marijuana. Sadly, HR 5843 would not take marijuana off of Schedule One List of drugs under the [...]
It’s perfectly legal for the President of the United States to order the military to arrest anybody, including a US citizen, anywhere in the world, including US soil, and put that person in military custody forever. At least, that’s the opinion of the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. The justices who made up the majority [...]
Savannah Redding, a 13 year-old honor student, was strip-searched at school because a girl who already was in trouble said Savannah might be carrying ibuprofen. The 9th Circuit says Savannah has the right to sue the child molester school administrator who did it. The case raises issues in two different areas: the 4th Amendment’s protection [...]
Wisconsin amended it’s state Constitution to bar recognition of same-sex marriages. California has legalized these marriages.
Wisconsin’s has State Statute 765.04[1]. This old law is a criminal statute that prohibits Wisconsin citizens from getting married in another state if it would be illegal in Wisconsin. The punishment includes a $10,000 fine and up to [...]The President signed the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. This is more dreadful news for those of us who respect the rule of law. This bill gives the government even more power to collect highly personal data without a warrant or probable cause. It gives immunity the big telecommunications companies that illegally conspired with the Bush [...]
A Chinese Muslim named Huzaifa Parhat has been in American custody for more than six years. He has never been charged with a crime. The DC Court invalidated a finding that Mr. Parhat was an “Enemy Combatant.” This man has been in solitary confinement for years, and now it turns out that there is no [...]
The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is a draconian bill that will make all of us significantly less safe – from the prying eyes of our own government. Not only does this bill allow the government to record all international phone calls and data messages that cross the US border, it gives the big telecommunications companies [...]
Today Justice Scalia wrote a scholarly and persuasive majority opinion in one of the most widely-anticipated decisions of the current term. (This stands in stark contrast to his bizarre, fascist dissent in the recent Guantanamo case.) I agree with both the reasoning and the result. Here’s a link to the decision and the dissent . [...]
In yet another craven act of political cowardace, the Democratic leadership in the House of Representatives has given the Bush Administration another huge victory over Traditional American Liberty.
President Bush claims that telecommunications companies that illegally conspired to conduct warrantless wiretaps and data searches should be immune from prosecution – because he told them [...]