Thursday, November 19, 2009

Postconviction Practices

Thanks to Doug, as alway, here is the ABA symposium on postconviction practices:

Prof. Berman also posts here on Second Amendment cases, Heller and McDonald, suggesting that the cause of criminal justice reform is related, discussing the politics as well.

Remarkably there is in the air a question whether SCOTUS might overrule a one hundred year old decision in the Slaughterhouse cases regarding the Privileges or Immunities clause of the Second Amendment! Doug suggests liberals should tend towards favoring the overruling. You have to go read the McDonald brief.

That would place liberals in bed with the NRA. Gives new meaning to the phrase intercourse between nations, or in this case national political parties. You gotta love how those clever libertarians love to stir the pot. Karl Rove, where are you now?

Yes, the states should and can be incubators for reform (in all vectors). But which one has the balls to move sensibly toward what we might call, fiscal responsibility, anti- tough (stupid tough) on crime? Restore judicial discretion, remove mandatory minimums, for starters.


Symposium link

Topics include

collateral consequences
clemency
claims of innocence
procedural obstacles

and a primer by Prof Taslitz at Howard University in DC.

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