Recent Articles

Ice is Here--and Chills the Spirit

January 15, 2009 02:26

Oregon v. Ice was decided today. (Here at Cornell). 5-4 with a wacky split to say that juries do not need to find facts necessary to impose consecutive sentences. Roberts, Scalia, Souter, and Thomas were the four.I haven't read the opinions. The result is certainly disappointing, especially...

Time Stamps Bloat Court PDF Files

December 12, 2008 05:54

The recent practice of the Clerk to include time stamps with the PDF files bothers me. The graphic bloats the files from 75-150 KB to 500 KB. Half a megabyte for information that interests me not at all.The graphic slows down loading considerably; and it's just plain ugly.What do you think? Does...

Quote of the Day: On Mediocrity & the Supreme Court

November 11, 2008 16:15

There are a lot of mediocre people in this country, and mediocrity should be represented on the Supreme Court. -Senator Roman Hruska (R-Nebraska), in defense of Nixon's nomination of G. Harold CarswellFrom Indiana Political Heroes by Geoff Paddock

Happy Halloween

November 01, 2008 00:19

From Zombie Cat

Oregon v. Ice (More): SCOTUSBlog's Take

October 22, 2008 14:19

After the oral argument in Oregon v. Ice, the case about whether Blakely is going to apply to consecutive sentences, SCOTUSBlog provided this summary of the argument.Here is the intriguing paragraph for the fair folk of Indiana:While the Court leaned noticeably toward the jury option, one potential...

New Blog on the Block: The Indiana Criminal Law Blog

October 22, 2008 13:43

Lorinda Youngcourt has started up a new blog dealing with Indiana criminal law: The Indiana Criminal Law Blog. It looks like it will contain case blurbs put together monthly by the Indiana Public Defender Council. Maybe it will have other goodies too.Have a look. I'm sticking it into my feed...

Blakely & Consecutive Sentences: Oregon v. Ice

October 15, 2008 02:18

Oregon v. Ice was argued in the U.S. Supreme Court today. Does Blakely apply to consecutive sentences if the finding of additional facts are required to impose sentences consecutively?The transcript of the argument is here (PDF). Doug Berman's take on the case is here. (Sentencing Law &...

The Sunday (SPAM) Pickle

October 06, 2008 03:09

Anyone else get one of these? I think it's hilarious.FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATIONROOM 4-230, KALANIANAOLE FOB300 ALA MOANA BOULEVARD HONOLULU , HAWAII 96850-0053http://www.fbi.govEmail:garrity.robertg.robert994@gmail.comRobert J. Garrity, Jr Deputy Assistant Director,Records Management Division...

What I Learned Today: Strangulation as a Class D Felony

September 11, 2008 16:27

I had no idea that there was a special crime of "Strangulation." But here it is--Indiana Code ยง 35-42-2-9(b):A person who, in a rude, angry, or insolent manner, knowingly or intentionally: (1) applies pressure to the throat or neck of another person; or (2) obstructs the nose or mouth...

Why There Are Lawyers: "Custody" vs. "Confinement"

September 04, 2008 22:01

More language fun, this time from the 7th Circuit.It is fundamental that to be eligible for habeas relief, one must be "in custody." After all, a habeas petition is a request that one's jailer produce one's body (the corpus part) before the court (instead of the king now) and justify the...