On the Saturday before the April election, JoAnne Kloppenburg visited Whitewater, and I went out to see her. Like most people, I’d never seen her in person, and wanted to hear her talk. (Justice Prosser’s had a more public career, in the legislature and more recently on the court; many people have run into him,…
Law
Law, Laws/Regulations, Police
Institute for Justice Shines Light on Law Enforcement Slush Funds
by JOHN ADAMS •
I’ve posted before about the harm to sound law enforcement through ‘policing for profit,’ where the promise of financial gain motivates law enforcement efforts. Fortunately, the Institute for Justice has done fine work exposing the distortion — and lack of accountability — in departments that drift into this bad habit. See, for example, The Institute…
City, Law, Police
Simple and Reasonable Compliance with the Law
by JOHN ADAMS •
To enforce the law, one must observe the law. Conversely, one cannot credibly enforce the law by ignoring portions one does not like. This principle is so simple and clear that stating as much states the obvious. Whitewater has a lawful requirement that senior city leaders live within the city limits, among them nearly a…
Law
An Epic Eminent Domain Battle: Inner-City Kids, Boxing Gym Fight Back
by JOHN ADAMS •
The Institute for Justice highlights a case that’s heartbreaking — how developers and government collude in the wrongful use of eminent domain, to the harm of at-risk children. Here’s what’s at stake: A San Diego-area boxing gym that serves at-risk kids is showing what it takes to fight for what is right and to win.…
Law, Open Government
Sunshine Week, March 13 – 19
by JOHN ADAMS •
It’s Sunshine Week in America this week. Here’s a quick description of the initiative, from the Sunshine Week website: Sunshine Week is a national initiative to promote a dialogue about the importance of open government and freedom of information. Participants include news media, civic groups, libraries, nonprofits, schools and others interested in the public’s right…
Law, Liberty
Concise video on the Rule of Law
by JOHN ADAMS •
Elkhorn, Law, Walworth County
Walworth County District Attorney Koss’s Foolish, Ignorant Price Tag on Justice
by JOHN ADAMS •
Readers will recall a story from 2009 about Walworth County’s lawsuit against a crime victim to collect part of the cost of an expert the county hired to aid in the prosecution of those who victimized her. I wrote at the time that the county’s lawsuit was “an astonishing and disgraceful departure from legal…
Law, Liberty
Via Reason’s Rough Cut Blog — Sean Malone’s Series on the Bill of Rights
by JOHN ADAMS •
Law
Electronic Frontier Foundation Reports on Fourth Amendment Victories
by JOHN ADAMS •
I’m a proud member of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and here’s part of a message they’ve sent their members about recent fourth amendment victories: It’s been a great week for electronic privacy and the 4th Amendment! In a decision issued yesterday, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the government must have a search…
Law, Liberty
Bill of Rights Day: Libertarians, National Archives celebrate
by JOHN ADAMS •
Here’s more on yesterday’s Bill of Rights day: On Dec. 15, 1791, the ten amendments to the Constitution known as the Bill of Rights were ratified. In 1941, in honor of the amendments’ 150th anniversary, President Franklin D. Roosevelt made the date a holiday: Bill of Rights Day. The National Archives this year held a…
Crime, Law, Laws/Regulations, Libertarians, Press Release, Taxes/Taxation
Wes [Benedict of the LP] for Wesley Snipes | Libertarian Party
by JOHN ADAMS •
The Libertarian Party issued the following press release about tax protester Wesley Snipes. Note that Snipes was acquitted(!) of tax fraud and conspiracy, but he’s been sentenced to three years’ imprisonment on a misdemeanor conviction merely for being a non-filer. Wes for Wesley Snipes Why men can’t jump on Wesley Snipes WASHINGTON – Wes Benedict,…
Cartoons & Comics, Law
About | Law and the Multiverse
by JOHN ADAMS •
Phantom Stranger, and those who enjoy reading about the exploits of the Phantom Stranger and other heroes of comic cooks — here’s the website for you — Law and the Multiverse. If there’s one thing comic book nerds like doing it’s over thinking the smallest details. Here we turn our attention to the hypothetical legal…
Law, Laws/Regulations, Liberty
The Volokh Conspiracy » Greenwald v. The Nation
by JOHN ADAMS •
Freedom of Speech, Law, Laws/Regulations, Politics
CNN Money: The Absurdity of Campaign Finance Reform
by JOHN ADAMS •
Nina Easton writes about so-called reform that’s both anti-speech, and deeply hypocritical: One narrative of election year 2010 was shaped long before any votes were tabulated. President Barack Obama penned the first chapter with his January condemnation of a Supreme Court ruling that lifted government prohibitions on spending by corporations in elections. The 5-to-4 decision…