Do Some Courts Underenforce the Second Amendment?
Data show problems in several Circuits
Criminal Justice
If Spreading Fake News on Facebook Is a Crime in Ohio, They Will Need More Jails
A Barberton judge just sentenced a woman to jail, house arrest, and a year without social media for repeating a rumor about a pellet gun at school.
Kansas Supreme Court Says Cops Can Search Your Home Without a Warrant If They Claim It Smells Like Pot
Cops supposedly smelled 25 grams of pot inside a plastic container inside a safe inside a closet 30 feet from a guy's doorstep.
Prison Food Is a National Tragedy
Jails and prisons are punishment enough without throwing dangerous and unhealthy food into the mix.
Understanding Why Judge O'Connor Was Wrong to Conclude Plaintiffs Had Standing to Challenge the Penalty-Less Individual Mandate
Judge O'Connor was wrong to conclude that two individuals who would prefer not to purchase health insurance had standing to challenge the law.
Short Circuit: A Roundup of Recent Federal Court Decisions
Almond milk, pee tests, and the Lorax doctrine.
A Law and Order Candidate Is Indicted for Committing a Crime
The man behind the "Deportation Bus" said he wanted to round up criminals. Looks like he should have started with himself.
Congress Ramps Up War on Sex Workers and Their Customers With Secret Votes on Four New 'Protection' Laws
A national strategy for arresting sex buyers and letting local cops wiretap sex workers are among the approved changes.
Supreme Court Should Clarify Second Amendment Test
Challenge to ban on interstate handgun sales would be a good vehicle.
Congress Passes FIRST STEP Act, Sending Criminal Justice Reform to Trump's Desk
"The most significant efforts the federal government will take to date to reduce federal prison populations after decades and decades of doing the opposite."
Gorsuch Challenges Blank Check for the U.S. Attorney General
A case to watch for both criminal justice reformers and for critics of executive overreach.
Syracuse Cops Force Doctors to Probe a Man's Rectum for Drugs, Then Bill the Man For It
Similar cases have resulted in huge lawsuits against hospitals and police departments.
Report: Imprisoning People Who Can't Pay Bail Costs America $15 Billion a Year
Taxpayers shell out big time to keep poor folks who haven't even been convicted of crimes behind bars.
You Can't Use FOIA to Get Someone's Tax Returns
A court rejects a clever effort to obtain President Trump's tax records
Senate Passes White House-Backed Criminal Justice Bill by Wide Margin
After weeks of work from advocates and a bipartisan group of lawmakers, the Senate voted to pass the FIRST STEP Act.
Everyone is Misreporting the Texas BDS Lawsuit
No, a Texas school district did not require speech pathologist Bahia Amawi to sign a "pro-Israel oath," nor even to promise not to personally boycott Israel.
Keep Feds Out of Cop Killer Cases
Sen. Tom Cotton pushes a poison pill amendment to a vital criminal justice reform bill.
Texas Woman, 61, Dies in Jail After Sitting There for Months over $300 Bail Order
She had a history of mental illness, and was arrested for misdemeanor trespassing in July.
Happy Saturnalia!
We continue the longstanding Volokh Conspiracy tradition of celebrating this ancient Roman holiday.
New Draft Article: "Implementing Carpenter"
From my forthcoming book, The Digital Fourth Amendment.
Sex Workers Around the World Demand Decriminalization: Reason Roundup
Plus: Obamacare unconstitutional?
Did the Florida Supreme Court Just Give Cops More Leeway to Kill With Impunity?
The decision says a police officer, like any other Florida resident, has a right to a pretrial hearing on his self-defense claim.
Understanding the New Obamacare Decision, Texas v. United States: Part II
[Part of a continuing series of guest posts by Prof. Josh Blackman (South Texas College of Law). -EV]
Understanding the New Obamacare Decision, Texas v. United States: Part I
[A guest-post by Prof. Josh Blackman (South Texas College of Law), a noted expert on Obamacare-related litigation. -EV]
A "National Declaratory Judgment" in the ACA Suit?
What is the scope of the remedy in Texas v. United States?
California Will Keep Your DNA on File Even if You Haven't Been Convicted of a Crime
The Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Equal Justice Society, and others are challenging the practice in court.
New York's Top Court Shields Police Misconduct Records From Public View
It's up to state lawmakers to defy the will of the unions to change the rules.
Here Are the 'Improvements' That Won a Senate Vote on Sentencing Reform
The last-minute changes show how hard it is to make the criminal justice system more proportionate and discriminating.
Trump Plausibly Pleads Ignorance in His Latest Defense Against Criminal Charges for Campaign Finance Violations
Even if hush payments to his alleged mistresses amounted to illegal campaign contributions, the president says, he did not know that at the time.
Former Trump Lawyer Michael Cohen Sentenced to Three Years in Prison
Cohen blames Trump for sending him down a "path of darkness"
James Fields Killed Heather Heyer Because of Her Opinions, and Now the Government Is Trying to Do the Same to Him
The federal case against the Charlottesville murderer illustrates how hate crime laws punish people for their bigoted beliefs.
Federal Court: Secretly Recording Government Officials Is a First Amendment Right
The ruling extends to secret recordings of police officers.
Uncivil Disobedience
Jason Brennan argues that there is no moral distinction between civilians and agents of the state, even in the right to resist injustice.
William Barr's Never-Ending War
Trump's nominee for attorney general is apt to encourage his worst instincts on drug policy.
Should We Be Upset If the IRS Has Been 'Gutted'?
A new report from ProPublica whitewashes the IRS, while ignoring the positive benefits of tax evasion.
McConnell Says He Will Bring Criminal Justice Bill to Senate Floor for Vote
After weeks of pressure from the White House and fellow Republicans, Mitch McConnell says he will schedule a vote for the FIRST STEP Act.
Human Trafficking Grant Goes to Arrest Suspected Victims in Tucson
A Tucson Weekly investigation finds that federal funds to "fight sex trafficking" are actually perpetuating it.
Trump's Cluelessness Remains His Best Defense Against Charges That He 'Knowingly and Willfully' Violated Campaign Finance Law
If Trump did not recognize hush payments to his (alleged) former mistresses as illegal campaign contributions, he is not criminally culpable.
Video Shows NY Cops Ripping Baby From Screaming Mom's Arms
According to a witness, Jazmine Headley got in trouble for sitting on the floor of a government office because there were no seats available.
Repudiating the 'Dual Sovereignty' Exception to the Double Jeopardy Clause Could Undermine the Federal War on Weed. Oh No!
The Supreme Court seems disinclined to overturn precedents allowing serial prosecutions of the same crime.
Trump Considers Tying Criminal Justice Reforms to Border Wall Funding
The FIRST STEP Act might get shoved into an end-of-year spending bill.
Wayne County Cops Seized Her Car Over $10 Worth of Weed. Now She's Suing.
The lawsuit argues that the excessive penalty violated her Eighth Amendment rights. The Supreme Court is currently considering a similar case.
California's Republican Party Is Irrelevant. Embracing Criminal Justice Reform Could Help Change That.
Conservatives and moderates don't agree on much, but they do agree on this: The state GOP is dead in the water and needs a new strategy to revive itself.
