“Weak case seen in failed trial of charity; Experts and jurors weigh in after a terror financing indictment against the Holy Land Foundation, a Muslim relief group, ends in a mistrial”: This article appears today in The Los Angeles Times.

“Judges’ activism already coming home to roost”: Columnist Jim Wooten has this op-ed today in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

“Waterboarding Used to Be a Crime”: Judge Evan Wallach of the U.S. Court of International Trade has this op-ed today in The Washington Post.

“Two for Mr. Mukasey: Sens. Schumer and Feinstein buck the crowd.” This editorial appears today in The Washington Post.

“This Is Going to Hurt”: Today in The New York Times, Mark Essig has an op-ed that begins, “When the Supreme Court last week granted a stay of execution for a murderer in Mississippi, it imposed a de facto moratorium on capital punishment in the United States.”

And The St. Petersburg Times today contains an editorial entitled “Don’t rush to resume lethal injections.”

“No more standing mute: New rules will let judges address issues. Whether they want to or not.” The current issue of Arkansas Times contains this article, along with a related article headlined “Removing the gag: Wendell Griffen wins but wants more.”

“Municipal-bond tax breaks face court challenge; US Supreme Court weighs whether states can give residents who buy munis preferential tax treatment”: This article will appear Monday in The Christian Science Monitor.

Dow Jones Newswires report that “High Court May Look Favorably On Municipal Bond Tax Breaks.”

And The Los Angeles Times reported recently that “Muni bonds’ home-state edge at risk; High court will weigh whether states’ tax policy can favor their own bonds over those of other issuers.”

It’s time to vote: You may think that election day is not until Tuesday, but you can vote right now for “Best Law Blog” in The 2007 Weblog Awards. “How Appealing” could use your vote in this popularity contest in order to have a respectable showing. To vote, simply click here and then click on the appropriate oval. You can vote once every 24 hours until the contest wraps-up, so be sure to keep voting as often as possible.

“The Court Puts Death on Hold; At issue: the ‘how’ of the death penalty, not the penalty itself.” This article will appear in the November 12, 2007 issue of U.S. News & World Report. And Emma Schwartz will have an article headlined “A Challenge to Lethal Injections: Is the level of pain inflicted ‘cruel’?”

Thursday’s issue of The Clarion-Ledger of Jackson, Mississippi contained an article headlined “Is inmate’s stay a signal from justices? Halting Miss. execution could indicate nation’s high court wants moratorium.”

And Wednesday’s broadcast of the PBS program “The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer” contained a segment entitled “Supreme Court Stays Execution Ahead of Pivotal Case” (transcript with links to audio and video) featuring Marcia Coyle.

“Kent order less detailed than others”: The Galveston County Daily News today contains an article that begins, “A September reprimand of U.S. District Judge Samuel B. Kent was a rare act of discipline by the Judicial Council of the 5th Circuit, but it wasn’t unprecedented. However, the order chastising the Galveston judge appears to be unique in that it’s more vague about the judge’s misdeeds than his predecessors’ orders are about theirs.” Today’s newspaper also contains a related article headlined “Most judge complaints unwarranted.”

Yesterday, meanwhile, The Houston Chronicle reported that “Jackson Lee wants judge investigated; Lawmaker asks for House inquiry of Galveston jurist.” And yesterday’s issue of The Galveston County Daily News contained an article headlined “Jackson-Lee formally requests Kent probe.”

“Solicitor General: Supreme Court’s shrinking caseload due to fewer laws enacted by Congress, more harmony in circuit courts.” Harvard Law School’s web site contains a news release that begins, “The Supreme Court’s diminishing caseload is likely a reflection of a preceding fall-off in new legislation by Congress, U.S. Solicitor General Paul Clement ’92 speculated in remarks delivered at Harvard Law School’s fall reunion exercises. Fewer new laws mean fewer lawsuits challenging or seeking clarification of new legislation, he said.”

You can view a webcast of the Solicitor General’s remarks by clicking here (RealPlayer required). Those remarks begin at 16 minutes and 22 seconds into the webcast. The quality of the webcast’s audio is quite poor at times.

“Senator wants to name interchange after Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas”: Yesterday’s edition of The Savannah Morning News contained an article that begins, “State Sen. Eric Johnson is pushing to get the interchange of Interstate 95 and Interstate 16 named after U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Johnson, a Savannah Republican and Senate president pro tem, said he plans to introduce a bill soon after the General Assembly convenes Jan. 14. Thomas, the second black justice to serve on the high court, was born and raised in Pin Point, on the edge of Savannah.”