“Alberto Gonzales’s Disastrous Day: The attorney general bombs before the Senate Judiciary Committee.” Byron York has this essay at National Review Online.
Online at The New Republic, Eve Fairbanks has an essay entitled “You’re Fired! Republican senators disown Gonzales.”
And at Salon.com, Michael Scherer has an essay entitled “The attorney general’s ‘tremendous credibility problem’: Republicans and Democrats alike pummeled Alberto Gonzales in a daylong hearing that left the future of his job in doubt,” while Joe Conason has an essay entitled “A Gonzales resignation is not enough: Congress should demand that a special prosecutor get to the bottom of why the U.S. attorneys were fired.”
“Religious on both sides of abortion debate gear up, cite Supreme Court ruling”: This article appears today in The St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
The News & Observer of Raleigh, North Carolina reports today that “Tougher abortion laws unlikely.”
The Gainesville Sun contains an article headlined “Area medical professionals react to ban on ‘partial-birth’ abortions.”
Sunday in The Chicago Tribune, columnist Steve Chapman will have an op-ed entitled “The challenge facing abortion-rights advocates.”
In The April 30, 2007 issue of The Weekly Standard, Terry Eastland will have an essay entitled “Partial Victory: The Supreme Court defers to Congress.”
The Palm Beach Post today contains an editorial entitled “High court lets Congress practice quack medicine.”
In The Washington Times, Michael J. McManus has an op-ed entitled “Historic abortion decision.”
And at National Review Online, Walter M. Weber has an essay entitled “A Sane Decision: The restoration in Gonzales v. Carhart.”
“Questions remain about who engineered the firings of U.S. attorneys”: McClatchy Newspapers provide this report.
“Ruling Changes the Legal Landscape for Abortion”: Nina Totenberg had this audio segment (RealPlayer required) on today’s broadcast of NPR’s “Weekend Edition Saturday.”
“The New 5-to-4 Supreme Court”: Adam Liptak will have this article Sunday in the Week in Review section of The New York Times.
“Should Dying Patients Have A Right To Use Experimental Drugs?” That’s the subject of this week’s broadcast of NPR’s “Justice Talking.”
“Third Circuit keeps Abu-Jamal case; Prosecutors had sought different judges; A ruling for a new death-penalty hearing is under review”: The Philadelphia Inquirer contains this article today.
And The Associated Press reports that “Appeals court won’t step down from Abu-Jamal case.”
“Anger and Alternatives on Abortion”: The New York Times today contains a news analysis that begins, “The Supreme Court decision on Wednesday to uphold a ban on a type of abortion, has huge political implications but, as a practical matter, is unlikely to have much of an effect. The reason, said Dr. Isaac Schiff, chairman of the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, is that there are safe and readily available alternatives to the banned method, which the law calls partial birth abortion.”
“W&M professor gets fed judgeship nod; Alan J. Meese and 11 others are contenders to become federal appeals court judges”: This article appears today in The Daily Press of Hampton Roads, Virginia.
“Don’t Assume the Worst: Pro-choice doctors — and their lawyers — must read the Supreme Court’s decision as an explicit approval of all abortion procedures save one.” David J. Garrow has this op-ed today in The New York Times.
“Guns, Politics and the Law: The Second Amendment may finally get its day in court.” This “Hot Topic” article (free access) appears today in The Wall Street Journal.
“Doubting Thomas: The rise of the Supreme Court’s most controversial justice.” In the Book World section of tomorrow’s issue of The Washington Post, Law Professor Kenji Yoshino will have this review of the book “Supreme Discomfort: The Divided Soul of Clarence Thomas” by Kevin Merida and Michael A. Fletcher. The newspaper has also posted online the first chapter of the book.
In the April 30, 2007 issue of Newsweek, Ellis Cose will have an article about the book headlined “Still Keeping Score: Clarence Thomas remains bitter about his confirmation hearings; A new book explains why he won’t let it go.”
And yesterday’s broadcast of NPR’s “All Things Considered” contained an audio segment about the book entitled “Powerful Yet Despised: Clarence Thomas’ Story” (RealPlayer required).
“Court Kills Suit Over 9/11 Air Quality”: The Associated Press provides this report.
My earlier coverage of Thursday’s Second Circuit ruling appears at this link.
“Freed official back on state job; Thompson’s action no crime, judges write”: The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel today contains an article that begins, “Georgia Thompson, the state worker convicted – then cleared – of improperly steering a contract to a politically connected travel company, might have made a mistake, but she didn’t commit a federal crime, according to a Court of Appeals opinion released Friday. Also Friday, it was announced that Thompson, 57, will start a new state job Monday at her old salary of $77,300 a year and get $67,161.46 in back pay.”
The Wisconsin State Journal reports today that “Court tells why it freed Thompson.”
And The Associated Press reports that “Court Says Wis. Worker No Criminal.”
My earlier coverage of yesterday’s Seventh Circuit opinion appears at this link.
“Supreme Court to weigh Right to Life’s challenge to McCain-Feingold law”: This article appeared yesterday in The Capital Times of Madison, Wisconsin.
Available online from National Public Radio: Yesterday’s broadcast of “All Things Considered” contained an audio segment entitled “Bush Administration Urges Changes to FISA.”
And yesterday’s broadcast of “Morning Edition” contained audio segments entitled “Gonzales Defends Attorney Firings to Skeptical Senate” (featuring Nina Totenberg) and “Was Pressure on Prosecutors a Partisan Issue?”
RealPlayer is required to launch these audio segments.
“Voters need citizenship proof; Appeals Court makes ruling on Prop. 200 challenge”: The Arizona Republic today contains an article that begins, “The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Friday that Arizona can continue requiring people to prove citizenship when they register to vote.”
And The Associated Press reports that “Court Rejects Blocking Ariz. Voter Law.”
You can access yesterday’s Ninth Circuit ruling at this link.
Available online from law.com: Tony Mauro reports that “Kennedy Reshapes Abortion Conflict as He Refines ‘Swing Vote’ Role; In a controversial 5-4 ruling, the Supreme Court found no medical exception needed for some abortion restrictions.”
In other news, “Gonzales Hearing Showcases Policy Shift; Since 2002, more than 100 White House employees have had access to information on criminal investigations.”
In news from Texas, “A Lawyer and an Ass Walk Into a Courtroom …; Donkey is called as first witness in attorney’s suit against neighbor.”
And the brand new installment of my “On Appeal” column for law.com is headlined “The Trial Judge as Adversary on Appeal.”
“S.F. program may trump Prop. 209”: Today in The San Francisco Chronicle, Bob Egelko has an article that begins, “A state appeals court has given San Francisco a chance to reinstate its affirmative action program for minority and female contractors, saying a history of discrimination may justify preferential treatment despite California’s Proposition 209. A judge who struck down the program in 2004 failed to review San Francisco’s claims that long-standing and pervasive discrimination by both city employees and contractors caused firms owned by minorities and women to be excluded from winning city business, the First District Court of Appeal ruled Wednesday. If San Francisco can prove those claims, it may be able to show that the U.S. Constitution’s guarantee of equal protection requires the city to grant preferences to minority and female contractors to eliminate the effects of discrimination. That would override Prop. 209, a 1996 initiative that banned race and sex preferences in public contracting, employment and education, the court said.”
You can access Wednesday’s ruling of California’s First District Court of Appeal at this link.
“Arnold kills death chamber project at San Quentin”: Henry Weinstein of The Los Angeles Times provides a news update that begins, “Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger today halted construction of a new death chamber at San Quentin prison, the latest setback for authorities trying to resume executions after a 15-month hiatus triggered by a challenge to the state’s procedures for lethal injections. The order came after legislators complained vociferously that they had not been consulted about the project, which apparently was conducted in secret.”
“Posada in Miami, but he can’t leave; Cuban exile militant Luis Posada Carriles is back at his family home in Miami, but his legal battles are not over yet”: This article appears today in The Miami Herald.
And The Los Angeles Times today contains an editorial entitled “A terrorist walks: Luis Posada Carriles has boasted of bombing Havana hotels, yet American justice lets him go free.”
“Bad News, Good News Day for Al-Arian”: Josh Gerstein of The New York Sun provides this news update, in which I am quoted.
“Gonzo for Gonzo: Maybe Alberto Gonzales was brilliant yesterday–and everybody missed it.” Dahlia Lithwick has this jurisprudence essay online at Slate.
Happy birthday to Justice John Paul Stevens: According to The AP’s popular “Today in History” feature, Justice Stevens turns 87 years old today.
“Church + State”: Philadelphia Inquirer editorial cartoonist Tony Auth has this controversial depiction of the U.S. Supreme Court today in that newspaper.
That newspaper today also contains an editorial entitled “The Abortion Ruling: Supreme activism.”
Update: Rick Garnett comments here at “PrawfsBlawg.”
Rehearing en banc sought in Fourth Circuit Waffle House racial epithet case: This week’s installment of my “On Appeal” column for law.com is headlined “The N-Word and a Plaintiff’s Right to His Day in Court.”
Therein, I argue that the majority on a divided three-judge Fourth Circuit panel reached the wrong result when applying issue preclusion in this recent ruling involving the alleged use of a racial epithet by a Waffle House employee.
Today, plaintiffs’ counsel filed this petition for rehearing en banc in the case.
“Ninth Circuit Decides (Sort of) Purcell Voter Identification Case on Remand from the Supreme Court”: Law Professor Rick Hasen has this post at his “Election Law” blog reporting on a ruling that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued today.
Former State of Wisconsin employee Georgia Thompson, still acquitted: Fifteen days ago, a three-judge Seventh Circuit panel took the extraordinary step of issuing a judgment of acquittal at the conclusion of oral argument, with the court’s opinion to follow. Later that day, the federal prisoner in question walked away a free woman. My initial coverage of that day’s developments appear in my post from that night.
One of the only potential downsides with “an opinion to follow” is what if the appellate court changes its mind? Georgia Thompson doesn’t have to worry about that happening any longer, because today the Seventh Circuit issued this opinion explaining the reasons why it issued a judgment of acquittal from the bench immediately following oral argument.
“Court Backs EPA Chief in 9/11 Toxins Case”: Joseph Goldstein has this article today in The New York Sun.
My earlier coverage of yesterday’s Second Circuit ruling can be accessed here.
“Al, the President’s Man: Alberto Gonzales is bloodied by his trip to the Senate.” Dahlia Lithwick has this jurisprudence essay online at Slate, where the “Gonzo-Meter” today indicates a 95% chance of departure.
On this date in “How Appealing” history: One year ago today, “How Appealing” joined the law.com blog network. And that was far from the most interesting thing that this blog reported on that day.
“Commerce further found that the expectations of the ultimate users of etouffee differ from the expectations of the ultimate users of crawfish tail meat because etouffee is suitable only for heating and serving, whereas freshwater crawfish tail meat could be used in a variety of meals.” This decision that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued today may cause some readers to long for a Cajun feast.
“‘Survivor’ champ talks about his experiences”: The Yale Daily News today contains an article that begins, “Yul Kwon LAW ’00 has certainly stepped off the typical Yale Law School career path. ‘You may think Yale Law School is a place for nerds,’ Law School Dean Harold Koh said on Thursday. ‘But in fact, People Magazine voted Yul the sexiest man of 2006.'”
“Ginsburg’s dissent may yet prevail; The justice argues that equality, not privacy, is crucial in the abortion right”: Law Professor Cass R. Sunstein has this op-ed today in The Los Angeles Times.
“Md. abortion change unlikely; Lawmakers see no immediate change despite Supreme Court ruling”: The Baltimore Sun contains this article today.
