Available online from SSRN: Law Professor Ronald D. Rotunda has an article entitled “Holding Enemy Combatants in the Wake of Hamdan” (abstract with links for download).

And Law Professor Kurt T. Lash has an paper titled “The Puzzling Persistence of a Missing Word: The Tenth Amendment, Popular Sovereignty and ‘Expressly’ Delegated Power” (abstract with links for download).

Thanks to “Legal Theory Blog” for the pointers (here and here).

“Pleading Standards After Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly“: Law Professor Scott Dodson has this essay online at Virginia Law Review In Brief.

“Gonzales’ appalling disregard for liberties”: The St. Petersburg Times contains this editorial today.

“16 Detainees Transferred From Guantanamo; Bahraini Man Who Attempted Suicide Nearly 2 Dozen Times Is Among Those Sent to Saudi Arabia”: This article appears today in The Washington Post.

“Obama, Clinton slam court on abortion ruling”: Reuters provides this report.

The Associated Press is reporting: An article reports that “Bush Nominates 4 to Federal Bench.” My earlier coverage appears in the post immediately below.

In other news, an article is headlined “Court: NJ Man Can’t Recoup Child Support.” You can access today’s ruling of the Supreme Court of New Jersey at this link.

And an article reports that “Ex-Bush Aide Says Again She Won’t Appear.”

The White House nominates four to the U.S. Courts of Appeals: You can view the announcement at this link.

The nominations are: “Robert J. Conrad, Jr., of North Carolina, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Fourth Circuit, vice James Dickson Phillips, Jr., retired. Catharina Haynes, of Texas, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Fifth Circuit, vice Harold R. DeMoss, Jr., retired. Shalom D. Stone, of New Jersey, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Third Circuit, vice Samuel A. Alito, Jr., elevated. John Daniel Tinder, of Indiana, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Seventh Circuit, vice Daniel A. Manion, retiring.”

“Target Practice: Justice Scalia sets his sights on New York Times Co. v. Sullivan.” Dahlia Lithwick has this jurisprudence essay online at Slate.

“D.C. begins its gun law appeal”: Lyle Denniston has this post today at “SCOTUSblog.” Yesterday’s Court filing shows that the District of Columbia has secured the assistance of both Walter Dellinger and Tom Goldstein to argue against the “individual rights” view of the Second Amendment.

Accordingly, a tax protester challenging his conviction and also a sentence enhancement based on earlier convictions would be doubly out-of-luck in the Fifth Circuit: So what if five Justices serving on the U.S. Supreme Court have stated when writing separately that they believe the Court’s decision from 1998 in Almendarez-Torres v. United States, holding that a defendant’s prior criminal convictions need not be proved beyond a reasonable doubt to a jury before they can be used to enhance a defendant’s sentence, reached an incorrect result?

Today, the majority on a partially divided three-judge Fifth Circuit panel issued a decision opining that arguments predicated on the assertion that Almendarez-Torres doesn’t constitute good law no longer serve as a legitimate basis for appeal. Indeed, the majority characterizes the argument as on par with the claim that the federal tax code is unconstitutional.

“Three noteworthy cases on 9th Circuit docket”: Today in The Honolulu Advertiser, Horace Cooper has an op-ed that begins, “The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals is proving itself once again to be a powerhouse among the circuits. And based on some of the cases that it will decide this year it might actually edge out the D.C. Circuit as the most influential circuit court in the nation.”

“Short Sex Offender’s Probation Upheld”: The Associated Press provides a report that begins, “A judge had valid reasons for sentencing a 5-foot-1 sex offender to probation, even though she cited the offender’s height as part of her rationale, the Nebraska Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday.”

You can access today’s ruling of the Nebraska Court of Appeals at this link.

En banc Eleventh Circuit decides whether a federal criminal defendant’s failure in the trial court to raise the defense of double jeopardy constitutes waiver or forfeiture: As today’s unanimous en banc ruling explains, a finding of waiver can be worse for the defendant than a finding of forfeiture. For this particular defendant, however, neither result is especially helpful.

“Free Speech Suit Filed; Student’s Blog Entry At Issue”: The Hartford Courant today contains an article that begins, “A Lewis S. Mills High School student who was barred from running for class office after she called administrators a derogatory term on an Internet blog is accusing top school officials of violating her free speech rights.”

Divided D.C. Circuit panel rejects challenge to Federal Aviation Administration rule mandating that air carriers require drug and alcohol tests of all employees of contractors and subcontractors who perform safety-related functions such as aircraft maintenance: You can access today’s ruling at this link.

Only Circuit Judge David B. Sentelle, in dissent, argued in favor of making air travel that much more interesting by allowing airline workers with safety-related jobs to forgo drug and alcohol testing.

The former home of Susette Kelo on East Street in the Fort Trumbull neighborhood of New London is dismantled: This item appears today on the web site of The Day of New London, Connecticut.

“In Prison, Anti-Abortion Terrorist Taunts via Web”: This audio segment (RealPlayer required) appeared on yesterday evening’s broadcast of NPR’s “All Things Considered.”

“In this consolidated appeal, the plaintiffs appeal the dismissal pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) of their complaints alleging that the defendants’ advertising is responsible for the underage, and therefore illegal, purchase of alcoholic beverages by the plaintiffs’ minor children.” So begins a three-page opinion that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit issued today. Today’s ruling holds that the parents lack standing to pursue the suit.

“Specter walks tightrope on Southwick nomination”: The Hill today contains an article that begins, “Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) is walking a tightrope above a crowd of angry conservatives and prickly Senate Democrats. To his right, conservative activists are spoiling for a fight over judicial nominations. To his left, Senate Democrats could bring judicial confirmations to a standstill.”

“Injury waiver no protection from lawsuit; High court rules liability still exists”: Today in The San Francisco Chronicle, Bob Egelko has an article that begins, “The state Supreme Court spurned pleas of hardship from operators of parks, racquetball clubs and stock car races and ruled Monday that recreation programs that require participants to sign liability waivers aren’t protected from lawsuits for accidents caused by gross negligence.”

You can access yesterday’s ruling of the Supreme Court of California at this link.

“Liberty’s Lamp Is Dimmed by 2nd Circuit”: Today in The New York Sun, Joseph Goldstein has an article that begins, “Many recent Chinese immigrants will find it more difficult to get asylum after a federal appellate court in New York yesterday narrowed the definition of who qualifies as a political refugee. At issue is how America views policies in some localities of China requiring abortions or sterilization for those who have more than the government’s allotment of one or two children.”

My earlier coverage of yesterday’s en banc Second Circuit ruling can be accessed here.

“Court clarifies nations’ influence on sentencing; 9th Circuit reverses itself in murder case involving Venezuela”: Bob Egelko has this article today in The San Francisco Chronicle.

My earlier coverage of yesterday’s amended opinion in this appeal, in which over the course of three separate recent decisions the Ninth Circuit appears to have reached every conceivable outcome, can be accessed here.

Available online from law.com: An article reports that “Billionaire Gets Calif. Justices’ OK to Sue Judge, Lawyer; Court also dismissed arguments that the ruling would discourage settlements and disrupt attorney-client relationship.” You can access yesterday’s ruling of the Supreme Court of California at this link.

And an article is headlined “In Humorous Dissent, 2nd Circuit Chief Calls Students’ Speech Suit a ‘Silly Thing.’” My earlier coverage of last week’s Second Circuit ruling appears here.

“Double standard: Bush’s leniency for Libby doesn’t jibe with administration’s push to enforce mandatory minimum sentences.” Bob Egelko had this article yesterday in The San Francisco Chronicle.

“One of America’s Top Plaintiffs’ Lawyers Makes a Key Tactical Error During Oral Argument in a Case Against Big Tobacco: When Bad Things Happen to Smart Lawyers.” Anthony J. Sebok has this essay online today at FindLaw.

Mootness versus dicta: If you’d think that the author of an editorial about the U.S. Supreme Court in the current issue of The New Republic would understand the difference in meaning between those two words, you’d be wrong.

“Washington Mayor to Take Fight for Gun Law to Supreme Court”: Adam Liptak has this article today in The New York Times.

And The Washington Post today contains a front page article headlined “D.C. Wants High Court To Consider Gun Law.”

Update: In addition, The Washington Times reports today that “City to appeal overturning of handgun ban.”