“Who would Antonin Scalia torture? Next week, when the Supreme Court hears a case challenging the use of lethal injections, we may learn more about the legal limits to state-sanctioned pain.” Alan Berlow has this essay online at Salon.com.

“In Year-End Report, Chief Justice Urges Swift Action on Judicial Pay Increases; Roberts’ report also focuses on procedures for handling complaints of judicial misconduct”: Tony Mauro has this article online at law.com.

“Same-Sex Divorce Challenges the Legal System; Most States Lack Law, Precedent To Settle Issues”: This article will appear Wednesday in The Washington Post.

“Cranston man loses federal appeal on crack sentence”: Today in The Providence (R.I.) Journal, Edward Fitzpatrick has an article that begins, “A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling, which lets judges impose shorter prison sentences for crack-cocaine crimes, proved of no help to a Cranston man who appealed after being convicted of a crack offense and sentenced to more than 24 years behind bars.”

You can access last week’s ruling of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit at this link.

“Time Inc to challenge Soeharto’s $125 million libel win”: This article appears in Wednesday’s edition of The Age of Melbourne, Australia.

“Falling out of love with death: Though a majority of Americans back capital punishment, surveys find growing unease over it.” Vince Beiser has this op-ed today in The Los Angeles Times.

“Pa. committed to death penalty; The state Supreme Court has affirmed four sentences; Prosecutors are trying to get executions carried out”: This front page article appears today in The Philadelphia Inquirer.

“Public Defender Builds Injection Case”: The Associated Press provides a report that begins, “One of the biggest capital punishment cases to come before the U.S. Supreme Court in a generation was put together largely by a young, fresh-out-of-law-school member of Kentucky’s overworked and underpaid corps of public defenders. David Barron, 29, filed an appeal on behalf of two Kentucky death row inmates, arguing that the three-drug cocktail used in lethal injections across the country can cause excruciating pain, and thus amounts to cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution.”

“Okla. judge to head Denver appeals court; Clinton appointee Henry, 53, has been legislator, educator”: The Associated Press provides a report that begins, “Robert Henry, of Oklahoma City, is to become chief judge of the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver today.”

And yesterday’s edition of The Oklahoman contained an even more detailed article headlined “Judge captures top seat in federal court of appeals.”

My most recent earlier coverage appears at this link.

“Chief Justice Again Calls for Pay Raise for Judges”: Linda Greenhouse has this article today in The New York Times.

Today in The Washington Post, Robert Barnes reports that “Chief Justice Argues for ‘Vital Legislation’ to Raise Pay for Federal Judges.”

And at “The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times,” Tony Mauro has a post titled “Roberts Calls on Congress to Act on Salaries.”

You can access the “2007 Year-End Report on the Federal Judiciary” by clicking here.

“Chief Justice urges inter-branch harmony”: Lyle Denniston has this post at “SCOTUSblog.”

And Pete Yost of The Associated Press reports that “Roberts Urges Higher Pay for Judges.”