“Reform death penalty appeals: Allowing state appellate courts to review cases would help ease a huge backlog.” Today in The Los Angeles Times, California Chief Justice Ronald M. George has an op-ed that begins, “Thoughtful individuals on both sides of the death penalty debate should be able to agree on one thing: The existing system for handling capital appeals in California is dysfunctional and needs reform. The state has more than 650 inmates on death row, and the backlog is growing.”

“Still her husband’s voice; In a new book, the widow of a policeman gunned down in 1981 questions the high-profile support for his killer”: The Los Angeles Times today contains an article that begins, “In the 26 years since former Black Panther Mumia Abu-Jamal gunned down her cop husband on a Philadelphia street, Maureen Faulkner has often felt like a reed in a tornado. As death penalty opponents around the world rallied to win Abu-Jamal a new trial, contending that he had been framed by local police, Faulkner quietly fought back one hearing at a time. She never missed a court hearing through the long appeals process, even after she moved from Philadelphia to suburban Ventura County. She’s appeared at pro-Mumia events, handing out fliers to explain the evidence that led a jury to convict and sentence Abu-Jamal to death.”

Attorney and radio personality Michael A. Smerconish is the co-author of that book.

“Supreme Court takes up lethal injection battle; States have kept the execution process shrouded in secrecy; That could change when justices hear arguments Monday”: Henry Weinstein has this article today in The Los Angeles Times.

The newspaper also contains an editorial entitled “The constitutionality of capital punishment: It’s time for a Supreme Court review of the practice.”

“Supreme Court will hear voter ID case; Republicans say they want to prevent voter fraud. Democrats say rights will be damaged; Neither has concrete evidence”: David G. Savage has this article today in The Los Angeles Times.

“Ex-Harvard President Meets a Former Student, and Intellectual Sparks Fly”: This article appears today in The New York Times.

The “Big Think” interview with Justice Stephen G. Breyer can be accessed via this link.

“Defying U.S. Plan, Prison Expands in Afghanistan”: The New York Times today contains an article that begins, “As the Bush administration struggles for a way to close the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, a similar effort to scale down a larger and more secretive American detention center in Afghanistan has been troubled by political, legal and security problems, officials say.”

“Cruel and Far Too Usual Punishment”: The New York Times today contains an editorial that begins, “The Supreme Court hears arguments on Monday in a case about whether Kentucky’s use of a ‘cocktail’ of injected poisons to carry out the death penalty is unconstitutional. We believe that the death penalty, no matter how it is administered, is unconstitutional and wrong. If a state does execute anyone, it must do so in a way that is humane and does not impose needless suffering. Kentucky’s method does not meet that standard.”

“Justice on hold in quadruple murder trial; Ga. courts, public frustrated over case stalled by lack of defense funds”: Today’s edition of USA Today contains an article that begins, “The case stunned the nation: A man on trial for rape at the Fulton County Courthouse overpowered a sheriff’s deputy, took her gun and allegedly went on a killing rampage. He allegedly shot the trial judge, the court reporter, a second deputy and, later that night, a federal agent. Then, in a made-for-TV-movie twist, he surrendered after allegedly holding a young woman hostage for several hours in her suburban Atlanta apartment.”

“Top Cases Reflect Political Fray; Supreme Court to Hear Arguments On Death Penalty, Voter ID”: Jess Bravin and Gary Fields have this article today in The Wall Street Journal.

“Indiana voter ID case may hinge on the theoretical; Supreme Court takes up dispute in which both sides are lacking proof of actual harm”: Joan Biskupic has this article today in USA Today.

“Fraud Alert: The myth of voter fraud.” Jeffrey Toobin has this Talk of the Town essay in the January 14, 2008 issue of The New Yorker. The essay focuses on Crawford v. Marion County Election Board, and Toobin writes, “This week, a majority of the Justices will likely find a way to make a bad situation worse, and uphold the Indiana law.”