Category: Civil Rights
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“Best Interest” vs. Strict Scrutiny: The Battle for the Freedom of Speech in Child Custody and CPS Cases
By Kaylee Kasper — As it stands, the US legal system promotes a largely hands-off approach to regulating the internal affairs of families. Parents have the liberty to determine how they intend to raise their children, dictating their day-to-day activities…
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Liberty on Trial: A Case for Civil Right to Counsel in Eviction Proceedings
By Natalia Murillo Gonzalez — Right to counsel for tenants facing eviction remains unrecognized as a fundamental right—a contradiction to our country’s commitment to liberty. The label of ‘evicted’ is one that burdens many; in 2018, 3.6 million evictions were…
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The Unconstitutionality of Modern Plea Bargaining: Curbing Prosecutorial Vindictiveness
By Ava Chen — Plea bargaining is a central fixture of the American justice system—an estimated 98% of criminal cases are resolved through guilty pleas, with only 5% of defendants exercising their right to a jury trial. According to a…
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More Than Money: The Costs of Caretaking for People with Disabilities
By Jeannie Kim — Many states have instituted governmental programs that provide support for people with disabilities that also assist those who are low-income. One major federal provision that often intersects with these disability rights programs is the U.S. Housing…
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Bill 96: A Violation of English-speaking Rights in Québec
By Sidney Singer — In Canada there are multiple pieces of legislation that protect the rights of citizens to live their lives in one of the two official languages, English or French. The earliest, the British North America Act in…
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Justice Until Death: The Necessity of Swift and Good-Faithed Capital Punishment
By Justin Murdock — There are two factions when it comes to the debate over capital punishment: one believes it is legitimate retribution for heinous criminal acts, while the other believes it is the epitome of archaic punishments which violate…
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Electronic Surveillance, the Fourth Amendment, and the NYPD’s “Muslim Surveillance Program”
By Annie Akbar — In a letter to James Madison after the French Revolution had begun, Thomas Jefferson wrote, “The earth belongs always to the living generation… Every constitution, then, and every law, naturally expires at the end of 19…
