The Courts

2007

Stars and Bars

Daniel Lazare : Jails & Prisons

How did the American criminal justice system go so wrong?
In Praise of Red Tape

Christopher Hayes : Government

When lawmakers and the media failed to hold the Bush Administration to account, it was left to bureaucrats to defend the integrity of government.
Gary Tyler's Quest for Justice

Dave Zirin : Racism & Discrimination

Sports figures are joining the crusade to free a Louisiana man convicted as a teenager of a murder he didn't commit.
Putting Science in the Dock

Barry Yeoman : Lawsuits

Judges' ability to discriminate against expert witnesses has ended up empowering large corporations.
The Persecution of Sami Al-Arian

Alexander Cockburn : Constitutional Questions

A Palestinian professor caught in the US legal system needs all the support we can muster, as respect for constitutional freedoms sinks ever lower.
'There Is No Law'

David Cole : Supreme Court

It's now up to the Supreme Court or the Democratic Congress to overturn the Military Commissions Act and restore our right to habeas corpus.

2006

From Whitewater to Blackwater

Jeremy Scahill & Garrett Ordower : Blackwater

Blackwater USA has a new attorney to defend it against a wrongful death lawsuit by families of four contractors killed in Iraq: Kenneth Starr.
For His Eyes Only: Bush's Secret Crimes

Michael Ratner : George W. Bush Administration

By blindly accepting Bush's expansion of state secrets claims, the courts are allowing the executive branch to operate above the law, putting the core principles of our democracy at risk.
Felonious Intent

Patricia J. Williams : Children & Child Care

The prosecution of an 8-year-old in New York for wrongful homicide in a school bus accident invokes the "wild child" hysteria of the Central Park jogger case.
Blood Is Thicker Than Blackwater

Jeremy Scahill : Iraq War

Lawsuits by families of soldiers-for-hire killed in Falluja have put a major war profiteer in the cross-hairs.

2005

Post-9/11 Shell Game

David Cole : Supreme Court

To this day, no explanation has been offered as to why José Padilla spent years bandied around in US courts and detention centers. Now that Padilla faces reduced criminal charges, the government will never have to explain its actions, and never will.
Blank Check for Bush?

David Cole : Terrorism Targeting the US

Recent rulings upholding the right of the executive branch to jail and try terror suspects in military tribunals raise questions about whether the judiciary can keep presidential powers in check. Will a realigned Supreme Court give Bush a blank check to rise above the law?
St. Pat's Four Not Guilty of Federal Charges

Elizabeth Bauchner : Peace Activism

Four peace advocates were acquitted of federal conspiracy charges in connection with a 2003 protest of the Iraq War.
The FBI Fails (For Now) to Grab Subpoena Powers

David Corn : USA Patriot Act

The FBI--with apparent White House approval--continues to seek the authority to bypass the court system in pursuit of evidence against terror suspects.
Tom DeLay and the Courts

Calvin Trillin : Tom DeLay

Tom's crimes.
In Contempt of Courts

Max Blumenthal : Conservatives & The American Right

Conservative activists want to eliminate unsympathetic judges--by any means necessary.
Legislative Bomb

: Senate

The Republican Senate seeks to eliminate the fillibuster.
Schiavo as Prologue

: Conservatives & The American Right

The Terri Schiavo case goes to the heart of political choices confronting the country.
Filibustering the Truth

Judd Legum & Christy Harvey : Senate

Debunking GOP myths about the filibuster.
Chertoff and Torture

Dave Lindorff : Torture