It’s “Sunshine Week”, So Listen To The Freedom Of Information Song!
Posted: March 15, 2016 Filed under: General Law, Uncategorized Leave a commentHey Friends,
It’s “Sunshine Week“–the week each year when we celebrate the importance of freedom of information and government transparency. In honor of this auspicious occasion, take a moment out of your day to chuckle as you listen to The FOI!, a little song I wrote in honor of the 30th anniversary of the Connecticut Freedom of Information Act!
Apple v. FBI
Posted: March 14, 2016 Filed under: General Law, Uncategorized Leave a commentIf you’re interested in learning more about the dispute between Apple and the FBI over access to encrypted iPhone information, the Electronic Information Privacy Center has a page dedicated to the case. It describes the background of the dispute and has links to the briefs, including some very insightful amicus briefs.
So many smart people have written so much on the issue that I have very little to add at this point, beyond this: The dispute is about much more than whether the government can compel Apple to provide access to a single iPhone related to a particular terrorism investigation. It is about how our society will eventually balance compelling national security/law enforcement interests against compelling societal interests in protecting the privacy of the vast digital lives that all of us carry in our cell phones these days. But, for the moment at least, I’ll just continue link to useful resources
Executive Sessions And Attorney-Client Communications
Posted: March 8, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized 7 CommentsYesterday I had the honor of appearing before the General Assembly’s Government Administration and Elections committee to testify in opposition to a bill that would have reopened a loophole in the Freedom of Information Act that the legislature closed in 1986. The bill seeks to expand the situations under which a public agency is allowed to go into executive session. The Connecticut Council on Freedom of Information, of which I am the legislative chair, strongly opposes the bill, as does the Freedom of Information Commission and several other organizations.
If anyone wants to see proof of the old adage that the camera adds 10 lbs to a person’s weight, just watch the CT-N footage of my testimony. (It begins at 3:52:25 into the public hearing.)
Political Parties And Loyalty Oaths
Posted: March 4, 2016 Filed under: General Law, Uncategorized | Tags: denise merrill, first amendment, freedom of association, political parties 3 Comments
- Secretary of State Denise Merrill is pressing for repeal of Connecticut’s longstanding “party loyalty” law, which allows party leaders to expel a person from the party if he or she displays a lack of fidelity to the party’s core principles. She argues, with broad support, that the party loyalty law is outdated and offensive to basic democratic principles.
- Donald Trump—a
mandemagogue who shows contempt for many of the platform principles that the modern Republican party holds dear —is the leading candidate for the Republican presidential nomination. Party leaders are desperately looking for a way to prevent his nomination.
Do these two situations have anything in common? I think so. Both raise the question, “What are political parties?” Are they private, voluntary associations of people who come together based on a shared set of beliefs and who, therefore, should be able to exclude as members persons who do not demonstrate that they adhere to the same beliefs? Or are parties public organizations? A mixture of both?
Interesting Development In The Skakel Appeal
Posted: March 3, 2016 Filed under: Appellate Law, Uncategorized | Tags: bishop, habeas, skakel Leave a commentOnly six justices were on the panel last week when the Connecticut Supreme Court heard oral argument in the Michael Skakel habeas appeal, in which Skakel seeks a new trial based on the purported failure of his trial counsel (Mickey Sherman) to provide a constitutionally adequate defense. The Chief Justice recused herself, so the panel consisted of Justices Palmer, Zarella, McDonald, Espinosa, Robinson and Senior Justice Vertefeuille.
For reasons unknown, Justice Eveleigh was not on the panel last week. The Supreme Court, however, has now added him to the panel. That suggests (but does not necessarily mean) that the initial vote of the justices when they conferenced immediately after oral argument was 3-3 and that Justice Eveleigh was added to the panel to break the tie. In other words, three justices would have affirmed the judgment of the habeas court (Bishop, JTR), which found in favor of Mr. Skakel’s Sixth Amendment ineffective assistance of counsel claim, and three justices would have reversed that judgment.
Of course, we won’t know for sure whether this hypothesis is correct until the Court issues an opinion, which will likely take at least several months. Stay tuned.
Discussing Justice Scalia On WNPR
Posted: February 16, 2016 Filed under: Appellate Law, Uncategorized | Tags: antonin scalia, scalia, state budget, supreme court Leave a commentTomorrow morning I have the honor and pleasure of joining host John Dankosky, his colleague Colin McEnroe and two additional great guests on The Wheelhouse, WNPR’s weekly news roundtable. Topics include Justice Scalia and the state budget. Listen live at 9:00 am!
UPDATE: 2/17/16: Click here to listen to a recording of the show, and click here to watch video of the show on CT-N.
Justice Antonin Scalia Dies At 79
Posted: February 13, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized 3 CommentsUnited States Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, the brilliant jurist who did perhaps more than any other judge to make originalism respectable as an approach to interpreting the U.S. Constitution, died today while vacationing at a ranch in Texas. He was 79.
More On The State Constitutional Spending Cap
Posted: February 12, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized Leave a commentKudos to the MetroHartford Alliance for organizing a terrific panel discussion last Tuesday on issues concerning the state’s constitutional spending cap, a subject about which I’ve blogged in the past. UConn law school hosted the event. Panelists included: Attorney General George Jepsen; Richard Balducci (Former Speaker of the Connecticut House of Representatives); attorney Wes Horton (an expert on the state constitution); Keith Phaneuf (budget report for The Connecticut Mirror); and Spencer Cain (President, Cain Associates, LLC and a former top dog in the Office of Fiscal Analysis).
I thought the event was remarkable for the candor of all the panelists, but particularly Richard Balducci, who explained the politics behind the adoption of the spending cap. Click here to watch CT-N’s video of the program. And click here for a collection of links to documents and other resources that MetroHartford Alliance has assembled on the issue.
Is Bernie Sanders Deluding His Supporters?
Posted: February 10, 2016 Filed under: Uncategorized 1 CommentLast night Bernie Sanders won big in New Hampshire. His message of the need for a “political revolution” clearly resonates with “yuge” (thanks Donald Trump) numbers of voters. (For the record, I share Sanders’ view that growing wealth and income inequality is one of the great problems facing our country.)
But is the democratic socialist agenda he advocates remotely feasible given the realities of the constitutional system in which he would operate if elected president? In other words, given the likely composition of the House and Senate, and given the rules that govern the operation of each (e.g, like the filibuster in the Senate), is there a realistic chance that he could implement his agenda?
Appealingly Brief! 