Freedom of Speech in the University: A Podcast (for Non-Lawyers Especially)
You might want to check this out. Some weeks ago I participated in a 55 minute podcast on free speech in the university, together with a philosophy colleague at Illinois Tech, Michael Davis. The...
View ArticleThe Knick Case, Takings and Section 1983: A Somewhat Different View
Section 1983 Takings Claims and Williamson County (1985) In 1985, the Supreme Court held in Williamson County Regional Planning Comm’n v. Hamilton Bank, 473 U.S. 172 (1985), that a section 1983...
View ArticleKnow Your Constitution (9): What Are the Free Speech Rights of Public Employees?
This is the ninth in a series of posts about the United States Constitution written in everyday language with a minimum of legal jargon. These posts are not intended to provide legal advice and should...
View ArticleTakings Claims Against States After Knick: Some Unanswered Questions
The Knick takings decision The Supreme Court, in Knick v. Township of Scott, 139 S. Ct. 2162 (2019), a game-changing 5-4 takings decision, overruled Williamson County Regional Planning Comm’n v....
View ArticleKnow Your Constitution (10): The Second Amendment
This is the tenth in a series of posts about the United States Constitution written in everyday language with a minimum of legal jargon. These posts are not intended to provide legal advice and should...
View ArticleThe Second Amendment and Section 1983 (Podcast): A Section 1983 Conference...
As many of you know, Covid-19 prevented Chicago-Kent’s 37th Annual Conference on Section 1983 from taking place, as originally scheduled, on April 23-24, 2020. Still, in order to celebrate the...
View ArticleAfter Janus, Are Public Employee Unions Subject to Section 1983 Damages...
The Background: The Supreme Court’s Janus Decision Recall the Supreme Court’s blockbuster decision in Janus v. AFSCME, 138 S. Ct. 2448 (2018)(Janus I), overruling Abood v. Detroit Bd. of Educ., 431...
View ArticleThe George Floyd Case and Section 1983: A Police Officer’s Constitutional...
The Intervention Question Suppose a police officer continues to use life-endangering force even after it is obvious that a misdemeanor arrestee (who has no weapon) is under control and not a danger to...
View ArticleOff-Duty Police Officers, “Private” Conduct and State Action
Section 1983 damages liability for constitutional violations depends on the threshold existence of a defendant’s state action within the meaning of the 14th Amendment and on the related statutory...
View ArticleIs There a Fourth Amendment Seizure When a Person Flees?
The en banc Eighth Circuit was sharply divided about the existence of a Fourth Amendment seizure in a case where, among other things, a person fled after an officer in a police car stopped directly in...
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