Skip to content

Posts from the ‘Constitutional Law’ Category

23
Jun
Muslim girl leads a protest march in downtown Seattle.

Supporting Our Muslim Neighbors

This year Dee, my spouse, and I became more politically active than we have been in the past. We marched in the MLK Seattle march for the first time and in the women’s march the day after inauguration. We carried a sign saying, “No Muslim Registry” on one side and “Black Lives Matter” on the other side. We attended an event featuring Morris Dees, co-founder of the Southern Poverty Law Center, as the keynote speaker.

Our sign said, “No Muslim Registry” because we do not want a repeat of the injustice experienced by Japanese Americans when they were rounded up and sent to internment camps at the outbreak of World War II. Both Dee and I know people who had to live in those camps.

Read more

1
May

2017 Law Day Marks Increased Focus on Legal Profession, Recognizes Impact of 14th Amendment

Law Day 2017 banner "The 14th Amendment:: American Democracy"
Happy Law Day! The WSBA’s new legal community outreach specialist shares his thoughts on this important May 1 holiday.

Law Day 2017 banner "The 14th Amendment:: American Democracy"Happy Law Day! I’m Sanjay Walvekar, the new legal community outreach specialist at the WSBA. I’m excited for this opportunity to introduce myself and to share my thoughts on this important holiday. Read more »

6
Apr

NWLawyer: Noah Purcell on How Washington State Blocked Trump’s Travel Ban

Noah Purcell on NWLawyer cover
This month’s cover of NWLawyer is dedicated to Solicitor General, Noah Purcell, who stopped the president’s travel ban in its tracks.

Noah Purcell on NWLawyer coverThis month’s cover of NWLawyer is dedicated to Washington’s Solicitor General Noah Purcell, who went head to head with the Trump administration in the Ninth Circuit Court to stop the president’s travel ban in its tracks. In this probing Q&A, Purcell shares his thoughts on Washington v. Trump and reveals how he and his colleagues in the state Attorney General’s Office put their case together over a weekend. Read more »

3
Apr

From Nomination to Confirmation: The U.S. Supreme Court Confirmation Process

Neil Gorsuch
Confirming justices to the U.S. Supreme Court involves several steps. Here’s how the confirmation process works.

Neil Gorsuch and wifeMore than a year after the death of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, the Senate Judiciary Committee has finally completed confirmation hearings to fill the vacancy, and the full Senate is poised to vote amid threat of filibuster. President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch began his confirmation hearing on March 20. The procedure for nominating and confirming justices to the Supreme Court of the United States involves several steps. Here’s how the confirmation process works. Read more »

26
Jul

Supreme Court on Use of Refusal to Submit to Field Sobriety Tests: No Clear Holding

Police officer conducts a traffic stop to give sobriety test to young man.
Defense attorney Vitaliy Kertchen analyzes a fractured ruling that appears to overturn a drunken driving conviction.

Police officer conducts a traffic stop to give sobriety test to young man.In State v. Mecham, the Washington Supreme Court issued a fractured opinion in a DUI prosecution in which the state entered into evidence the defendant’s refusal to perform field sobriety tests (FST). Although the court stated in its June 16 ruling it was affirming the defendant’s conviction, the actual result appears to reverse the conviction in a 5-4 vote, with the reasoning behind the outcome ending up in a 4-1-2-2 split. Read more »

« Older Entries