We don’t have enough of it. At least, not the right kind, that actually, you know, defends rights.
5 thoughts on “Judicial Activism”
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We don’t have enough of it. At least, not the right kind, that actually, you know, defends rights.
Comments are closed.
There’s something to be said in favor of jury nullification when the circumstances warrant.
While I agree with the overall thesis of this paper, I think the author uses a poor example when he cites the number of laws passed and the number found unconstitutional. Judicial activism extends well beyond simply nullifying laws that were passed. It is seen more often in the interpretation of how the law affects the people and the government (usually in favor of bigger government intruding into the lives of the people).
I’ve heard of this book but have not had time to read it yet. It does sound interesting.
Three Felonies a Day: How the Feds Target the Innocent
by Harvey Sliverglate.
The average professional in this country wakes up in the morning, goes to work, comes home, eats dinner, and then goes to sleep, unaware that he or she has likely committed several federal crimes that day. Why? The answer lies in the very nature of modern federal criminal laws, which have exploded in number but also become impossibly broad and vague. In Three Felonies a Day, Harvey A. Silverglate reveals how federal criminal laws have become dangerously disconnected from the English common law tradition and how prosecutors can pin arguable federal crimes on any one of us, for even the most seemingly innocuous behavior. The volume of federal crimes in recent decades has increased well beyond the statute books and into the morass of the Code of Federal Regulations, handing federal prosecutors an additional trove of vague and exceedingly complex and technical prohibitions to stick on their hapless targets. The dangers spelled out in Three Felonies a Day do not apply solely to “white collar criminals,” state and local politicians, and professionals. No social class or profession is safe from this troubling form of social control by the executive branch, and nothing less than the integrity of our constitutional democracy hangs in the balance.
The “Bar” should be:
Here’s a 3x2x2 crate of things. Enumerate in detail every law you could be cited for in this city by possessing this crate.
Police await outside.
There is an ancient story from China, about a military officer marching his unit of militia to the mustering grounds, when they happen up on a bridge that is washed out. The officer realizes his conundrum, and says to his men:
“Men, what is the penalty for rebellion?”
“Sir, it is DEATH!”
“Very good, and what is the penalty for failing to show up at muster?”
“Sir, it is DEATH!”
“Well men, it look like we are going to not make it to muster.”
The revolution began the next day.