Jody Arias killed her boyfriend. Of that there is no doubt. And after a five-month trial the jury convicted her of murder, for which she could be executed. But after 13 hours of intense deliberations, the jury could not say unanimously that she should die. Despite the inflammatory...

It's one thing for the U.S. military to raid a compound in Kabul using incendiary grenades to secure and enter the premises. It's quite another thing for U.S. police officers to execute a search warrant by throwing "flash-bang" grenades into a home, raining the place with rubber bullets, and kicking...

The upcoming federal trial in Boston, Massachusetts of James "Whitey" Bulger for murder, extortion, racketeering, and conspiracy once again raises the question of how far prosecutors and police can go in authorizing private citizens to violate the law or to excuse violations once committed. One of Bulger's principal defenses is...

Actually, the first question is why Don Siegelman was prosecuted and jailed at all. The second question is why President Obama has not yet pardoned him or commuted his sentence. Of all the abusive, vindictive, and politically-driven prosecutions by the U.S. Department of Justice, the prosecution of Don Siegleman stands...

An administrative judge has vacated suspensions of two federal prosecutors who were disciplined by the Justice Department for their flagrant misconduct in prosecuting and convicting the late Senator Ted Stevens. The two prosecutors - James Goeke and Joseph Bottini - were excoriated by the trial...

Do Americans care more about the integrity of sports than the integrity of the justice system? That cynical-sounding question keeps recurring when one examines the many court decisions, studies, and anecdotal reports about public prosecutors who engage in the most egregious kinds of cheating to win convictions but who escape...

Last week, a federal appeals court rejected the Central Intelligence Agency's plea for secrecy about its use of unmanned aerial vehicles, commonly called drones, to kill targeted individuals. It's very unusual for a court to override the CIA's claim to secrecy; even more unusual is the language used...

The Working Families Party (WFP) has pummeled New York City's Republican-conservative minions hard, and they're being counter-attacked with sucker-punches. The liberal WFP, created 15 years ago, has become an increasingly influential force in city politics, attracting more than 250,000 votes on its ballot line in last November's elections. But it...

Once upon a time in U.S. criminal trials, prosecutors tried often to inflame a jury's racial fears and stereotypes with predictions of bloodshed, terror, and violence unless the jury convicted the accused black man. Common arguments included: "Unless you hang this Negro, white people won't be safe...

Don't cry for former Texas prosecutor, now judge Ken Anderson, who faced a court of inquiry last week into whether he deliberately hid evidence that sent an innocent man to prison for 25 years for murder. As the prosecutor in the 1987 trial of Michael Morton,...

Aaron Swartz's suicide last weekend a few months before he was to stand trial for computer fraud has evoked tidal waves of outrage against the federal prosecutors for vastly abusing their power by bringing inflated and unfair charges against Swartz, the 26-year-old
Internet folk hero and...

Headlines last week reported that a majority of Puerto Ricans voted in favor of statehood for the first time in the country's history. The referendum had two parts. The first part asked whether the voter agreed with Puerto Rico's current status as a U.S. commonwealth, which was described...

Lance Armstrong has been stripped of his seven Tour de France titles, numerous endorsements, and banned from cycling and Olympic competition for life. He has been exposed as a fake, a cheater, and a mean-spirited bully. Proof that Armstrong was the ringleader of the biggest sports doping conspiracy ever is...

What is the impact on young boys of the reaffirmation by the leadership of the Boy Scouts of America of its ban on gays? What do young scouts or aspiring scouts -- cubs, boys, and eagles -- think about when they learn that a scout leader they trusted...

One of the most troubling features in an otherwise commendable report by Louis Freeh on the Penn State sex scandal is the failure to closely examine why the district attorney of Centre County, Roy Gricar, in May 1998, did not prosecute Jerry Sandusky for crimes of sexual abuse....

Watching the Supreme Court in action is fascinating, especially when reflecting on how the five so-called conservative justices flaunt their repugnance for conservative judicial values. These judges -- John Roberts, Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy, Clarence Thomas, and Samuel Alito -- were nominated and confirmed after representing in sworn testimony before...

Consider the following cases:

1. Lobbyists for state casino operators seek to persuade state legislators to support a bill to legalize gambling. Casino operators, working through lobbyists, treat legislators to entertainment, perks, and suggestions of large political contributions if they support the bill. Some of these lobbied lawmakers vote for...

Four key witnesses to the deadly encounter between Trayvon Martin and George Zimmerman gave statements to the police shortly after the occurrence that appeared to support Zimmerman's claim that he fatally shot Martin in self-defense. However, when these witnesses were re-interviewed by agents of the special state prosecutor weeks later,...

Prosecutors often deal with crime victims who do not want to testify. Victims are afraid they will be harmed by their abusers, such as victims of domestic violence. Others are embarrassed to testify in public and undergo brutal cross-examination, such as rape victims. Others are traumatized by the courtroom and...

One of the key pieces of circumstantial evidence in the murder charge against George Zimmerman for killing Trayvon Martin is a cry for help moments before the fatal shot that was recorded while a witness who heard the struggle made a 911 call to the police. Identifying the voice of...