With Supreme Court deadlocked, commission drops Gableman ethics case
by Patrick Marley
Journal Sentinel
July 8, 2010

EXCERPT:

The case so divided the justices that they issued their decisions under separate case numbers - an unprecedented move for any set of judges, according to James Sample, a professor at Hofstra Law School in Hempstead, N.Y., who has followed the case.

"This is the first time where I think it became clear that in addition to principle, this court is deeply divided on a personal level," he said. "That group of seven is an incredibly awkward forced marriage."

Read the full article at jsonline.com.

Effective July 1, Hofstra Law School has named three current faculty members and an administrator to positions that reflect the school’s emphasis on scholarly pursuits and international context.

J. Herbie DiFonzo, Professor of Law, has assumed the role of Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. In this position, Dean DiFonzo will support the academic mission of the law school by attracting and retaining top-notch faculty and working with them to ensure that the law school provides an outstanding education to its students.

Eric Lane, the Eric J. Schmertz Distinguished Professor of Public Law and Public Service, has been named Associate Dean for Intellectual Life. In this new role, Dean Lane will bring distinguished practitioners, both private and public, to Hofstra Law School for presentation to students, faculty and others. He will also be responsible for helping interested faculty find opportunities to participate in policy making or other similar endeavors.

I. Bennett Capers, Associate Professor of Law, has been named Associate Dean for Intellectual Life. In this capacity, Dean Capers will enrich the Hofstra Law community by planning and promoting events, workshops and programs that encourage intellectual pursuits among faculty and students.

Jeffrey Dodge has transitioned to the role of Assistant Dean of Global Initiatives and Multicultural Affairs. In this new position, Jeff will provide visionary leadership, strategic planning and innovative programmatic development to position Hofstra Law as a leader in international law programming.

Off-Color Thoughts on Watching Fireworks on the Fourth of July
by Eric Lane
Brennan Center for Justice
July 6, 2010

EXCERPT:

On the Fourth of July, we celebrate our independence from England. Most Americans know this. We also celebrate our national commitment to the autonomy and equality of all men and women -- though the adopting Continental Congress thought only about the equality of white men. Through the Declaration of Independence we pledged to each other “our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.” It is this sharing, “that sense of shared sacrifice and responsibility-for ourselves and one another,” in President Obama’s words, that makes us Americans.

Read the full article at brennancenter.org.

Professor Scott Fruehwald's article An Introduction to Behavioral Biology for Legal Scholars has been featured on The MacArthur Law & Neuroscience Project Blog. The article appears at http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1627363.

In addition, Professor Fruehwald has moved into the top 1000 on the all-time SSRN downloads list at 951. He also is 640th for downloads for the past year and 473rd for new downloads per paper for the past year.

In New York Magazine, Professor Bennett Capers discusses the possible legality of the NYPD conducting vehicle checkpoint searches in the vicinity of Times Square and other New York landmarks in response to the attempted terrorist act in Times Square last week. The article is titled “The Siege We Live With.”

EXCERPT:

Next up might be car checkpoints, in Times Square and elsewhere. “You could start to see an increased police presence on the ground,” says Kris Coleman, a former FBI agent and CIA officer who runs his own security firm. “You might see the occasional vehicle checkpoint as well.” In Times Square, “the primary purpose would be to keep this landmark area safe from explosives—not arrest people,” says Bennett Capers, a law professor at Hofstra. “Legally, it’s probably fine. It passes the special-needs test.”

Read the full article at nymag.com.