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Was Rittenhouse’s Possession of the AR-15 Unlawful?

JonathanTurley

In covering the motions hearing last week in the trial of Kyle Rittenhouse, I noted a surprising comment from Judge Bruce Schroeder that he had “spent hours” with the Wisconsin gun law and could not state with certainty what it means in this case. It is also hard to instruct a jury on an ambiguous statute.

Statute 53
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Connecticut High School Student Arrested For Posting Racist Slur

JonathanTurley

Here is what the provision states: “Any person who, by his advertisement, ridicules or holds up to contempt any person or class of persons, on account of the creed, religion, color, denomination, nationality or race of such person or class of persons, shall be guilty of a class D misdemeanor.” Free speech demands bright lines.

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Fourth Circuit Overturns Conviction Of Retired Air Force Colonel For Using Racial Slur

JonathanTurley

” The language of the statute in my view is unconstitutional due to its sweeping criminalization of any “curse or abuse” that could “provoke a breach of the peace.” ” However, the appellate panel corrected noted that such laws are narrowly construed in light of controlling precedent. .”

Statute 36
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California Dreaming: Newsom’s Kidnapping Claim Against DeSantis is Long on Politics and Short on the Law

JonathanTurley

Newsom cited the kidnapping statute but apparently failed to read it or the underlying cases. While there is a fair debate over the policy of relocation by states like Texas and Florida, the effort to use the criminal process as part of that political debate is … well, pathetic. state once they are released by the federal government.

Laws 35
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The Land that Law Forgot: The Supreme Court and the New York Legal Wasteland

JonathanTurley

Through various contortions, Bragg converted a dead misdemeanor case into 34 felonies in an unprecedented prosecution. New Yorkers and the media insisted that such selective prosecution was in defense of the “rule of law.” Bragg did not bother to state clearly what that crime was, originally alluding to four different crimes.

Legal 45
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Yes, Trump Can Pardon Himself But He Should Not Do So

JonathanTurley

From bribery statutes to constitutional provisions, legal experts routinely and unfailingly conclude that Trump or his family can be prosecuted or impeached for an endless array of misdeeds. One of the longest standing debates in constitutional law is dismissed as ill-informed by some of the same experts.

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The Ghost of John Adams: How the Trump Trial Harkens Back to a Dark Period of American Law

JonathanTurley

The charges were built on a dead misdemeanor barred with the passage of the statute of limitations. Even after sitting in the courtroom watching the trial and the verdict, I still have no idea what Trump was convicted of in the case.

Laws 68