|
Date |
Required
Reading |
Click here for
syllabus (adobe.pdf) | Career
& Job Info
|
|
Jan 6 |
Introduction &
Greeting |
I would recommend bookmarking this page for
further reference. You may need to hit the Reload/Refresh button to get
the latest version.
|
| Jan 13 |
Reiman, CJ
Ethics (intro); Nash, Teaching Ethics; Part 1,
Bazelon |
|
| Jan 20 |
Part 1, Katz; Part 2,
Feinberg p 87-88 (skip section 4) & 92 (Mill) - 108
Class will cover substantial
material not in the text
|
By now, nearly everyone has heard of Armin Meiwes. Meiwes, a German citizen, has freely admitted to dismembering another German man and eating his flesh. Indeed, Meiwes carefully preserved the killing on videotape and still had pieces of the body in his freezer when he was arrested. During much of the process of dismemberment, the victim reportedly remained conscious.
The obstacle to a murder charge is the fact that the evidence incontrovertibly shows that Meiwes's victim wanted to be eaten. Indeed, he had agreed to the arrangement over the Internet, answering an ad placed by Meiwes that specifically sought a person who wanted to be slaughtered and cannibalized.
In the U.S., the victim's consent is no defense to murder, and it would be easy to prosecute an American counterpart to Meiwes. But in Germany, the victim's consent renders the crime a "killing on request" -- that is, an instance of illegal euthanasia. Unfortunately, this offense is punishable by a very modest sentence of from six months to five years of incarceration.
[Is it Always Torture to Dismember and Eat a Conscious Human Being?
Findlaw.com]
|
|
IN CLASS QUIZ #1: From
the Katz reading, what are the facts of People v Dlugash and did
the court find him guilty or acquit?
|
| Jan 27 |
Part 2,
Drug debate (Trebach and Inciardi); Prostitution (In re P; MacKinnon; Committee for
Prostitutes’ Rights |
NEWS:
Santa Cruz Defies Bush Administration on Medical Marijuana:
City Hall Courtyard Will Be Medical Marijuana Dispensary for Victims of DEA Raid
WAMM, a cooperative run by and for patients (most with terminal diagnoses), worked closely with local authorities, strictly followed California law and local guidelines, and never sold marijuana to anyone. Nevertheless, armed DEA agents swooped down on the co-op Sept. 5, pointed automatic weapons at paralyzed patients, tore up WAMM's garden, and carted off operators Valerie and Mike Corral in handcuffs.
|
|
PAPER
1 DUE: Reading - Fallen Men: At 'John School,' Students Review a Lesson Picked Up on the Street
Paper topic - In a 2
page paper, review the main points of the article and discuss which
of the writings (In re P; MacKinnon; Committee for Prostitutes’
Rights) on prostitution in
the book is best supported by the article. There is no ‘right’ answer
here, and papers will be graded according to how well (and fairly) you
summarize the article and the reading(s) in the book. Feel free to discuss
how the article relates to more than one of the readings if you would
prefer.
|
| Feb
3 |
Part 2,
Hate
Crime (Wisc v Mitchell);
Corporate Violence
|
|
|
|
|
IN
CLASS QUIZ #2:
Know the basic question in the case of Virginia
v Black,
whether the Court upheld or struck down the law, and at least two of the
Court’s reasons [on the webpage, these are identified as (a) (b) and
(c)]
|
| Feb
10 |
TEST 1 remember
to be on time because no one will be admitted to take the final after the
first person has left
|
| Feb
17 |
Appendix on Codes of Ethics; Part 3, Kleinig; Skolnick & Leo |
|
|
Feb 23 - 27 NO CLASS - WINTER
RECESS |
| March
2 |
Part 3, Marx; US v Tobias; Selective
Enforcement |
|
|
IN
CLASS QUIZ #3: Examine
Part III of Why
Driving While Black Matters,
where the author lists six specific reasons. Your quiz will be:
"Write down three as well as their definition or
explanation for why the author believes driving while black does
matter.” |
| March 9 |
Part 4, Lawyers’
Ethics - Haskell; Amar &
Cochran debate;
Weinstein
|
Read the
true story about the behavior of a lawyer, taken from a book called
the moral compass of the American Lawyer.
|
| March 16 |
TEST
2 remember
to be on time because no one will be admitted to take the final after the
first person has left
Review sheet - link
for bonus question - focus on pros and cons of whether Stewart should
have taken the stand
|
| March
23 |
Part 5,
Treatment of Inmates - Gorman; Newman |
The text for the first edition of Just
and Painful is available online. |
| IN
CLASS QUIZ #4: spanking
machines. The quiz will ask about spanking machines:
(1)
what some people see as the problem with whipping and (2) how the spanking
machine could promote the administration of justice. |
| March
30 |
Part 5: National Council of Churches on death penalty;
Nathanson, Reiman, van den Haag exchange; American Medical Association |
|
| IN CLASS QUIZ #5: Be prepared to give a quick summary of the
101 reasons the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops opposes the
death penalty
|
| April
6 |
Part 6, Strossen and Allen debate;
Reiman |
column
in Findlaw.com about the virtual child pornography case
MSNBC had a good piece on 'child
erotica' - nonnude but suggestive pictures of young teenage girls;
there's also a link to the Knox
case where a circuit court decides nudity is not a requirement for 'lewd
and lascivious exhibition of the genitals' required for a child porn
conviction.
|
| April
13 |
Part 6, Seagal;
Leighton |
Televising
executions |
|
:
What was the case of Lappin
v Entertainment Network? |
| April 20 |
Final Exam
- regular class time ~ Review
Sheet
remember
to be on time because no one will be admitted to take the final after the
first person has left BONUS:
Read EITHER of the following What Gay Couples Lack -- Besides Marriage:
The Crucial Rights Under Tort Law That Only Spouses Can Assert Mayhem in
Fallujah: What the Law Has to Say About the Gruesome Murders In Iraq, and What the U.S.'s Response to the Murders May Be
(focus on first part where author discusses what the law has to say about
murder, which ends with subheading 'What Rules Govern the U.S.'s Military Response?') The
bonus is worth a maximum of 5 points and you are more likely to get full
credit by giving a clear and detailed review of one article than by a
shallow and superficial discussion of both. This is a choice, and your
time will be better spent preparing the required material rather than
trying to prepare both bonus questions.
|
