Professor Jonathan Oberman from the Cardozo School of Law has a great opinion piece in the New York Law Journal about the two lawyers who were forced to resign as a result of the Bronx Defenders' "Hands Up" kerfuffle. These lawyers are smart, committed and hardworking, and have earned their clients', their community's, and this city's trust as a consequence of their dedication … [Read more...] about Reviewing the Charges Against the Bronx Defenders
Why Are Grand Juries So Secret?
I've been trying to understand why grand jury secrecy works the way it does, and there are parts of it that just don't make sense to me. At a fundamental level, the idea of the government telling people there's stuff they can never, ever talk about just doesn't seem right. Our right to free speech isn't absolute, but there usually has to be a pretty good reason for an … [Read more...] about Why Are Grand Juries So Secret?
The Bronx Defenders Get Some “Corrective Action”
A resolution of sorts has arrived at the Bronx Defenders, with lawyers Kumar Rao and Ryan Napoli both resigning from the firm as a consequence of the controversy over their involvement in the "Hands Up" rap video. News reports say that Executive Director Robin Steinberg has been suspended for 60 days without pay, and that Steinberg and her organization will be under increased … [Read more...] about The Bronx Defenders Get Some “Corrective Action”
A Very Good Point About the “Hands Up” Controversy From Radley Balko
In his article about the Bronx Defenders' involvement with the "Hands Up" rap video, Radley Balko makes explicit something I had in the back of my mind when I wrote my post, but that I couldn't quite articulate: In the Bronx Defenders, we have group that knows how to work the system. It has irreplaceable institutional knowledge of the city’s bureaucracy, its courts and its … [Read more...] about A Very Good Point About the “Hands Up” Controversy From Radley Balko
A Bit Of Excitement Around Here
On a personal bloggy note, this past week I've started seeing signs that Windypundit is once again beginning to draw a bit of attention. The tweet for my post about the attempt to shut down the Bronx Defenders because of a rap video was retweeted by a relatively large number of people, starting with Gideon and Scott, and that post has received about 25 times the traffic one of … [Read more...] about A Bit Of Excitement Around Here