“See if you can figure out how the shock and sorrow of the young girl’s death got processed into criminal charges against 9 teenagers and whether this reaction is helpful or just.” [Ann Althouse]
More: there’s not enough in the article to reach conclusions either way, says Scott Greenfield.
Has its power peaked? If so, there might be less lobbying pressure “for ‘three strikes, your out’ and other senseless sentencing policies that provide jobs for [its] members.” [Rick Hills, Prawfsblawg, The Economist, earlier]
Andrew Moshirnia wonders whether an EU scheme might wind up kind of outlawing the Internet. [Citizen Media Law]
All four have completed their sentences and don’t seem to have it so bad, judging by a March 19 Bloomberg story. William Lerach is going to teach at a law school and work for a “progressive think-tank.” And for the Milberg law firm itself? “Over the past couple of years, while everybody has been laying off lawyers and cutting pay, we’ve been giving lawyers raises and extra bonuses.”
Do we even have a procedure for that? And does it matter that they were cleared of the charges? [Radley Balko]
A Charleston, W.V. defendant said it would be OK for the victim of his alleged petty larceny to give him a slap by way of punishment. A prosecutor conveyed the offer, subsequently dropped the charges, and got into a bit of hot water as a result. [AP/WSAZ, Greenfield]
Two Winkler County nurses filed accusations of problematic practices against Doctor Rolando G. Arafiles Jr. before the Texas Medical Board in April; a prosecutor who was friends with the doctor has now charged the two with a felony, “misuse of official information.” Local and national nursing associations have protested and established a legal defense fund. (Kevin Sack, “Nurse to Stand Trial for Reporting Doctor”, New York Times, Feb. 6; KFDA (undated)). It’s possible that the nurses made false accusations maliciously, but that seems something that could be handled through civil suits and then only after the Texas Medical Board adjudicated the complaints. Such overreaching by doctors could backfire, as it would give credence to the proposition that medical malpractice lawsuits are a necessary check to incompetent doctors.