By: Abbey Lahnston In the summer of 2021, Virginia moved from its well-established institution of jury sentencing to judge sentencing.[1] Joe Morrisey, a Virginia State Senator claimed, “Jurors have no idea what a normal sentence is. That’s why it is important to have a judge sentencing who has the guidelines and can put it into context.”[2] But Joe Morrisey, and the Virginia Legislation in general, … Continue reading
By: Amanuel Mekonnen DACA, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, is under attack again. On June 16, 2021, Judge Andrew S. Hanen of the United States District Court in Houston ordered the immediate vacatur of the memorandum that created the DACA program and remanded the program back to the Department for Homeland Security (DHS), subject to a temporary stay. [1] In a 77-page memorandum, … Continue reading
By: Jessica King In the United States, approximately 24,000 juveniles are held in detention on a given night. Three hundred thousand young offenders are admitted to detention centers every year.[1] The sentencing of an offender is driven by three key considerations: punishment, deterrence, and rehabilitation. Rehabilitation often holds the most weight when discussing the sentencing of youth offenders.[2] Juvenile justice policy has been increasingly focused … Continue reading Recidivism in Young Offenders: The Focus on Rehabilitation
By: Tyler Butt In 2008 the Supreme Court held that the Second Amendment “provides an induvial right to keep a handgun at home for self-defense.”[1] Since that ruling, the Supreme Court has largely refused to rule on additional Second Amendment related challenges. However, this upcoming term, the Supreme Court will hear ““perhaps the single most important unresolved Second Amendment question” since the court found an … Continue reading “Proper Cause” the Supreme Court to decide on most consequential Second Amendment Case in a decade
By: Albert Gutierrez The eviction situation in Virginia is highly unsettling. In 2016, five of the top ten cities with the highest eviction rates were located in Virginia.[1] The list included cities such as, Richmond, Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk, and Chesapeake.[2] Richmond, in particular, was second in the nation, where roughly 1 in 9 renters faced eviction each year.[3] With eviction numbers skyrocketing throughout Virginia … Continue reading “New Virginia Law Can Have a Positive Effect on Those Facing Eviction”
By: Kaylin Cecchini Evaluating credit history in determining whether a rental applicant will be a “good tenant” is a relic of a racist history in housing accessibility. Credit reports have little to no predictive value for any person but have even larger and compounding complications for people of color.[1] Access to housing is a necessary foundation for achieving other goals related to food security, employment … Continue reading Removing Credit History from the Rental Applicant Screening Process
By: Elizabeth Vanasse When discussing the rights of students to enjoy free speech, the frequently cited case is Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District.[1] This case is heralded as the “high-water mark” of students’ rights to freely express themselves and to enjoy constitutional rights in the school-building.[2] However, the reality of Tinker is that its most progressive statement of student freedom is only … Continue reading We Don’t Protect Student Speech As Much As We Think: Where Tinker Falls Short
By: Kira Davis The “best interests of the child” has become the fundamental consideration in family courts.[1] In order to determine what is in the child’s “best interests” when deciding custody arrangements, courts consider multiple factors.[2] These factors include the child’s age, which party can continue to provide the child’s current routine, and which party is able to meet the child’s physical needs, among others.[3] … Continue reading Why Attachment Theory Should Play a Larger Role in the Courtroom
By Pablo Grijalva On April 22, 1970, 20 million Americans protested for environmental reforms[1]. About eight months later, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established, a new era of protecting land and waterways that the public can benefit from and enjoy. Now in 2021, Greenhouse Gas Emissions are at their highest recorded levels[2], and we continue to see a rise in extreme weather events[3] causing … Continue reading Recent SCOTUS decision may open-or close- the door for State Tort Climate Claims
By: Teresa Sun One of the clients at the Warrenton Public Defenders, Mr. M, a big guy in his 50s, broke into tears when his attorney explained to him that per the most recent legislative change, he may not have to go back to jail for his most recent probation violation. Mr. M served one-year in prison for a drug possession charge, still had two-and-a-half … Continue reading Virginia’s Probation Reform: First Step
