By: Lizzy Ritchie, Editor-In-Chief The Fifth Amendment Takings Clause of the United States Constitution prohibits the government from taking private property for public use, without paying the property owner just compensation.[1] So long as the government provides just compensation, it is authorized to exercise its eminent domain power pursuant to the public health, safety, morals, or welfare.[2] The Supreme Court of the United States has … Continue reading Dissecting Koontz v. St. Johns River Water Management District: Should Heightened Scrutiny Apply to Monetary Exactions?

By: M. Randell Scism We all know somebody who has a Juul, or some other type of alternative nicotine product. Sometimes, this person is trying to quit smoking traditional cigarettes. The goal of e-cigarettes is to get people who are addicted to cigarettes to switch to e-cigarettes without enticing non-smokers to try them.[1]This is a difficult task, as there is a rapid growth in the … Continue reading Virginia’s Response to Teens’ Juuling Addiction

  By: Erica Rebussini, Notes and Comments Editor Over the past two summers I’ve had criminal law internships in Virginia and Massachusetts, respectively. After these experiences, I can’t help but question some of the disparities I witnessed in those systems. Broadly speaking, the differences between these criminal court cultures are palpable in both the substantive application of the law as well as practical nuances inherent … Continue reading The “Right” Side of Justice: A Personal Reflection Upon the Differences Between Practicing Criminal Law in Virginia and Massachusetts

By: Halley Taylor Though women have served in the United States military in various capacities for more than a century[1], military officials and military doctors have failed in large part to adapt their practices and attitudes, causing women to suffer serious health problems with effects impacting both their military and civilian lives for years.[2] Women serving in the military today put their lives on the … Continue reading Female Soldiers’ Health at Risk Under Current Military Practices

By: Aishaah R. Reed With the 2020 presidential election looming a little more than a year away, many candidates are focusing on the economy. For Democratic candidates, there is a conscious effort to level the economic scales to ensure economic security for all Americans.[1] This has been witnessed in a number of areas including calls for tuition-free higher education, universal childcare, and Medicare for all.[2] … Continue reading Reparations Emerging as a Viable Option in Fighting the Racial Wealth Gap

By: Pete Johnson Every public defender—whether  young or seasoned—knows the story of Clarence Earl Gideon, an indigent Florida defendant who hand-wrote a note to America’s highest court declaring that he had a right to an attorney.[1] Gideon’s inspirational story led to the landmark Supreme Court decision of Gideon v. Wainwright, in which the Court ruled that Gideon’s 6th Amendment constitutional rights were violated when he … Continue reading Appoint Public Defenders to Federal and State Courts

PC: https://www.kiplinger.com/article/taxes/T055-C032-S014-5-ways-to-help-control-your-taxes-in-retirement.html By: Terri Morris The 2019 tax filing season had a slow start as the IRS and many other federal government agencies were forced to halt operations due to the longest federal government shutdown in U.S. history.[1] The IRS closure left Americans wondering how and when they would be able to file their income tax returns.[2] The federal government reopened on January 25, 2019, after … Continue reading Americans Start to Feel the Effects of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act

By: Gianna Fienberg In April 2018, Virginia took the important step of ensuring the incarcerated had access to menstrual products at no cost through the enactment of House Bill 83.[1] The bill directed the State Board of Corrections and the Director of the Department of Corrections to adopt and implement a standard or policy “to ensure the provision of feminine hygiene products to female inmates … Continue reading Periods & Prisons: Virginia’s Recent Struggle to Improve Menstrual Equity in State Facilities

By: Randell Scism When a child is a victim of a crime, not only must they deal with the emotional consequences of that experience, but they may have to deal with the potentially traumatizing effects of the legal involvement.[1] Child abusers are criminally sanctioned, but that requires the child victim to endure the long and traumatic road through trial.[2] It is not uncommon for children … Continue reading (Hu)man’s Best Friend: How Therapy Dogs Can Help Child Victims Testify in Court