Why Wait to Act When Risk is Known?

Marna Anderson from WATCH wrote a letter to the editor concerning courthouse safety. It is the second letter. Marna was here in Fall 2011 to speak about how a poor economy can lead to tough decisions in domestic violence cases.

Read the letter: COURTROOM SAFETY - Why Wait to Act When Risk is Known?

The letter is a call to increase courtroom security and is a response to the Cook County shooting, where a man charged with sexual assault involving a child returned to the courthouse after his trial and shot three people.

A Special Risk: The Supreme Court's Concerns with Eyewitness Testimony

Thanks for coming to our event!

Hey there CJL fans and members,

Thanks to everyone who came to our first event of the new school year. It was great to see so many of you there to hear Marna Anderson from WATCH discuss the economics of domestic violence. If you're interested in learning more about WATCH and its mission, please visit watchmn.org.

The Economics of Domestic Violence

Thursday meetings

Justice League members and enthusiasts:

Thanks for a great first meeting today!  We will be holding regular check-in meetings every other Thursday, starting on the second Thursday in October (the 13th).  They'll be twenty minutes long and we'll try to provide snacks, so feel free to pop in, grab some food, and see what's going on with CJL!

We'll provide more info as the meetings draw nearer.

CJL Human Rights Picnic: Supermax Prisons

Criminal Justice League End of Summer Event

Human Rights Picnic: Supermax Prisons

When:  Wednesday, August 24 · 7:00pm - 9:00pm 

Where: Van Cleve Park 

Who: Hosted by the Twin Cities Student Coalition for Human Rights

What:  Come participate in a potluck discussion on the phenomenon of Supermax prisons in the United States, and their effect on the prison system as a whole, its inmates, and the wider community.

We will especially be discussing the Human Rights
Coalition’s extensive research on the use of isolation in prisons, and the recent hunger strikes by supermax prisoners in California.  On Tuesday, one day before our discussion, legislators are meeting to address the ongoing Pelican Bay hunger strike protesting isolation, so we will be able to discuss the outcome of that meeting.

Potluck style: bring your ideas and, if you can, something yummy to share!

Social Pressure, Memory Conformity, and Witness Testimony: A Recipe for Injustice?

Science Magazine's July 1 podcast talks about the role social and group pressure has on memory.

According to a recent study, people not only conform their opinions publicly to social pressure, but passive social pressure can also change peoples' memories subconsciously.  The study mapped these subconscious memory adjustments to a specific pattern of neuro-activity in the amygdala

Micah Edelson, a researcher on the study describes in an interview with Science Magazine Podcast how he showed a group of subjects a film, and afterwards asked a series of questions about it.  Shortly thereafter, he again interviewed the subjects; this time, however, he provided (false) statements about the film that contradicted answers that subjects had previously answered correctly, and felt confident about.  The subjects showed a strong trend towards altering their answers on all of these points.


This social and psychological phenomenon of particular interest to persons in criminal law fields because of its implications for witness testimony.  As the host of the podcast points out, many involve more than one witness, and they tend to talk to each other about the people and incidents involved prior to giving testimony.  Edelson's study implies that, although witnesses may not be intentionally lying on the stand or in affidavits, social influence may have actually altered even their most confident memories of events by the time they make their statement to the court.

Listen to the podcast here.

As an added bonus, though not necessarily related to Criminal Law, the rest of the podcast discusses the significance and long-term impact of NASA’s space shuttle; exploring the mathematics and applying statistics to the study of terrorist groups; why some penguins seem to be afraid of the dark; and more.

Crime Novels, in Real Life

The New York Times calls it "A Revenge Plot So Intricate the Prosecutors Were Pawns."

They say it's "one of the most bizarre" cases in New York's history.

Queens district attorney, Richard A. Brown, says that "In the collective memory, no one has ever seen anything like this before."

What do you think?

Read the story of Seemona Sumasar, who says that her ex-boyfriend framed her for a rampaging series of armed robberies, to get revenge for her refusing to drop rape charges against him.

This is the stuff of legends and crime novels, kids.  Only in real life, and affecting real people.

Attend Federal Terrorism Case starting Monday, July 18

Judge Davis in the District Court will be hearing a terrorism case involving individuals from the group al-Shabaab starting next Monday, July 18. The trial is likely to receive national attention. 


 The terrorism trial in Judge Davis' courtroom will actually start next Tuesday, July 19. The motions in limine will be heard on Monday, but the opening statements will occur on Tuesday.


Judge Davis' courtroom is on the 15th floor of the Federal Courthouse.  The courthouse is located at 300 South Fourth Street, Minneapolis, MN 55415.

Should Porn be Allowed in Prisons?

Stumbled across this interesting blog post on whether porn should be allowed in prisons. 

Some folks argue that it should, because sexuality is a basic right and it is cruel and unusual to deny people sexuality.  As many persons in prison are heterosexual, and prisons are usually segregated by sex, this argument sees porn as a method of sexual release for prisoners.

Other folks say porn, or at least some kinds of porn, should not be allowed in prisons, because it can be violent and objectifying.  People often end up in prison because of violent and/or objectifying behavior, and so this argument sees porn or at least violent porn as impeding reform and rehabilitation of prisoners.

The blog post is talking about Kyle Richards' case against the State of Michigan, protesting the policy in his county jail that outlaws pornography.  Richards argues that the anti-porn policy in the county jail violates the First Amendment.

In a particularly controversial recent story, a man accused of making child pornography and child rape reviews his own child pornography while in jail.  Because he is representing himself pro se, he has a right to review the films in order to prepare his defense.

Hamlet, As Performed by Real Murderers

Another hit from This American Life: Act V.  The official tagline:

We devote this entire episode to one story: Over the course of six months, reporter and TAL contributor Jack Hitt followed a group of inmates at a high-security prison as they rehearsed and staged a production of the last act—Act V—of Hamlet.

(The Cast)

The show asks, what can one more production of Hamlet possibly reveal about murder, revenge, and guilt that millions of previous productions haven't?  When the cast members are themselves murderers and other violent criminals, Hamlet can actually take on new meaning.  The cast members of a top-security Missouri prison explore aspects of prison life, and their selves, in their discussions over performing in the play with reporter Jack Hitt.

One cast member tells how he came to better understand his own violent history, and the pain of being a victim of violence, through playing the role of the Ghost of the King.  

Big Hutch, who plays Horatio, criticizes the plot of Hamlet on the grounds that Hamlet's struggle with whether or not to take revenge, because he says there is no real conflict: Hamlet committed to killing his uncle the minute his father died.  Instead, he describes how Hamlet should happen, using the prison as a setting to create a real moral conflict for the character.

Another cast member celebrates his participation in Hamlet as his opportunity to escape the social pressures of prison life and to learn about another culture.

And, at the heart of it all, there's Hamlet's timeless question, which the cast members daily bring to life: are we forever the prisoner's of our actions?

Cake Eating Criminals: Using the Criminal Justice System to Get Health Care

An interesting article from ABA Journal:

Defendant Says He Robbed a Bank to Get Prison Health Care

A North Carolina man who robbed a bank proved to be a cooperative criminal.
James Verone passed a note to the teller that asked for a dollar. Then he sat down and waited for police to arrive, WCNC.com reports. Verone wanted to get arrested to get prison health care.
Verone says he doesn’t have a job and doesn’t have any money. He has two ruptured disks, a growth on his chest, and a problem with his left foot. He told WCNC in a jailhouse interview that he’s getting good heath care now, although the prison doctor accused him of manipulating the system.
"[This is the] first time I've ever been in trouble with the law,” Verone said in the interview from the Gaston County Jail posted on WCNC’s website. “I'm sort of a logical person and that was my logic. [That was] what I came up with.”
Verone, 59, had hoped to spend three years in jail until he is released and begins collecting Social Security. He hopes to move to Myrtle Beach and buy a condominium at that time. Because he only asked for $1, though, he may not get as much jail time as he is seeking.

Interesting conversation has cropped up in the comments section, too.  One commenter criticizes Verone's actions as twisting the criminal justice system into a form of freeloading.  See Comment 19 from "Hard Worker":

What bothers me is the general sentiment in our country right now that if somebody wants something it should just be given them.  The American Dream is that you are provided the opportunity to pursue happiness…not merely given it.

And Comment 30, also from "Hard Worker":

I just don’t think it is ever justified to break the law in order to get what you want…no matter how “just” you believe your reason may be.  We live in a society of law, and I don’t think he is justified in what he did.

Still, others laud Verone as highlighting massive problems with U.S. health care.  See Comment 29, from "This guy is awesome. This country is sad":

I hope more and more people do this and other absurd acts to get healthcare so the rest of the world can see how greedy and selfish our government and wealthy top 5% of this country are.

And Comment 31 from the same:

If there is something wrong in this country and it’s laws, then by god people must act, legal or not. Laws are not morals.

And Comment 15 from "AndytheLawyer":

Of the 22 first world nations on earth, only the USA lacks a national health. 
As for #7—In an age with unemployment hovering at 10% and newly created joblets not providing health benefits, “Get a job and pay for it yourself” sounds a lot like “Let them eat cake.”

Is this about access to the ingredients essential to the pursuit of happiness, or is this a form of civil disobedience too erosive to the structure of justice in the U.S. to tolerate?  What should the judge do with this?  Thoughts?

Habeas Schmabeas and the End(?) of Guantanamo

January 22, 2009: President Obama orders the detention facilities at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba to close within a year.

But 172 detainees still remain in custody today.

You can see this information, and an graphically illustrated history of the Guantanamo detention facility, on the New York Times' Guantanamo Docket.

Guantanamo is a symbol of the hot debate surrounding the detention and treatment of suspected terrorists.  At the heart of the issue we encounter challenging questions about how far we are willing to compromise the rights of detainees - both citizens and non-citizens - for the sake of security.

One such right, Habeas Corpus, pops up frequently in detention cases. Habeas Corpus, the right of a person to compel a justification of the lawfulness of their detention before a court, is so fundamental to protecting people from the abuse of governmental power that the founders wrote it right into the Constitution.  Constitutional Law texts invariably Hamdan, Hamdi, and Boumediene as the key, recent detention cases featuring a writ of Habeas Corpus.  These three cases had the overall effect of reinforcing the right of all persons, citizens and non-citizens and suspected terrorists alike, to petition for habeas corpus, regardless of whatever Congress' terrorism defense legislation says.

I found the the award winning This American Life radio show episode "Habeas Schmabeas" particularly valuable because it stepped past legal form and statistics and asked for the perspectives of persons who actually experienced detention for suspected terrorism.  It tied high falutin expressions of constitutional law in with real peoples' stories.

From the official description:

The right of habeas corpus has been a part of our country's legal tradition longer than we've actually been a country. It means that our government has to explain why it's holding a person in custody. But now, the War on Terror has nixed many of the rules we used to think of as fundamental. At Guantanamo Bay, our government initially claimed that prisoners should not be covered by habeas—or even by the Geneva Conventions—because they're the most fearsome enemies we have. But is that true? Is it a camp full of terrorists, or a camp full of our mistakes?

My favorite part of the episode is hearing the poem the detainees shared around with each other - it's towards the end, but it's worth the listen.

The TAL episode leans towards a critical view of U.S. authorities overseeing terrorist detention programs, but that doesn't make that the right or even the best response to these stories, and to terrorist investigation in general.  What do you think?

Drive-In for Saudi Women's Right to Drive this Friday

Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world that enforces a legal ban on women driving.  This means that women depend on male drivers, often hired strangers, or public transportation to go anywhere.  This limits women's freedom of movement, as well as their opportunities for employment, especially if they cannot afford a private driver.  Activists like Manal-al-Sharif have taken on the issue, and many Saudi women have declared that this Friday, June 17th, they will take to the streets - behind the wheel, that is.

And there's more.  Three women in Rochester, Minnesota were fired from their jobs as professional drivers because of the driving ban.  The Saudi Arabian visitors who they were hired to drive for didn't want women drivers, so the driving companies fired them.  Here in Minnesota, in 2010, they were fired just for being women.  This MPR article describes their story.

Show your support for the Rochester women, and Saudi women's right to drive at the Gender Justice Drive-In.

Friday, June 17th, anytime between 11:30am and 5:30pm

Rainbow Parking Lot by the corner of Lake Street and 27th Ave in Minneapolis

Photograph Drive: We'll snap a photo of you driving, in your car, or in our snappy green cut-out car.  We will send the collection to the Saudi government and to our domestic legislators as a visual showing of the support that Saudi women drivers have.  If you can't make it, you can still send in a photo to admin@genderjustice.us.

Green Ribbon Campaign: Put a green ribbon on your antenna or mirror, and look forward to explaining its meaning to curious folks in the parking lot, or passengers.

Rally for Rochester Women: Come meet the Rochester women, and learn more about the international intersections of gender issues and the impact litigation that Gender Justice pursues.

Check out and RSVP to the Facebook page for the event here.

There is also more info available on the Gender Justice website, at www.genderjustice.us.

I hope to see you there!

Bound By Law

We'd like honor the comics of late Professor Keith Aoki.  Professor Aoki wrote legal comics even as a student at Harvard Law.  He recently translated his expertise in intellectual property and copyright law into a full published comic book with James Boyle and Jeniffer Jenkins.  You can read the expanded edition here:


http://www.thepublicdomain.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/bound-by-law-duke-edition.pdf

Professor Aoki also studied, taught, and wrote about environmental issues, race issues, agriculture patents, and immigration.   From a bio on the Center for the Study of Public Domain website:

Keith Aoki is a longtime cartoonist who loves the late 1960s comic work of Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, Jim Steranko and earlier greats like Will Eisner, Chester Gould and Al Capp. He has also been influenced by the vibrant contemporary work of Robert Crumb, Scott McCloud, Art Spiegelman and Jamie Hernandez. In the mid-1980s, Aoki decided to leave the bohemian art demimonde to go to Harvard Law School. He is now Professor of Law at U.C. Davis King Hall School of Law, where he has taught since 2007, and specializes in the areas of intellectual property, local government law, globalization, and critical theory. Prior to U.C. Davis, he was the Philip H. Knight Professor of Law at the University of Oregon School of Law, which he joined in 1993. He has published law review articles in the Stanford, California, Iowa and Boston College Law Reviews and is author of the forthcoming book Seed Wars: Cases and Materials on Intellectual Property and Plant Genetic Resources

You can find another bio and list of Professor Aoki's publications on his page on the U.C. Davis website.

Thank you, Professor Aoki, for adding your creativity and love of comics to the study and discussion of law.

Child Trafficking / Prostitution in the U.S.

For those of you who missed WLSA and MJF's event a couple weeks ago on human trafficking, this video gives a quick look at one of the topics discussed: convicting victims.  The discussion could tie in with Professor Marshal's discussion of convicting victims and whether we should expect victims to uphold certain duties at our event a couple weeks ago.  It definitely echoes Professor Feld's description of the lack of services for juvenile vagrants and how the juvenile justice system has become the default means of removing juveniles from the streets at our event last semester.  I'm curious what you might think.

Should prostitution be criminalized?

Are there other means for responding to juvenile "delinquency" or vagrancy currently in place?  What might be the practical realities of creating other means?

What might the victims' duties be in cases of human trafficking?  Cooperating to reveal their pimps so that the perpetrators of traffickers can be brought to justice?

And, the tag beneath the video suggests that prostitution is organized crimes third largest industry.  How does that affect the way we treat trafficking in the U.S.?  The ways we could try to end it?

An upcoming event at the law school

Verdad, Justicia, y Reparación

Truth, Justice, and Reparation

A talk by Spanish Investigating Judge Baltasar Garzón

Monday, April 25

2:00pm

25 Mondale Hall

University of Minnesota, West Bank

Judge Baltasar Garzón served for many years on Spain's central criminal court, the Audiencia Nacional, which has jurisdiction over the most important criminal cases in Spain, including terrorism, organized crime and money laundering, as well as universal jurisdiction for violations of international law. He first came to international attention in 1998 when he sought the extradition of former Chilean president, General Augusto Pinochet, from England to Spain for the alleged deaths and torture of Spanish citizens by his regime. 

In 2008, Garzón initiated an investigation into the crimes committed by the Franco regime in Spain. He has since been temporarily suspended from his position in the Audiencia Nacional, awaiting trial on accusations from right-wing groups of having exceeded his authority. Since May 2010, he has been working in the International Criminal Court in The Hague, and he will shortly begin working as an advisor to the Organization of American States mission to Colombia.

Lecture in Spanish with simultaneous translation provided – reception to follow

Talk organized by the Departments of Spanish and Portuguese Studies and Political Science.

Co-sponsors include: European Studies Consortium, Humphrey School of Public Affairs, Institute for Global Studies, Human Rights Program, Interdisciplinary Center for the Study of Global Change, Law School, Global Spotlight

Criminal Justice Concentration at UMN Law

The rumors are true: a criminal justice concentration is in the works, and very close to becoming available, at UMN Law School (our home institution).  It needs the approval of the Board of Regents, but we can likely expect that to happen in the Fall. 

Professor Frase shared some details about the concentration.  It currently requires Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure, a Criminal Sentencing course, and 6 more elective credits.  Elective credits range across the school's large offering of criminal law courses and seminars.

If you're interested in the Criminal Justice Concentration, Professor Frase recommends that you take Criminal Procedure in the the Fall, if you haven't already.  Professor Frase and Professor Feld are both offering the course in the Fall, and it will be offered again in the Spring.

On a related note, there will also be a Criminal Law focused version of the required Professional Responsibility class, slated to run this Spring.

Superjail?

Superjail!, an adult swim animated series, seems to me like the Aqua Teen Hunger Force of prisons.  The series is a typical adult swim feature, but set in a maximum security volcano prison.  Though the inmates are an alarming bunch, the warden might be even more deranged.  The comedy is stupefying and often based on graphic cartoon violence.  What makes this interesting to me is the setting in a prison, albeit a somewhat psychedelic volcano prison, and its featuring inmates as characters.  I don't think this show is trying to make some sweeping social comment, but it is a representation of what we might view as normative in prison life, or at least acceptable in terms of how to talk about prisoners.  What does this show do in terms of the way it presents prisons?  In the way it depicts prisoners?  I would love to hear your thoughts.

Read the Wikipedia article:


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superjail

View episodes online:


http://video.adultswim.com/superjail/index.html

CJL posters!

Check out our event posters.  If I didn't make them myself, I might say they're pretty awesome!

Law and the Multiverse

It seems like some other folks have also picked up on the the nerdtastic combination of law and superheroes.  James Daily in Missouri and Ryan Davidson in Indiana created a comic-book based law blog that uses superhero lore to explore different legal issues.  Check it out:

http://lawandthemultiverse.com/

A New York Times article on the blog describes some of these legal themes:
"Is Superman’s heat vision a weapon? If so, would the Second Amendment protect his right to melt pistols and cook hamburgers with it?"
“What if someone is convicted for murder, and then the victim comes back to life?”
And "whether mutants are a legally recognizable class entitled to constitutional protection from discrimination."

What is your favorite article?

CJL Presents: Gangs in Minnesota

Time Wednesday, April 6 · 12:15pm - 1:20pm Location Room 50, Mondale Hall Hosted By Criminal Justice League, Co-Sponsored by the Law & Policy Student Association More Info Join gang task forces and data systems expert Dr. Julie Barrows and Don Rothstein from the MN Department of Corrections for a discussion of gangs in Minnesota prisons. The presenters have assured us that their talk is both exciting and eye-opening. We'll also serve you spaghetti for lunch! We hope you can join us on Wednesday.

CJL Hosts: Victim's Duties to Offenders

We're all familiar with the goals and challenges of criminal law and punishment. Incapacitation, Rehabilitation, Deterrence, Retribution and so on. All of this has to do with offenders, however. Has anyone ever considered the duties of victims? More specifically, the duties of victims to offenders?

Come listen to Professor Sandra Marshall, Professor of Philosophy from Stirling University, UK, speak about her new book discussing the duties of victims.

Join us for lunch in room 50, 12:15 - 1:15 on Friday, April 1st!

Podcast about a Drug Court from This American Life

http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/430/very-tough-love

This American Life: Very Tough Love

This week: A drug court program that we believe is run differently from every other drug court in the country, doing some things that are contrary to the very philosophy of drug court. The result? People with offenses that would get minimal or no sentences elsewhere sometimes end up in the system five to ten years.

Part One.

Ira reports from Glynn County Georgia on Superior Court Judge Amanda Williams and how she runs the drug courts in Glynn, Camden and Wayne counties. We hear the story of Lindsey Dills, who forges two checks on her parents' checking account when she's 17, one for $40 and one for $60, and ends up in drug court for five and a half years, including 14 months behind bars, and then she serves another five years after that—six months of it in Arrendale State Prison, the other four and a half on probation. The average drug court program in the U.S. lasts 15 months. But one main way that Judge Williams' drug court is different from most is how punitive it is. Such long jail sentences are contrary to the philosophy of drug court, as well as the guidelines of the National Association of Drug Court Professionals. For violating drug court rules, Lindsey not only does jail terms of 51 days, 90 days and 104 days, Judge Williams sends her on what she calls an "indefinite sentence," where she did not specify when Lindsey would get out. (30 minutes)

Part Two.

We hear about how Brandi Byrd and many other offenders end up in Judge Williams' drug court. One reason drug courts were created was to save money by incarcerating fewer people. But in Judge Williams' program, people like Brandi end up in drug court—at a cost of $350 per month—who would've simply gotten probation in most other Georgia counties. When offenders like Brandi are kicked out of the program—and half of participants in Judge Williams' drug court program don't successfully complete it—they go into detention, at a cost of $17,000 per year. Brandi did two years.

We also hear how one model drug court participant, Charlie McCullough, was treated by Judge Williams. (25 minutes)

The transcript for this is also available at the weblink above.
What are your reactions?

CJL Co-Sponsors: Guns in America

What Difference Does the Second Amendment Make for Crime, Gun Ownership, and Gun Control in America?
Three Perspectives on the Future of Second Amendment Rights Following the U.S. Supreme Court's Groundbreaking Decisions in Heller & McDonald.

Second Amendment: "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."

District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008) -- http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=2739870581644084946

McDonald v. Chicago, 130 S. Ct. 3020 (2010) -- http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=5141154246897960488

LITIGATION VIEW: Alan Gura, Gura Possessky P.L.L.C.
ACADEMIC VIEW: Professor Dale Carpenter, UMN Law School
LAW ENFORCEMENT VIEW: Lt. Erik Swanson, UMN Police Department
MODERATOR: Professor Richard Painter, UMN Law School

Tuesday, March 29th @ 12:15 PM - 1:20 PM in Room 30.

Lunch Will Be Provided!  Co-sponsored by the Law School Democrats.

Please join the Federalist Society for an exciting panel discussion about the merits, meaning, and future of Second Amendment rights after the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark rulings in Heller (2008) and McDonald (2010).

This panel will feature the Law School's own Professor Dale Carpenter, Alan Gura -- the attorney who successfully argued Heller andMcDonald -- and UMN Police Lieutenant Erik Swanson.

Please RSVP via Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=170779329638062

CJL Co-Sponsors: Merits of the International Criminal Court Debate

Hello Justice Leaguers!

The Federalist Society (together with the International Law Society and the Criminal Justice League) will be hosting another riveting debate, this time about the merits of the International Criminal Court. The debate will feature three panelists representing a pro, con and neutral perspective. More information can be found on a Facebook event page: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=184180624957007. Please R.S.V.P.!

The event will be held in Room 30 from 12:00 to 13:30 on Tuesday 22nd May.

There will be Potbelly lunch!

Hope to see you there!

Criminal Justice Conversations Podcast

http://www.law.berkeley.edu/cjconversations.htm

"The Criminal Justice Conversations Podcast, a co-production of the Berkeley Center for Criminal Justice and the Berkeley School of Journalism, features in-depth, thirty-minute interviews with a wide range of criminal justice leaders: law enforcement officials, policymakers, advocates, service providers, academics and others.

The Podcast, hosted by criminal justice expert David Onek, gets behind the sound bites that far too often dominate the public dialogue about criminal justice, to have detailed, nuanced conversations about criminal justice policy."

What do you think of the discussion with James Bell, Executive Director, W. Haywood Burns Institute, about the over-representation of minority youth in the justice system in Episode 15? (Or any of the other episodes?)

Guardian ad Litem Event

What: Guardian ad Litem talk featuring Judy Peterson
When: Wednesday during lunch, 12:15 to 1:00.
Where: Law School Room 65
Lunch provided: Yes.

Criminal Justice League invites law students and interested faculty to join us over lunch in Room 65 on February 2 for an informational talk about Ramsey County's Guardian ad Litem volunteering program. Judy Peterson, the manager of Ramsey County's program, will be our featured speaker.

An ad Litem guardian is a court-appointed objective adult who represents the independent best interests of a child whose welfare is a matter of a court's concern. The talk will encompass the basic functions of ad Litem guardians and provide information for law students who are interested in serving in this important role. Lunch will be provided and having this on your resume couldn't hurt either!

For more information about the role of a Guardian ad Litem in general, or Ramsey County's program specifically, please go to this site. We hope to see you this Wednesday over lunch!