The oral argument in Fischer v. United States has now begun. jonathanturley.org/2024/04/16/sup… ...Justice Sotomayor was quick out of the gate to pursue a tough line of questioning for the defense counsel on why the broader meaning is warranted...

Just when you thought higher education could not be more bizarre . . . Students are accusing Berkeley Dean Erwin Chemerinsky's wife, law professor Catherine Fisk, of assault after students refused to leave a dinner at their home and staged a protest... ...Both Fisk and Chemerinsky were objecting that this is their home as Fisk sought to grab the microphone from one of the protesters. ...

https://twitter.com/LauraPowellEsq/status/1778097775206605043

Disney is reportedly dropping the remaining litigation against Florida. It follows an earlier loss in court. It confirms the demise of the last minute agreement forged by Disney with its handpicked board. msn.com/en-us/travel/n…
jonathanturley.org/2024/01/31/the…
jonathanturley.org/2023/04/17/dis… ...I have previously criticized the Disney litigation as short-sighted and costly for the company. The costs of Disney's political agenda were magnified by its ill-considering litigation efforts. ...jonathanturley.org/2023/11/27/hap…

The NY Court of Appeals has finally intervened to offer a modicum of restraint in the Trump case. It has A has given former President Donald Trump 10 more days to post a bond of $175 million. That is likely doable and avoids the cliff drop set up by Engoron and James. ...Both Engoron and James would have gained greater credibility if they recognized the obvious unreasonableness of the original demand. While still a massive bond lift, it should be attainable for Trump to allow for the review of Engoron's controversial ruling...

U.S. District Judge William Henry Pauley III slammed Michael Cohen today in saying that he has clearly committed "perjury." The court noted that there are "two possibilities: one, Cohen committed perjury when he pleaded guilty before Judge Pauley or, two, Cohen committed perjury in his October 2023 testimony. Either way, it is perverse to cite the testimony, as Schwartz did, as evidence of Cohen’s ‘commitment to upholding the law.’” ...This manifest problem will only become magnified in the upcoming Trump trial where Alvin Bragg is calling Cohen as his star witness. Defense counsel will only need to read his past statements to leave him mired in self-impeaching contradictions...

Rep. Stephen Lynch (D., Mass.) just stated that the Republican legal experts said that there was no evidence to even suggest that President Biden may have committed impeachable offenses. That appears a reference to me and it is untrue... ...I stated that there was "ample" evidence for an impeachment inquiry based on the existing evidence and, if proven, some of these allegations would be a credible basis for impeachment. ...jonathanturley.org/2023/09/28/tur…

The decision to allow Texas to start enforcement at the border took many by surprise. In the interim before the 5th Circuit rules, Texas will be allowed to run a parallel border operation with arrest and detention capacity...foxnews.com/politics/scotu… ...This was considered a long-shot gamble given the Court's history of deferring to federal authority on the border. Texas officials are responding with surprise like they won a literal Texas Hold'em hand. However, it is only temporary until the appellate court rules. Indeed, Justice Barrett indicated that the federal government could return to the Court if a decision is delayed.

The oral arguments in Murthy v. Missouri are about to begin on the censorship of social media by the government. It could prove one of the most important free speech cases in the history of the Court... ...Brian Fletcher is first up for the Biden Administration to seek defend the role of the government in working to censor social media. He is starting by trying to bar review by attacking standing to sue...

The decision of Judge McAfee is being commonly referred to as "Solomonic" but that may be unfair to King Solomon. The King did not actually split the baby. The baby survived because he was able to get one of the women to show that she actually loved the child... ...Willis has never put the interests of this case before her own in this controversy. The case will survive but under a cloud. Willis would be prosecuting people for making false statements and filing false material with courts. That will not advance the case ...

If we can take a brief break from the future of the Republic, I would like to address a more imporant issue. I am delighted that the Bears will likely remain in my native city. However, I am crestfallen that they are moving forward with a domed stadium...chicagotribune.com/2024/03/11/chi… ...I grew up with the pride of a team playing in our weather off of the lake. It made game unpredictable and made our opponents from Florida or California in utter shock. The twelfth player was not just the fans but the weather in Chicago...

Hur just confirmed again that President Biden "willfully retained" classified information. He notes that Biden referred to such material in a recorded message and actually read from some of the material to a third party... ...That stands in direct contradiction of what President Biden claimed publicly before and after the interview. Hur is saying that he was deterred from bringing charges due to the higher standard of "beyond a reasonable doubt." He had to consider the President's "overall mental state" and found that they created obvious defenses for any trial...

The transcripts are now released. President Biden claimed no knowledge of any of the classified documents in his home and open in his garage. That is 40 years of memory lapse in the face of open violations of federal law... ...The transcript also confirmed that it was the President, not Hur, that raised his son's death despite his later anger expressed in his press conference. The President also stated that he did not recall roughly four dozen times.

Last night, the State of the Union sounded more like the State of the Campaign. President Biden attacked his GOP opponent, labeled his opponents as threatening democracy, and even confronted the Supreme Court justices sitting in front of him that the voters will fix their wagons. ...At the same time, some GOP members yelled at the President in a depressing snapshot of the age of rage. I have previously written how members are destroying the decorum and dignity of this SOTU from Nancy Pelosi ripping up Trump's address to members shouting insults...

The most recent filing in the Willis matter an attorney states that Willis told Bradley: "They are coming after us. You don't need to talk to them about anything about us." If true, that raises serious ethical questions given the fact that Bradley was expected to be a witness... ...GA Code § 16-10-93 (2020) on influencing witnesses includes
"to persuade another person by means of corruption or to attempt to do so; or to engage in misleading conduct toward another person with intent to:
Influence, delay, or prevent the testimony of any person in an official proceeding;
Cause or induce any person to:Withhold testimony or a record, document, or other object from an official proceeding..."

As expected, the Supreme Court has now unanimously rejected what was described for months as an "unassailable theory." The Court showed a divided nation that we remain bound by shared constitutional values. supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf…
jonathanturley.org/2024/02/09/the… ...While there were concurrences arguing that the decision was broader than necessary, Barrett correctly noted in her concurrence that "for present purposes, our differences are far less important than our unanimity: All nine Justices agree on the outcome of this case."

The order of Judge Anil Singh stays the ban over Trump from taking out loans from New York banks and the ban on serving as an officer of a New York company. That leaves him with an astronomical bond burden but gives him more leeway in financing this critical deposit... ...Notably, the witnesses for banks said that they did not lose any money on the prior deals and wanted more business with Trump. This will give banks that opportunity. Notably, a bond would still cost Trump a considerable amount even if he prevails. jonathanturley.org/2024/02/21/not…

Judge Scott McAfee has reportedly found that Nathan Wade's former partner and counsel will have to retake the stand and resume answering questions. The order suggests that the judge has concluded that Terrence Bradley is not barred by attorney-client privilege on some questions. ...That is a significant development, particularly after the filing of telephone records that opposing counsel argue contradict the testimony of Wade and Willis... jonathanturley.org/2024/02/25/fri…

The Supreme Court just started the oral arguments on social media censorship in Moody v. NetChoice and NetChoice v. Paxton. Henry Whitaker is leading off. Thomas is the first with questions and is asking about why this is an applied or facial challenge.

The judge in Georgia just warned counsel for Terrence Bradley that he considers the medical appointment without notice to be a violation of his subpoena. His counsel insists that he must meet with his doctor to follow up on his status in light of his appointment... ...Judge McAfee made clear that his patience was running out because Bradley was given advance notice of his need to appear. John Floyd, the retired lawyer who has experience on racketeering cases.

Here we go... ...It is curious that Willis said that she came to court because "it only makes sense" that she would be the next witness when her counsel was opposing demands for her to be called...

Fani Willis just walked into the court and is being demanded. She is seeking to speak. ...Willis just agreed to be called and is asking for documents. This is picking up a Perry Mason feel. Willis appears irate and her subordinate appeared surprised by her sudden appearance.