Crime and Punishment

Convicted Terrorist’s Demand for High-Fiber Diet is Rejected

Let's all shed a tear, shall we, for Terry Nichols, who is not only serving a life sentence for conspiracy and manslaughter in the Oklahoma City bombing but is also subjected to a diet unconstitutionally low in fiber. That's what Nichols argued, at…



Update on the Fraudulent Photoshopper

Daryl Simon seems to have included his bogus charity photos in an appendix to his sentencing memorandum, but I was unable to find that on the court’s docket.  It may not have been posted yet, but that seems odd given…



Adultery Still a Crime in New York

I saw a post on Boing Boing the other day about a list of "dumb laws," which the poster was not sure were real.  They weren't, or at least there were no citations, which always makes me skeptical – there…



The Courthouse: Still Not a Good Place to Assault Someone

Tempers do flare from time to time when practicing law, and sometimes conflict is unavoidable.  But there are still a few basic rules that you really must observe: In modern-day practice, engaging in fisticuffs is generally considered unprofessional. If you are…




UPDATE on “Group Licentiousness” Conviction

Last week I wrote about the conviction of Ma Yaohai, a Chinese computer-science professor who was recently sentenced to three and a half years in prison for organizing what the New York Times called "informal swingers clubs" and what the…