Courts

When I met Deborah, she had just come home from a prison in upstate New York. Deborah, which is not her real name, had cycled in and out of prison for nearly 30 years, mostly…

Oswald is Still Dead

by Ashley Cleek

June 2, 2015

Lee Harvey Oswald was murdered before he could stand trial for the assassination of JFK. But that hasn’t stopped people from trying to get him into a courtroom, over and over again.

Are aggressive, expensive elections corrupting the court system? Or are they evidence of a strong democracy? The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that states can prohibit judges from openly asking for money to pay for their judicial campaigns.

“Judges are not politicians,” wrote Chief Justice John Roberts, “even when they come to the bench by way of the ballot.”

Marijuana Rules

by Peter Frick-Wright

April 20, 2015

Recreational pot has earned the state of Colorado $53 million dollars in tax revenue. All on a drug that, according to federal law,
is still illegal. How does a marijuana business navigate all the uncertainty? Find out this week, on Life of the Law.

Bad Gig

by Casey Miner

April 7, 2015

Exotic dancers, on-call drivers and writers might have a different name for what they do — freelancing, part-time work and independent contracting — but it all means the same thing. Work that doesn’t start at 9 and end at 5. And sure, it has its perks but do 1099 workers have protections?

Anatomy of a Confession

by Michael May

March 24, 2015

A triple murder, a habitual liar on a stolen motorcycle and a confession that doesn’t add up.
Why would anyone confess to a crime they didn’t commit? On Life of the Law, the story of a man
dying of cancer on Texas’s Death Row who confessed to a crime he says he didn’t do.

Birth Rights

by Renee Gross

March 10, 2015

A midwife cares for a pregnant woman before, during, and after they give birth. By developing relationships with their clients, midwives say they can help each women determine how and where they want to give…

The Diaper Wars

by Audrey Quinn

February 10, 2015

In the 1980s, the world’s two largest diaper companies set out to destroy each other in a patent battle known as “the Diaper Wars.” The court battles lasted seven years and cost millions of dollars. What did we get out of it? Better diapers — and one very messy lesson in patent law.

Boiled Angel

by Hans Anderson

January 13, 2015

Freedom of speech is a right guaranteed by the First Amendment of the Constitution. One exception to the rule is obscenity. But determining what is obscene can be difficult –- especially for those accused of it.