Special Guest Law Dog

One of my favorite blogs is the Legal Marketing Blog from Justia. The entries are always well-written and interesting, even when they are not directly relevant to my current job. Most of the blog is about law firm website design, search engine optimization, and other marketing topics, but there are frequently tips I can use on our website.

A recurring feature that makes the Legal Marketing Blog memorable to me are the occasional items about Little Sheba the Hug Pug (shown left with one of Justia's free law firm websites). Little Sheba has had her own blog at http://www.hugpug.com/ since she was a puppy. And last month, together with Justia and Nolo, she launched her first legal website, Dog Law.

The Dog Law Info Center is currently divided into the following topics, which were put together by Mary Randolph, author of Every Dog's Legal Guide (Nolo 2005):

• State and Local Regulation
• Landlords and Dogs
• Traveling With Your Dog
• Barking Dogs
• Providing for Pets
• Dog Bites
• Dangerous Dogs

There are also links to Lawyers and Law Firms, and more information and resources will be added soon.

Best (and Worst) Pre-law Majors?

Jim Milles at Out of the Jungle points to postings by law professors Yair Listokin and Michael Froomkin, both of whom think statistics should be required for law or pre-law students.

Prof. Froomkin also has the following advice:

“If you really want to be a good lawyer, I don't personally recommend majoring in anything directly related to law as an undergraduate, or even taking courses in it. That includes "Juvenile Justice". Colleges always teach the stuff "wrong" from the point of view of a lawyer ... wrong from the point of view of someone who needs to work with law rather than recite it. So you will start out behind the other students since you will have to 'unlearn' what you think you know.”

Instead, he recommends that you major in history, economics, literature, math, or "even art". Learning about the world and becoming a well-informed person will make you a better lawyer in the long run. He also recommends reading a first-rate national newspaper every day and taking specific courses. Read his entire post for details.

I would add one recommendation to the pre-law courses recommended above. If you don't have any business experience, take some business courses. The practice of law is a business, but most law schools do not offer courses about the business side of practicing law. Even if you don't plan on opening your own firm, an understanding of the basics of marketing, client development, billing, and management will help you get ahead.

History of Memorial Day

What we now know as Memorial Day began in 1868 when Maj. Gen. John A. Logan, Commander in Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic (an organization of Union veterans), designated the 30th day of May "for the purpose of strewing with flowers or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion ...." General Order #11.

Originally known as Decoration Day, by the end of the 19th century May 30 was called Memorial Day and observed throughout the nation. (See Jt. Res. 6, 49th Cong., February 23, 1887, 24 Stat. 644.) After World War I, the observance was expanded to honor those who have died in all American wars. (See Pres. Proc. of May 3, 1921, 42 Stat. 2239.)

In 1950, Congress called on the President to issue an annual proclamation designating May 30, Memorial Day, as a day for a nation-wide prayer for permanent peace. (Pub. L. 81-512, 64 Stat. 158, 36 U.S.C. 116.) Since 1971, Memorial Day has been observed on the last Monday in May. (Pub. L. 90-363, 80 Stat. 515, 5 U.S.C. 6103.)

The image above is from the Library of Congress, Civil War Photographs collection. Historical information is from the Library of Congress, "Today in History" for May 30, and from the U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs, Memorial Day History.

Law Dog of the Week

This week's SIU Law Dog is Tyke, who belongs to Amanda Oesch, a rising 3L. Tyke is a 3-1/2-year-old pomeranian.

For information on submitting your dog photo, go to Law Dog of the Week. We will feature each SIU law dog whose photo is submitted. To see photos of all previous Law Dogs of the week, visit our Gallery of SIU Law Dogs, which you can find under Related Links in the sidebar.

Law Dog of the Week

This week's SIU Law Dog is Carson, who belongs to Stephanie Vojas, a rising 2L. Carson is a toy schnauzer.

For information on submitting your dog photo, go to Law Dog of the Week. We will feature each SIU law dog whose photo is submitted. To see photos of all previous Law Dogs of the week, visit our Gallery of SIU Law Dogs, which you can find under Related Links in the sidebar.

Illinois Supreme Court Allows Dog Sniffs

When the U.S. Supreme Court ruled, in Illinois v. Caballes, 543 U.S. 405 (2005), that police use of a trained drug-detecting dog during a lawful traffic stop does not constitute an unreasonable search, it addressed only issues the defendant had raised under the U.S. Constitution. Although the U.S. Supreme Court is the ultimate authority on U.S. Constitutional issues, the Illinois Supreme Court is the highest legal authority on interpretation of the Illinois Constitution.

In People v. Caballes, 207 Ill. 2d 504 (2003), the Illinois Supreme Court had relied on U.S. Constitutional principles in ruling that use of a drug-sniffing dog under the facts surrounding defendant's traffic stop was not justified. So, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the dog sniff did not violate the U.S. Constitution, it remanded the case to the Illinois Supreme Court to consider the issues the defendant had raised under the Illinois Constitution.

Yesterday, in People v. Caballes, No. 91547 (Ill. May 18, 2006), the Illinois Supreme Court released its decision on the issue of "whether, even though the canine sniff of defendant's car during a routine traffic stop did not implicate the fourth amendment, it nevertheless violated the guarantees of the state constitution."

The Illinois Supreme Court held, in a lengthy 4-3 decision, that use of a trained drug-detecting dog during a lawful traffic stop does not violate the search and seizure provision of article I, section 6, of the Illinois Constitution of 1970. The Court also held that a dog sniff of a vehicle does not violate the privacy clause of article I, section 6. Finally, the Court ruled that drug-sniffing dogs are generally reliable.

Photo of Illinois Supreme Court building from the Illinois Courts official site.

Electronic Access to Wall Street Journal Available on LexisNexis

Bonnie Shucha reports in WisBlawg that LexisNexis has, as of May 12, 2006, provided access to electronic full-text of the Wall Street Journal. The database (WSJNL) includes abstracts and selected coverage from 1979-1984, and full-text from 1984 - current. The database is available only to law students and law faculty under SIU Law School Library's educational-use contract.

SIU Law Journal Student Authors

Congratulations to the following 2L students whose articles have been chosen for publication in the 2006–07 volume of the Southern Illinois University Law Journal:

Best Comment:

Kristin Beasley, Up Skirt and Other Dirt: Why Cell Phone Cameras and Other Technologies Require a New Approach to Protecting Personal Privacy in Public Places

Others (in no particular order):

Stephanie Lindsay, A Fight to the Last Drop: The Changing Approach to Water Allocation in the Western United States

Matt Hood, When Two Worlds Collide: Problems Surrounding the Business Judgment Rule as a Privilege in Tortious Interference with Contractual Relation Actions In Illinois

Matt Hodge, The 4th Amendment and Privacy Issues on the "New" Internet: Facebook.com and Myspace.com

Natalie Kussart, Reporting Medical Errors: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Justin Chasco, Judge Gonzales? The Attorney General’s Power to Overturn BIA Decisions

Alternates:

Jeremy Tillman, Preventing Paradise from Becoming a Parking Lot: A Legislator's Guide to Preventing One-to-One Transfers by Enacting a Pre-Condemnation Assessment

Erin Doyle, The National Security Agency’s Domestic Spying Program: Necessary to Ensure National Security or Dangerous Assault on Our Civil Liberties and Right to Privacy?

How Reliable Are Dog Sniffs?

In Illinois v. Caballes, 543 U.S. 405 (2005), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that police use of a trained drug-detecting dog during a lawful traffic stop does not constitute an unreasonable search prohibited by the Fourth Amendment. But, as Justice Souter noted in his dissent, even intelligent, well-trained dogs are not infallible. "In practical terms, the evidence is clear that the dog that alerts hundreds of times will be wrong dozens of times." Caballes, 543 U.S. at 412.

Defense attorneys litigate whether a canine "alert" constitutes probable cause for a police search by filing motions in limine challenging the reliability of the dog-sniff technique. The April 2006 issue of Champion, the journal of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, has an excellent article on ways in which defense counsel can seek to exclude evidence found following "positive" dog sniffs. Jeffrey S. Weiner & Kimberly Homan, Those Doggone Sniffs Are Often Wrong: The Fourth Amendment Has Gone To The Dogs.

The article focuses on the interaction between dog, handler, and target, especially the handler's roles as trainer and interpreter. There are numerous footnotes citing to additional resources on related topics.

Thanks to Mary Whisner at Trial Ad Notes for the tip.

Law Dog of the Week

This week's SIU Law Dog is Ginger, who belongs to Amanda Kraper, a rising 3L.

Don't forget to submit your dog photo to Law Dog of the Week. We will feature each SIU law dog whose photo is submitted. To see photos of all previous Law Dogs of the week, visit our Gallery of SIU Law Dogs, which you can find under Related Links in the sidebar.

Naming Legislative Bills

Wondering why so many of today's legislative bills and acts seem to have abandoned the time honored tradition of using the bill number (e.g., H.R. 480) or sponsor name (e.g., Gramm-Rudman-Hollings) as a reference? Why when "Congress . . . cracked down on unwanted e-mails" it came up with the CAN-SPAM Act — for Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing. Or why "Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) named her bill to require labels on certain fragrances the SNIFF Act, short for the Safe Notification and Information for Fragrances Act." For the answers, try a recent L.A. Times article, "The Fine Art of Legislation Appellation," by Richard Simon.

According to Simon, "acronyms help explain what the bill is all about. They are proof that even bill names have become part of Washington's all-consuming political spin." Nonetheless, "[e]ven a catchy name can take a bill only so far. Of the thousands of bills introduced in each session, only a few hundred ever make it into law."

SOURCE: beSpacific

List of U.S. Telephone & E-Mail Directories

FirstGov, "the U.S. Government's Official Web Portal," provides a page that lists U.S. Government Telephone and E-Mail Directories. Included are links to the U.S. Blue Pages, contact links organized by topic and agency, toll free numbers by agency, and federal employee phone directories by agency.

SOURCE: beSpacific

Law Dog of the Week

This week's SIU Law Dog is Herriot, a St. Bernard who lives with 2L Caroline Borden's family. Herriot is shown here wearing her Halloween ladybug costume.

Don't forget to submit your dog photo to Law Dog of the Week. We will feature each SIU law dog whose photo is submitted. To see photos of all previous Law Dogs of the week, visit our Gallery of SIU Law Dogs, which you can find under Related Links in the sidebar.

Podcasting Legal Guide

Colette Vogele and Mia Garlick are the authors of Podcasting Legal Guide: Rules for the Revolution (2006) (38 p., PDF), published under a Creative Commons license. According to the Introduction, "[t]he purpose of this Guide is to provide [readers] with a general roadmap of some of the legal issues specific to podcasting." It is divided into four sections:

• "Legal Issues In Creating Your Own Podcast”
• “Legal Issues Surrounding How You Distribute Your Podcast”
• “Basic Background to Podcasting”
• “Background & Further Resources”

SOURCE: beSpacific

Government Site for Avian and Pandemic Flu Information

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is managing PandemicFlu.gov, a website devoted to providing "one-stop access to U.S. Government avian and pandemic flu information." The site is easily navigable with tabs covering the following areas:

• General Information
• Where You Live
• Planning and Response (broken into federal, state & local, individual, business, school, health care, and community categories)
• Monitoring Outbreaks
• Health & Safety
• Tests, Vaccines, & Medications
• Bird & Animal Issues
• Global Activities
• Economic Impacts
• Travel
• Research Activities (including a history of pandemics)
• News Room
• Dictionary

State by state pandemic information is easily accessible by a map with live links to information from individual states.

SOURCE: beSpacific