Bound By Oath by IJ

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Prosecutors, Perjurers, and Other Non-Persons — Part 2 | Season 2, Ep. 10 Nov 10, 2021

Show notes

In 1983, in the case of Briscoe v. LaHue, the Supreme Court ruled that government employees who commit perjury at trial are absolutely immune from civil liability. On Part 2 of Episode 10, we dig into the Court’s reasoning and the backstory behind Briscoe. We also discuss a special category of officials whom the Supreme…

Prosecutors, Perjurers, and Other Non-Persons — Part 1 | Season 2, Ep. 10 Nov 05, 2021

Show notes

In 2005, Charles Rehberg annoyed some politically powerful people in his community of Albany, Georgia, and found himself facing serious criminal charges—charges that were completely made up by a rogue prosecutor and could only be sustained because an investigator committed perjury. In Episode 10, we explore the case of Rehberg v. Paulk, which reached the…

Closing the Courthouse Doors | Season 2, Ep. 9 Sep 02, 2021

Show notes

On this episode, we take stock of developments in the courts and in Congress since this season began. There’s an update on the first case we talked about this season, Brownback v. King. We talk about exciting new cases that the Supreme Court is being asked to take up. Plus, some recent decisions in the lower courts that mean that federal officials are functionally—if not by name—entitled to absolute immunity from constitutional claims in D.C., Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Iowa, North Dakota, and South Dakota.

Click here for transcript. Click here for Episode 1.

Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Stitcher, and Amazon Music.

Persons Who Are Not “Persons” | Season 2, Ep. 8 Aug 13, 2021

Show notes

Section 1983 says that “every person” acting under color of state law shall be liable for violating the Constitution. But in 1951, the Supreme Court began to rule that some officials weren’t “persons” within the meaning of Section 1983 and that those officials thus enjoy absolute immunity—no matter how malicious, corrupt, or unconstitutional their conduct may be. On Episode 8, we examine absolute immunity for legislators and judges.

Click here for transcript. Click here for Episode 1.

Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, and Stitcher.

The Shooting of Bobby Moore — Part 2 | Season 2, Ep. 7 Jun 21, 2021

Show notes

In 1978, the Supreme Court held that individuals can sue local governments for constitutional violations in federal court. Indeed, the Court held that Congress had always intended for such suits to be available — ever since it passed the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871. However, the standard that the Court says plaintiffs must meet to get their municipal liability claims before a jury is exceedingly high, and getting higher.

On Part 2 of our episode on municipal liability under Section 1983, we find out if Sylvia Perkins mustered enough evidence of dysfunction at the Little Rock Police Department to get her day in court against the city.

Click here for transcript.

Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, and Stitcher.

Please click here to learn more about friend-of-the-podcast Coleman Watson’s stroke and recovery.

The Shooting of Bobby Moore — Part 1 | Season 2, Ep. 7 Jun 18, 2021

Show notes

In 2012, Little Rock police officer Josh Hastings shot and killed 15-year-old Bobby Moore and lied about how it happened. Hastings had a long history of untruthfulness and so did many of the officers who trained him and supervised him. And the Little Rock Police Department had a history of turning a blind eye to excessive force by its officers. So when Bobby’s mother sued over his death, she didn’t just sue Josh Hastings. She also sued the City of Little Rock. But could she? On this episode, the first half of a two-part exploration into municipal liability under Section 1983.

Click here for transcript. Click here for Part 2.

Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, and Stitcher.

From the IJ Clinic on Entrepreneurship: Shop in Place Chicago and Yohance Lacour.

Pierson to Pearson | Season 2, Ep. 6 Apr 05, 2021

Show notes

In 1967, the Supreme Court invented qualified immunity. And in 1982, the Court transformed the doctrine into the one we have today. On this episode, we trace the development of the doctrine, and push back against the idea that immunities for executive branch officials, like the police, are deeply rooted in this country’s legal tradition.

Click here for transcript.

Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, and Stitcher.

Under Color of Law | Season 2, Ep. 5 Mar 01, 2021

Show notes

In Chicago in 1958, over a dozen police officers barged into the home of a sleeping family with guns drawn. They didn’t have a warrant, and it turned out they didn’t have the right man. When the family’s civil rights claim reached the Supreme Court, it resulted in the landmark case of of Monroe v. Pape, which finally — 90 years after Congress authorized such suits — opened the doors of federal courthouses to victims of unconstitutional misconduct by state and local officials. On this episode, we hear about the raid from people who experienced it firsthand.

Click here for transcript.

Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, and Stitcher.

Outrage Legislation | Season 2, Ep. 4 Jan 28, 2021

Show notes

Section 1983 is one of the most important civil rights laws on the books; tens of thousands of plaintiffs file Section 1983 cases each year seeking to hold state and local officials to account for unconstitutional conduct ranging from excessive force and false arrest, to violations of free speech rights and much else. But where does the law come from? In this episode, we explore the origins of Section 1983, or, as it was originally called, Section One of the Ku Klux Klan Act 1871.

Click here for transcript.

Click for Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, and Stitcher.

The Bubble | Season 2, Ep. 3 Dec 28, 2020

Show notes

By any measure, the conditions that Lee Saunders endured in the psych unit at the Brevard County jail in Florida were shockingly inhumane. But when he sued over the overcrowding, abusive treatment, and denial of basic sanitation, the courts ruled that the officer in charge was immune from suit. On this episode, we explore the state of qualified immunity doctrine today and whether the Supreme Court’s justifications for its policy of shielding officials from suit—even when they have violated the Constitution—hold water.

Click here for transcript.

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