Image adapted from Wikicommons by DhLeaks44 / CC BY-SA 4.0 “Reconciling Retribution and Rehabilitation” Matthew P. Cavedon Ten-year-old Shane Paul O’Doherty pledged to “fight and if necessary die for Ireland’s freedom.” By the time he was 18, he had joined the Irish Republican Army and “developed the letter bomb” after reading about its use by the Palestinian Liberation…
Image adapted from Wikicommons by DhLeaks44 / CC BY-SA 4.0 “Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s Overly Broad Take on Judges and the Death Penalty” Matthew P. Cavedon Twenty-two years before she was nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court, Judge Amy Coney Barrett co-wrote a law review article on Catholic judges and the death penalty. It has gained attention from…
Photo of cells by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Public Domain). A virtual conference organized in partnership with Brigham Young University Law School, Emory University Law School, Notre Dame Law School, St. John’s University School of Law, and the Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law. View the full video and browse all essays here.…
Image adapted from Wikicommons by DhLeaks44 / CC BY-SA 4.0 “Don’t Write off Sharia’s Forgiveness Option Just Because of the Khashoggi Case” Matthew P. Cavedon Jamal Khashoggi was a prominent international journalist and Saudi dissident. He was tortured to death and dismembered in 2018 at the Saudi embassy in Istanbul. On September 7, eight Saudis were sentenced for…
Image adapted from Wikicommons by DhLeaks44 / CC BY-SA 4.0 “So Help Him God?:The Case of the Prayerful Juror” Matthew P. Cavedon Mother Teresa said that “listening is the beginning of prayer.” One Florida juror listened in prayer and heard the Holy Spirit telling him to vote not guilty. So he did. Did he violate his oath to…
Image adapted from Wikicommons by DhLeaks44 / CC BY-SA 4.0 Two Tracks for Twelve Steps: Rehabilitation and Religious Liberty in Criminal Sentencing Matthew P. Cavedon Right before Christmas 2019, a Canadian man won a settlement after his bosses made him attend Alcoholics Anonymous. Why? The man is an atheist, while the world-famous recovery program’s twelve steps require participants…
Image adapted from Wikicommons by DhLeaks44 / CC BY-SA 4.0 “Last Rights? Death Chamber Chaplains and the Law” Matthew P. Cavedon On December 22, 1849, twenty Russian dissidents stood on St. Petersburg square, waiting to be shot dead by their government. They had already been offered last rites. Several were even tied to a post. Suddenly, a messenger…
Image adapted from Wikicommons by DhLeaks44 / CC BY-SA 4.0 “Judge Not: The Problem with Georgia’s Charge about Religious Objection to Jury Service” Matthew P. Cavedon At the start of most criminal trials in Georgia, the judge gives those called for jury duty a quick overview of the jury selection process. This includes warning them that the attorneys…
Image adapted from Wikicommons by DhLeaks44 / CC BY-SA 4.0 “God in the Attorney-Client Relationship” Matthew P. Cavedon I was taught early on that a criminal defense attorney has to overcome numerous obstacles to win clients’ trust. Hurdles include their past difficulties with authority figures. Their fears for the future. Their mental illnesses and chemical dependencies. The instability…
Image adapted from Wikicommons by DhLeaks44 / CC BY-SA 4.0 “I Swear to God: Oaths, Accommodations, and the Binding of Conscience” Matthew P. Cavedon Watch any courtroom drama and you know something serious is about to happen when a witness takes an oath. In the typical Hollywood version, it goes like this: “Do you swear to tell the…