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William Goebel

William Goebel

 


William Goebel

William Goebel was a Kentucky lawyer, senator and governor of the 19th century associated with many controversial policies and lawsuits. In 1887, he joined the Kentucky Senate. As a senator, he championed legislation removing toll fees from several of the turnpikes in the state. One of the people displeased by this action was John Sanford, who was also displeased when William Goebel took action to transfer funds from the city into Covington away from a bank owned by Sanford. The antipathy between the two men was also stoked by the fact that the family of William Goebel had sided with the Union Army during the Civil War, while Sanford's had sided with the Confederacy.

In 1895, a Convington newspaper began publishing a series of anonymous pieces attacking and mocking William Goebel, who learned from mutual acquaintances that the author of these pieces was Sanford. In retaliation, William Goebel published an anonymous article referring to Sanford in derisive terms and alleging that he had attempted to obtain a pardon for a friend convicted of fraud.

 On April 11, 1895, William Goebel was walking to another bank when they encountered Sanford on the steps of his own bank. It is unclear whether William Goebel and Sanford deliberately sought each other out for the purposes of conducting a duel, The Kentucky Constitution forbids anyone who has fought a duel from becoming a governor, in addition to the illegality of the act in general. Sanford asked if William Goebel had been the author of the recent piece against him. When William Goebel replied in the affirmative, both men drew their guns. The timing of the events is unclear, but the shot fired by Sanford only hit his opponent's clothing. The bullet fired by William Goebel hit Sanford in the head and killed him.

Following the incident, William Goebel immediately proceeded to a police station, where he surrendered himself to the authorities. In court, William Goebel claimed that Sanford had withdrawn his weapon first, necessitating that he act in self-defense. A preliminary injunction resulted in the case being released from legal custody. A subsequent jury trial ruled that William Goebel was not guilty of murder by reason of self-defense. This exonerated him from charges of conducting a public duel, making him eligible to serve as governor.

In 1898, William Goebel introduced a law into the state senate creating a new procedure for appointing county election commissioners by creating a three-man panel that would be appointed by the state legislature every year. This panel would in turn be charged with appointing every county election commissioner. While the stated purpose of this legislation was to decrease corruption practiced by members of the Republican opposition, it was widely criticized as serving the equally corrupt ends of the Democratic party.

In 1900, William Goebel was elected governor of the state of Kentucky. However, he was shot before being sworn into the office and passed away a few days later.

 

Edward Terry Sanford

Edward Terry Sanford

 

Edward Terry Sanford

 

Lawyer and judge Edward Terry Sanford is best remembered for his involvement in two high-profile Supreme Court cases, serving in one as a lawyer and in one as one of the justices. After graduating Harvard Law School, he was appointed Assistant Attorney General of the United States in 1907.

 

That year, Edward Terry Sanford served as the lead prosecutor in the case of United States v. Shipp et al. The case involved Senator Joseph Shipp, the sheriff in Chattanooga, Tennessee in 1906. Shipp was deemed responsible when a black prisoner, Ed Johnson, was lynched after being convicted of rape by an all-white jury. Despite a successful appeal to the Supreme Court, the case of United States v. Shipp et al. alleged that Shipp had deliberately disregarded a court order and allowed the lynching of a prisoner, leaving him open to charges of contempt of court.

 

Edward Terry Sanford traveled to Chattanooga to prepare evidence for the government and question witnesses. For nearly two days, Edward Terry Sanford also questioned Sheriff Shipp about the incidents in question. After his preparatory role in the trial, Edward Terry Sanford believed he had established the guilt of the sheriff, as well as several of his deputies and several lynch mob members.

 

The resulting Supreme Court trial took place in December 1906. Using the evidence collected by Edward Terry Sanford, the prosecution successfully argued for the conviction of Sheriff Shipp. After this success, Edward Terry Sanford was appointed to district judge status in Tennessee in 1908.

 

In 1923, Edward Terry Sanford was appointed to the US Supreme Court. Though he wrote 130 opinions as a judge, his most influential case was held in his first year on the bench. The 1923 case of Gitlow v. New York had its origins in the 1919 arrest of Benjamin Gitlow, a New York assemblyman who was a member of the Communist Party and had published an article arguing for the violent overthrow of the American government. During the course of his New York trial, Gitlow argued that because the article had resulted in no violent actions, he should be exonerated, but was convicted regardless.

 

The court heard the case in 1923 and issued its opinion, written by Edward Terry Sanford, in 1925. The issue at stake concerned the legality of the New York state laws and whether they violated the first amendment. Edward Terry Sanford wrote on behalf of the seven justices who concurred that the first amendment was equally applicable to federal and state governments.

 

However, their ruling also established a new legal precedent for restrictions that could be placed on first amendment expression of speech. Where previously the "clear and present danger" rule had been used, the opinion written by Edward Terry Sanford relied upon the "bad (or dangerous) tendency" rule. This ruling established that states could regulate speech before it led to destructive consequences, as long as federal first amendment standards were not violated.

Valerie Plame

Valerie Plame

 


Valerie Plame

 

Valerie Plame is a former undercover CIA official whose cover was destroyed in a 2003 column by the "Washington Post" journalist Robert Novak. The subsequent investigation regarding who was responsible for the leak of the cover of Valerie Plame took four years to reach its legal conclusion in several trials, although a CIA investigation is still technically ongoing.

 

The beginning of the so-called "Plame affair" began when her husband Joseph C. Wilson published a series of columns in July 2003 that effectively accused then-president George W. Bush of misrepresenting the case for the invasion of Iraq. Eight days after his column was published, Novak published a paper which, as part of the argument against Wilson, identified Valerie Plame as a CIA operative. This disclosure effectively ended her career as an undercover CIA operative.

 

A number of lawsuits, both federal and civil, stemmed from this disclosure. After the revelation, the CIA requested that the Department of Justice conduct an investigation into the source of the leak. In turn, the Department of Justice asked the FBI to conduct an investigation. Ultimately, the CIA conducted its own investigation to determine who was responsible for giving Novak this information. Two grand juries were convened during this investigation, which was conducted by special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald. The first grand jury convened eventually indicted White House official Lewis Libby on five counts, including obstruction of justice and perjury. However, he was not indicted as the primary source of the leak regarding Valerie Plame.

 

In the course of the second trial of Lewis Libby, his defense counsel argued that any inaccuracies he made during the course of the CIA's investigation were the result of memory loss due to the many White House duties he had to fulfill. His attorneys also contested the statements made by prosecution witnesses. A number of other journalists were brought in to testify about their interactions about White House officials. As a result of their testimony, it was revealed that Libby had disseminated the news of the identity of Valerie Plame to a number of journalists who did not make use of this information in their columns.

 

The second grand jury resulted in the conviction of Lewis Libby on four of the charges filed against him. However, he was acquitted of making false statements. Lewis Libby was eventually sentenced to thirty months in prison, along with a fine. The prison sentence was later commuted by President George W. Bush.

 

 In the civil courts. Valerie Wilson and her husband Joseph Wilson filed a civil lawsuit which named Libby as a co-defendant alongside then vice-president Dick Cheney and two other administration officials, Karl Rove and Richard Armitage. However, this lawsuit, known as Wilson v. Cheney, was dismissed in 2007. Also in 2007, it was revealed that Richard Armitage was the source Robert Novak had drawn upon in outing Valerie Plame in his column. No legal consequences ensued for Richard Armitage.

Edward Lazarus

Edward Lazarus

 


Edward Lazarus

 

Edward Lazarus is a former Supreme Court clerk and Federal Communications Commission Chief of Staff. In the legal field, Edward Lazarus is known both as a lawyer and for his 1998 book "Closed Chambers," which details his time acting as a Supreme Court clerk for Justice Harry Blackmun during the October Term which began in October 1988 and concluded in July 1989.

 

"Closed Chambers" was controversial in the legal field for several reasons and has been attacked by a number of members of the legal system. Foremost in the charges leveled at Edward Lazarus by his critics is his violation of confidentiality. Anyone who acts as a law clerk in the Supreme Court is obligated to follow a code of conduct whose rules are explained before service begins. These rules prohibit any law clerk from sharing any confidential information they learn during their service, or from profiting from it. By writing a book in which he shared what he had learned during internal deliberations and publishing it for commercial purchase. critics argued Edward Lazarus had violated the terms of the code of conduct.

 

In his defense, Edward Lazarus argued that the terms of the Code of Conduct were routinely violated by other law clerks who routinely spoke, on the condition of anonymity, with members of the press. Edward Lazarus also claimed that he had repeatedly discussed the book prior to its publication with Justice Blackmun. However, public statements made by associates of Justice Blackmun stated he was unaware of the publication of the book until it entered the marketplace.

 

Another part of the Code of Conduct that critics charged Edward Lazarus with violating concerned a clause forbidding clerks from offering any interpretation or explanation of actions taken and rulings issued by the Supreme Court. Because the narrative of "Closed Chambers" explained the rulings made during his term of service, critics argued Edward Lazarus was in violation of this part of the Code.

 

 Another issue concerning "Closed Chambers" involves the quotation and use of documents. According to the Code of Conduct, no nonpublic documents can be removed from their housing within the building of the Supreme Court at any time. Critics charged that his extensive quotation from these documents demonstrated another violation of the rules of the Supreme Court by Edward Lazarus.

 

 Among his other public actions, Edward Lazarus served at the FCC from 2009 to the end of January 2012. Following the end of his government service, Edward Lazarus resumed legal practice by rejoining the international law firm of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld. Edward Lazarus had been a senior counsel at that firm's Los Angeles offices from 2000 to 2009 prior to joining the FCC. Prior to that time, he was an assistant district attorney in California. His specialty as a private lawyer concerns issues involving appellate litigation. His areas of practice include intellectual property law, matters concerning Federal Indian law, bankruptcy cases.

Alan Brownstein

Alan Brownstein

 


Alan Brownstein

Alan Brownstein is a legal scholar who is a faculty member of the University of California at Davis. His focus is on issues of constitutional law, with a particular concentration on issues regarding the Free Exercise and Establishment clauses of the First Amendment. Alan Brownstein is particularly concerned with issues of balancing religious and secular concerns.

In a number of papers, Alan Brownstein has advanced the case that the Free Exercise clause of the First Amendment is not as well understood, enforced or interpreted as the Establishment clause. Alan Brownstein has argued that America's history as a country more inclined to religious expression than most has led the courts to often privilege the free expression rights of religious groups rather than those of secular groups. Attendantly, Alan Brownstein argues that standards for ruling on the full implications the Free Exercise clause have not yet properly established the courts.

In a 2010 essay published in the "Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy," Alan Brownstein outlines some of his arguments for why this might be the case. Noting that the courts are more likely to grant freedom of expression to religious organizations rather than secular organizations, Alan Brownstein argues that it is necessary for courts to take an unusual amount of subjective and contextual judgment into consideration when ruling on such issues.

As part of his larger argument, Alan Brownstein has argued that conservative groups which take firm positions on issues such as gay marriage undermine the full use of the Free Exercise expression. Alan Brownstein has argued that if religious organizations are routinely granted the right to express their opinions and act freely, they should be prepared to grant the same freedom of expression to organizations and individuals whose interests are diametrically opposed to theirs.

 

Bob Woodward

Bob Woodward

 

Bob Woodward

Veteran journalist Bob Woodward is best known as one half of the investigating journalism team which directly led to the resignation of president Richard M. Nixon in 1974. Along with his fellow journalist Carl Bernstein, Bob Woodward began investigating the Watergate scandal in 1972. Their initial assignment was to look into the burglary of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate Hotel in 1972.

 

What appeared to be a simple story about an incompetent burglary developed greater ramifications when Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein conducted further investigation. During this investigation, Bob Woodward made his first significant use of anonymous sources, a technique which has often been heavily criticized by journalists. One of the primary sources for the investigation conducted by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein was a man they only dubbed "Deep Throat," in joking reference to a popular pornographic film of the time.

 

The disclosures made by "Deep Throat" allowed Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein to publish an increasingly damaging series of reports about the activities of the Nixon White House. A series of articles in the Washington Post provided documentation of numerous attempts by various employees working directly for the White House and others who had merely been delegated to perform so-called "dirty tricks." The Watergate burglary, in fact, was an attempt to bug the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee.

 

In the wake of these disclosures, the Senate began an investigation into Watergate in 1973, which were broadcast from May to August of that year. The increasingly damaging testimony led to, among other things, the revelation that Nixon had illegally and frequently audio-taped conversations conducted in the Oval Office. As it became increasingly evident that impeachment was all but certain, Nixon chose to resign in 1974.

 

Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein were granted a great deal of credit for their investigative efforts leading directly to legal consequences. Capitalizing on their new prominence, they published a book in 1974, "All The President's Men," narrating both their investigation and the discoveries which they had made about the Nixon White House.

 

Though of less public consequence, Bob Woodward's subsequent career has resulted in a number of best selling books. Bob Woodward is also one of the most extensive chroniclers of the White House of George W. Bush, having published four books on that president's administration. He also published a controversial book about the death of comedian John Belushi, "Wired," which was denounced by the comic's surviving family members and friends.

 

In 2005, it was revealed that "Deep Throat" was FBI employee Mark Felt. That same year, it was also revealed that Bob Woodward was privy to the CIA secret agent status of Valerie Plame in 2003, a month before she was publicly outed in a column by Washington columnist Robert Novak. Bob Woodward had not revealed this technically illegal action to his editors at the "Washington Post," believing it to be of no consequence. 

Roy Bass

Roy Bass

 


Roy Bass

Roy Bass was a Texas attorney best remembered for acting as the mayor of Lubbock, Texas for a four-year period. In legal circles, Roy Bass was known as a partner in the firm of Bass and Hobbs.

Though Roy Bass is primarily remembered for his contributions to the city of Lubbock while acting in a government capacity, one of his documented cases is the case of First National Bank At Lubbock v. United States of America, which reached the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in 1972. The case involved the estate of Vera Harrell, a woman who had retained Roy Bass as her lawyer. After her death, her daughter Lamoyane applied for a refund of the estate taxes paid. The basis of her claim was that gifts of property given by her mother were exempt from such charges.

In a court hearing, it was established by the prosecution that Roy Bass had advised Vera Harrell that she could lessen the size of the estate tax that would be assessed after her death by making several gifts of property. Subsequently, Vera Harrell established two bank accounts solely in her daughter's name, as well as four church bonds and 8000 shares of stock in an insurance company.

In the course of trial, Roy Bass was cross-examined by attorneys acting for the United States about his role in advising Vera Harrell about her tax liability. Though he established that he had advised Vera Harrell about how to dispose of her assets but denied any knowledge that she had taken action on his advice for the specific purpose of minimizing estate tax. Ultimately, Lamoyane Harrell's appeal was denied in a ruling issued in July of 1972. A request for a rehearing was denied in August of that year.

 

Thomas Rex Lee

Thomas Rex Lee

 

Thomas Rex Lee

Thomas Rex Lee is a justice on the Utah Supreme Court. He received his bachelor's degree from Brigham Young University in 1988 and graduated with a law degree from the University of Chicago in 1991. Following his graduation, he began his legal career by serving as a law clerk in the Fourth Circuit Appellate Court in Richmond, Virginia.

 

After ending his clerkship, Thomas Rex Lee joined the Salt Lake City based law firm of Parr, Waddoups, Brown, Gee & Loveless, where he acted as a private lawyer from 1992 to 1997. During this time, he also served as a clerk for Supreme Court Judge Clarence Thomas from 1994 to 1995. In 1997, Thomas Rex Lee left private practice with Parr, Waddoups, Brown, Gee & Loveless to teach law at Brigham Young University. He also became a part-time associate with the firm of Howard, Phillips & Andersen. From 2004 to 2005, he also served as a deputy assistant attorney general for the civil division of the United States Justice Department.

 

As a private attorney and legal scholar, Thomas Rex Lee specializes in issues of copyright and trademark infringement. One of his most prominent cases came in 2002. Thomas Rex Lee represented the state of Utah in the case of Utah v. Evans. The Supreme Court case concerned methods used by the Census Bureau when conducting the 2000 census. The organization used a method known as "hot-deck imputation" in order to fill in information that could not be obtained. "Hot-deck imputation" means that when an address or unit owner cannot be located, the Census Bureau assigns it the same population numbers and characteristics that have been recorded in the nearest property for which data has been collected.

 

Hot-deck imputation was used in both the state of Utah and that of North Carolina. As a result, the recorded population of North Carolina increased by 0.4%, leading to being granted one more representative in the Congressional House of Representatives. However, when the same methods were applied in Utah, the population increase recorded was only 0.2%.

 

Thomas Rex Lee represented the argument of the state of Utah, which contended that this hot-deck method violated both the census code's prohibition against using sampling methods to determine populations and violated a similar prohibition in the United States Constitution. Thomas Rex Lee appeared before the Supreme Court in 2002. The case was ultimately decided against the state of Utah on both charges with a five to four verdict.

 

In 2010, Thomas Rex Lee became a justice of the Utah Supreme Court. Despite never having served as a judge before, he was chosen by Governor Gary Herbert on the basis of his academic and professional credentials. During his time as a state justice, Thomas Rex Lee has written a number of opinions representing the majority opinion of the court. In addition, he has frequently filed separate opinions both concurring and dissenting with the majority opinion of the court.

Arthur K. Delaney

Arthur K. Delaney

 


Arthur K. Delaney

 

Best remembered today as the first mayor of Juneau, Alaska, Arthur K. Delaney began his professional career as an attorney. Born in New York State, he arrived in Alaska in the 1890s as part of the larger wave of travelers seeking fortune during the Klondike Gold Rush. At the end of 1895, Arthur K. Delaney was admitted as a judge presiding the District Court of the United States in and for the District of Alaska,

 

In 1896, one of two cases which eventually were heard in the United States Supreme Court involving Arthur K. Delaney began. The case began in May of that year when Ohlin H. Adsit filed suit against John F. Malony. In his case, Adsit charged that he had been the occupant and possessor of half of a tract of land in Juneau for nine years before April 29, 1891, upon which he had constructed a large wooden building. At that time, he charged, Malony had unlawfully ejected him from his property.

 

In his lawsuit, Adsit asked that the court award him possession of either the land in question or an interest in it. On June 8 of 1896, Malony filed a demurral, a motion stating that the person filing suit does not have sufficient basis for their litigation to proceed. However, on October 9 the court overruled him and gave Adsit time to file a response. Subsequently a trial was scheduled and was heard the following year before Arthur K. Delaney.

The right to trial by jury was waived. In his ruling, Arthur K. Delaney found in favor of Adsit. The following year, Arthur K. Delaney resigned from his position as a judge. However, the case continued after his exit as Malony first filed a "bill of exceptions," a document allowing a party in a legal case to state their objection to a ruling on a legal basis. The judge who signed this document had resigned by the time Malony filed an appeal with the Supreme Court.

 

The case of Malony v. Adsit was heard by the Supreme Court in 1899. The specific issue at stake was the validity of the bill of exceptions. Because the judge who had signed it had preceded Arthur K. Delaney, the Supreme Court found that the bill of exceptions could not be considered and ruled in favor of Adsit.

 

Arthur K. Delaney appeared directly before the Supreme Court in 1901, acting as counsel for the defense in the case of Marks v. Shoup, acting on behalf of J.M. Shoup. That same year, Arthur K. Delaney was elected the first mayor of Juneau, serving in that capacity for a year. In 1902, Arthur K. Delaney was succeeded in his office by Ohlin H. Adsit, who served in that capacity until 1904. Arthur K. Delaney left that year and relocated to California, where he died in January of the following year. 

Kay McFarland

Kay McFarland

 

Kay McFarland

Kay McFarland is a former Kansas judge who served on the state Supreme Court from 1977 to 2009. Her appointment to this court marked the first time in Kansas history a woman had served in this capacity. Kay McFarland was subsequently promoted to the position of Chief Justice in 1995, another first for Kansas women.

One case in which Kay McFarland joined another judge in filing a dissenting opinion concerned a tax appeal filed by Sumner County, which was heard in 1997. The origins of the case dated to 1989, when airplane manufacturer Boeing submitted a tax grievance with the office of the Sumner County Appraiser. This grievance was in turn submitted to the state Board of Tax Appeals, which granted Boeing's grievance request. The order granting Boeing relief was returned to the offices of Sumner County on July 30, 1990 with a cover letter stating that if the city wished to file a request for reconsideration, they were required to do so within 30 days.

However, this deadline was incorrectly based on a 1981 administrative regulation which had been superseded by subsequent regulations stating all requests for reconsiderations of a final order issued by the Board of Tax Appeals must be filed within 15 days. Unaware of this, Sumner County filed its appeal 28 days later, on August 27, 1990. The Board of Tax Appeals reviewed this petition and granted it on September 4. Boeing then challenged the legality of this reversal on the basis of the expired deadline. Sumner County argued that its petition was legal since it was executed in conformance with the terms stipulated in the order given by the Board of Tax Appeals.

Two years later, new rulings from the Appeals Court let to the Board of Tax Appeals agreeing with the position taken by Boeing and withdrew its approval of Sumner County's petition. Sumner County then appealed to its district court, which reversed the dismissal and ordered the Board of Tax Appeals to review the decision. Boeing appealed this decision to the state's Appeals Court.

In considering the case, the Appeals Court took into consideration the "unique circumstances doctrine," which states that there is precedent in previous United States Supreme Court cases for granting the consideration of legal issues filed after the due date if late filing results as the result of a good faith error relying upon faulty information. The Appeals Court concluded that this was the case and ordered that the Board of Tax Appeals rule upon the dispute. Boeing appeared before the Kansas Supreme Court to appeal, which again ruled in favor of Sumner County.

However, Kay McFarland filed a dissent along with a fellow justice. In their dissent, Kay McFarland and Justice Larson stated that any filing party is legally required to familiarize themselves with all regulations and laws in question, and that the excuse of relying upon faulty information does not constitute grounds for a "unique circumstances" case review.