Bethel Simon and Schuster Inc V. New York Crime Victims Board
1.Capstone Case: Holder v. Humanitarian Law Project
This case concerns the federal law that makes it a crime to “knowingly provid[e] material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organization.” Plaintiffs claimed that they wished to provide support for the humanitarian and political activities of two international organizations in the form of monetary contributions, other tangible aid, legal training, and political advocacy, but that they could not do so for fear of prosecution under the federal law.
- Should U.S. law distinguish between the legitimate and terrorist activities of organizations for purposes of determining whether a person may provide support?
- What if the secretary of state were to declare thousands of foreign organizations to be terroristic in nature, including those that advocate violence but have not committed any violence?
500 word minimum count. must use in text citations. have references within the past 7 years.
2. Read the two other “terrorism” cases in your textbook—United States v. Farhane and Sabir, 634 F. 3d 127 (2nd Cir. 2011) and 32 County Sovereignty Committee v. Department of State, 292 F. 3d 797 (D. C. Cir. 2002). How are the individual rights of doctors and the due process rights of international organizations balanced against the government’s interest in fighting terrorism?
400 word minimum count. must use in text citations. have references within the past 7 years.
3. Capstone Case – Simon and Schuster, Inc. v. New York Crime Victims Board
New York’s Son of Sam law requires that an accused or convicted criminal’s income from works describing his crime be deposited in an escrow account. These funds are then made available to the victims of the crime and the criminal’s other creditors. The Court considers whether this statute is consistent with the First Amendment.
- Henry Hill’s financial relationship with Simon and Schuster was the subject of the Court’s decision. From what crimes did Hill intend to profit, and how did he intend to profit?
- What was the significance of this case for notoriety-for-profit laws? On what basis did the Court find the New York law unconstitutional?
400 word minimum count. must use in text citations. have references within the past 7 years.
4. Read the court’s opinion in Arizona v. Gravano, 60 P. 3d 246 (Ariz. App. 2002). Based on the Court’s ruling in Simon and Schuster, consider whether states may apply civil forfeiture statutes to seize royalties from a criminal defendant’s book.
300 word minimum count. must use in text citations. have references within the past 7 years.
5. Capstone Case – Miller v. Alabama
Two 14- year-old offenders in this case were convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. In neither case did the sentencing authority have any discretion to impose a different punishment. State law mandated that each juvenile die in prison even if a judge or jury would have thought that his youth and its attendant characteristics, along with the nature of his crime, made a lesser sentence (for example, life with the possibility of parole) more appropriate. The Court addresses whether a mandatory life sentence without parole for those under the age of 18 at the time of their crimes violates the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment.
- Do you find the Court’s determinations about the immaturity and the possibility of change of juvenile offenders to be correct?
- The Court did not foreclose the possibility of life imprisonment for juveniles, only life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. What factors do you think the Court expects future parole decision makers to take into consideration?
- In light of the Court’s opinion in Miller v. Alabama, how would you resolve the 8th Amendment issues raised in State v. Long, 2012 Ohio 3052 (Ohio App. 2012) and Bunch v. Smith, 2012 U. S. App. LEXIS 13756 (6th Cir. 2012)?
300 word minimum count. must use in text citations. have references within the past 7 years.
