False Statements (vs. Perjury)

Not to be confused with perjury, false statements made to Congress or to federal law enforcement are punishable under its own statute, 18 U.S.C. § 1001. The distinction between perjury and false statements is largely lost on the media talking heads. Particularly...

Double Jeopardy

The Fifth Amendment of the Constitution prohibits double jeopardy. Moreover, the Fourteenth Amendment enforces the Fifth Amendment guarantee against double jeopardy of the same crime under state law.[1]See, e.g., Ashe v. Swenson, 397 U.S. 436 (1970). The double...

Defamation, Libel and Slander

Legal actions sounding in defamation, libel or slander are generally covered under state law for civil suits seeking damages from harm to reputation caused by false representation of facts. The contours of these areas of law vary from state to state, except when...

Constitutionality

Since 1803, the law has been well settled that the United States Supreme Court has the exclusive “province and duty” to “say what the law is” with respect to whether a particular federal law is contrary to the United States Constitution.[1]Marbury v. Madison, 1 Cranch...