AMENDMENT 7 BALLOT CANDY AND THE SINGLE SUBJECT RULE: HOW THE LEGISLATIVE SUPERMAJORITY AMENDED THE STATE CONSTITUTION TO LIMIT VOTER CHOICE

During the most recent general election, Missouri voters passed Amendment 7, a legislative ballot measure which erected bulwarks around an election process that limits voter choice. This article will discuss some of Missouri’s constitutional protections against deceptive ballot provision packages, specifically the single subject rule, as well as why they necessarily fall short of total efficacy. It does not argue for a more stringent application of the rules, because doing so would have implications for one of Missourians’ most powerful tools of direct democracy. The paper will examine Amendment 7 for its use of “ballot candy” that legislators successfully dangled to push unpopular rider provisions past unsuspecting voters and enticed them to undermine their own interests.https://scholarship.law.slu.edu/lawjournalonline/1130/thumbnail.jp

Felons in Possession: Rejecting the Third Circuit and its Application of Bruen

The Supreme Court’s 2022 decision striking down a New York public carry law has triggered widespread legal challenges to gun regulations across the United States. Among the most contested statutes is 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1), the federal felon-in-possession law, a crucial tool for the Department of Justice in restricting firearm access. Recent rulings from the Third and Eighth Circuits have resulted in a legal split regarding the constitutionality of this provision, raising uncertainty about its future enforceability. This note examines the historical and legal foundations of § 922(g)(1), the implications of New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, and the evolving judicial landscape surrounding Second Amendment rights. Ultimately, a close analysis of Supreme Court precedent suggests that § 922(g)(1) will likely withstand constitutional scrutiny despite recent challenges

The Value of a Statistical Life: From Skin in the Game to Vision Zero

This essay discusses justice issues surrounding occupational safety and health and assesses the ethical legitimacy of regulatory cost benefit analysis when the costs in question involve the risks and realization of workplace injury and fatalities. The current “value of a statistical life” for legal-regulatory purposes is 13.1 million dollars. Economists claim that this figure does not “really” represent an attempt to value any particular life. But the obvious purpose of even calculating the number is to provide a statistical justification for saying “no” to rules requiring safer work. The moral-ethical dilemma of work related injury and death remains a central problem of workplace law. In 2022, 5,486 employees were killed on the job in the United States; and 120,000 workers died from occupational diseases.During a time of modern, putatively-safe working conditions,these statistics seem almost incredible. Regulatory “weighing” is conducted by economists, with no conscious input from workers who are exposed to workplace risks of harm and death. Those who argue that strong emotional responses by workers to “fearsome risks” are irrational because of the risks’ putatively low probabilities of leading to harm are typically not exposed to such risks, and may suffer from an upper class “anti-safety bias.” The ethical and democratic problem posed is whether the persons asking questions about, and setting policies on, risk have sufficient “skin in the game” to be asking the questions or evaluating the answers. The essay also discusses the EU’s “Vision Zero” goal of killing no one in the workplace

ANTIQUATED PRACTICES IN MISSISSIPPI THAT ARE IMPEDING THE RIGHT TO VOTE

Mississippi is historically one of the most difficult states to cast a vote, especially for marginalized groups. Despite voting becoming more accessible throughout the United States, recently, Mississippi courts and legislature have sought to reverse years of progress by denying those convicted of felonies the right to vote upon reform and by making it a crime to assist others in casting absentee and mail-in ballots. In this paper, Amanda Noel discusses the implications of Mississippi’s attempts at disenfranchisement and proposes feasible solutions to aid those in accessing their fundamental right to vote.https://scholarship.law.slu.edu/lawjournalonline/1131/thumbnail.jp

Beyond Hysteria: Prosecuting Women for Abortion Is More Likely Now Than Before Roe

When Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health first overturned long-standing precedent protecting a woman\u27s fundamental right to abortion, pro-choice leaders issued warnings about the possibility of prosecuting women for abortions. These concerns were dismissed as hysterical or as political theatrics because, in the past, women were rarely prosecuted for their own abortions. This note analyzes the history of illegal abortion before the Supreme Court’s ruling in Roe v. Wade to demonstrate that women were targeted, used as leverage against abortion providers, and sometimes arrested for their roles in the procedure. Further, this note argues that nationwide panic over gender roles, increasing politicization around abortion, and the use of other criminal statutes to punish women show that this new era of illegal abortion could mean harsher penalties for women, including not only fines or jail time, but also public humiliation and vitriol. The concerns around prosecuting women are more than just hysteria—they are justified by history and emerging, nationwide trends

Meat, The Future: The Role Of Regulators In The Lab-Grown Revolution

The United States is one of the largest consumers of meat globally. The production of meat contributes substantially to climate change due to the levels of greenhouse gasses emitted and the amount of land, water, feed, and other natural resources required to raise animals used for meat. Traditional meat production is another major source for the emergence of zoonotic diseases and antimicrobial-resistant pathogens. Nevertheless, Americans consume more meat now than at any time in the nation’s history. Advocates for policy change aimed at addressing the risks associated with meat production have typically focused on reducing meat consumption, alternatives to meat, or improving the standards of traditional meat production. These are laudable goals, but an emerging technology now promises meat production that may avoid these risks entirely. Enter “lab-grown meat”; meat cultivated in an efficient and controlled laboratory environment without the need for fields, feed, or even animals. The technology has been in development for over 100 years but has seen exponential growth in the past 5 years. What was previously considered a science fiction fantasy became a reality in the US in 2023 when UPSIDE Foods and GOOD Meat receivedSuggeste

Towards the Abolition of the Immigration Detention of Children in the United States

For over a decade, international human rights mechanisms have been calling for the prohibition of the detention of children based solely on immigration status. Human rights experts agree that the detention of children for immigration purposes is never in the best interests of the child, it leads to long-term harm, and it is a clear human rights violation. Until recently, the United States has detained hundreds of thousands of migrant children in cages each year and we have still not outlawed the inhumane practice. This article argues that engaging with international human rights mechanisms on this topic, including during the upcoming review of the United States by the U.N. Human Rights Committee in October 2023, is a small and relatively low stakes step to help forge a path towards the abolition of the immigration detention of children in the United States

Bar Examination: A Verb, Not a Noun

The legal profession, long steeped in tradition, is witnessing a transformative shift in the protocols for licensing new attorneys. Multiple jurisdictions are moving away from reliance on standardized testing as the sole gateway to law practice and are developing individualized (and potentially reciprocal) systems of state licensure. Ironically, the planned launch of a new standardized exam—the NextGen bar exam—appears to be a major catalyst in the transformation of state licensure pathways. This shift has the potential to realign the regulatory hierarchy in attorney admission. Such a realignment is vital to the preservation of lawyer self-governance, and it offers great promise for a more client-centered focus in legal education. This Article examines the many new developments in attorney licensure taking place in the United States and offers an account of their advantages and limitations, including their potential for multijurisdictional practice. By deconstructing the varied new or improved ways to license new attorneys, this Article will aid state supreme courts and state examining boards that wish to explore exam alternatives. The summary processes and recommendations described offer guidance on the array of licensing measures that are available and the mechanics of their implementation. This Article also pushes back against the normative and reductionist theory of bar examination. It applies a new legal realism lens through which to view the construct of bar examination. In so doing, it offers a multimodal roadmap to a co-regulated profession that is free of unnecessarily restrictive barriers to entry. This Article presents information that will aid law students aspiring to become licensed attorneys in determining where and through which modality to pursue licensure. This Article continues an important national conversation about attorney self-regulation and offers new avenues to engage members of the legal profession in their own governance

Humanizing the Law: Building Better Lawyers Through Mediation Coursework

Many students enter law school with the goal of helping others. Traditional law school classes do not help students develop empathy and an understanding of client needs and interests. This paper argues that mediation training in law school helps students improve their understanding of the human experience of litigants involved in legal disputes and builds important empathic, relational, conflict resolution, and problem-solving skills. These skills not only help students connect with and understand their clients better but can promote the self-awareness and self-care necessary for students to become healthier and happier practicing attorneys. This results in students who are more client-centered and better equipped to help others