Why is Alvin Bragg's legal strategy so convoluted? Because he is trying to punish Trump for an alleged 2016 federal campaign finance violation that the DOJ declined to prosecute, based on regulations that Bragg has no authority to enforce. reason.com/2024/05/03/the…

The New York case against Trump hinges on an obscure state election law that experts say has never been used before. That 'twisty' strategy reflects Alvin Bragg's desperation to transform a hush payment into 34 felonies. reason.com/2024/05/03/the…

A year before the FBI's investigation of police corruption in Albuquerque made headlines, the APD got a tip that cops were taking payoffs to make DWI cases disappear. The internal probe found no 'obvious indicators' of misconduct. reason.com/2024/05/02/a-y…

Voters should not be fooled: Rescheduling marijuana leaves federal pot prohibition essentially untouched. reason.com/2024/05/01/res…

Two 1st Amendment cases illustrate a common misconception about freedom of the press. Julian Assange is 'no journalist,' a DOJ official insisted. The 5th Circuit likewise dismissed Priscilla Villarreal as an amateur who did not work for a 'mainstream, legitimate' news outlet.…

Julian Assange and Priscilla Villarreal were both arrested for publishing information that the government wanted to conceal. Their First Amendment claims were obscured by the constitutionally irrelevant question of who counts as a 'real' journalist. reason.com/2024/05/01/jou…

A Texas reporter who was arrested for asking questions asks SCOTUS to reject the criminalization of journalism. reason.com/2024/04/26/a-t…

'You seem to be worried about the president being chilled,' Justice Jackson told Trump's lawyer. 'I think that we would have a really significant opposite problem if the president wasn't chilled.' reason.com/2024/04/25/sco…

While conceding the danger of politically motivated prosecutions, most of the justices seem disinclined to grant Donald Trump complete immunity from criminal charges based on his 'official acts.' reason.com/2024/04/25/sco…

Trump says former presidents can avoid criminal prosecution by avoiding impeachment and removal. That argument is based on a highly implausible reading of the Impeachment Judgment Clause. reason.com/2024/04/24/the…

Is there a constitutional right to get high? In his new book, Columbia law professor David Pozen recalls the controversy provoked by early anti-drug laws and the hope inspired by subsequent legal assaults on prohibition. reason.com/2024/04/23/doe…

Defending his prosecution of Donald Trump, Alvin Bragg offers a nonsensical 'election interference' narrative. reason.com/2024/04/18/alv…

Several press accounts describe SCOTUS as merely 'split' or 'divided' on the question of whether Capitol rioters (and, by implication, Trump) can be charged with obstructing an official proceeding. But I count just two justices (Kagan and Sotomayor) who are clearly inclined to…

The U.S. Supreme Court misses a chance to protect peaceful protesters. Under a legal theory blessed by the 5th Circuit, protest leaders can be held responsible for violence beyond their control. reason.com/2024/04/17/sco…

Most justices seem skeptical of charging Capitol rioters with obstructing an official proceeding. The case also could affect two charges against Donald Trump. reason.com/2024/04/16/mos…

Alvin Bragg has to prove that Donald Trump tried to conceal 'another crime.' The possibilities he cites are all legally problematic. reason.com/2024/04/15/alv…

Since 'smoking opium is not our vice,' a judge wrote in 1886, laws targeting the habit 'may well be' driven by 'a desire to vex and annoy the 'Heathen Chinee.'' That was an understatement, as I explain in this story about the roots of drug prohibition. reason.com/2024/04/14/smo…

This is exactly right, but the point is lost on both liberals and so-called conservatives. All the commentary on the decision assumes courts are policy-making bodies rather than interpreters of the law.

The ruling that allowed Arizona's 1864 abortion ban to take effect hinged on the merits of dueling statutory interpretations, not the merits of the law itself. Critics of the decision, ranging from Joe Biden to Kari Lake, either don't get that or pretend they don't.…

Critics of the Arizona Supreme Court's abortion ruling misconstrue what judges are supposed to do. reason.com/2024/04/11/cri…