Loyola Law School faculty members pride themselves on being accessible to the media and part of the public discourse on news of legal significance. Visit Loyola's Summary Judgments faculty blog to read faculty opinions on current legal issues. Highlights of recent media appearances and quotations include:
4/19- Law.com
LOYOLA LAW'S JUSTIN LEVITT, VOTING RIGHTS SCHOLAR, NAMED BIDEN ADVISER
Loyola Law School professor Justin Levitt, a prominent elections law scholar, has joined the Biden administration as a senior policy adviser, the school said Monday.
Levitt will focus on voting issues, a key area for both Democrats and Republicans as states prepare to redraw political boundaries and, in some cases, attempt to overhaul voting-access laws.
4-19 San Diego Union-Tribune
NEW FINDINGS SHOW EVIDENCE AGAINST VALLEY CENTER WOMAN IN DECADES-OLD MURDER CASE IS UNRELIABLE
The contention from lawyers for the Project for the Innocent at Loyola Law School came on the eve of a scheduled hearing where prosecutors with the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office will once again try to prove Dorotik guilty.
4/19- NBC News
WHITE HOUSE APPOINTS VOTING RIGHTS ADVISER IN FEDERAL ELECTIONS BILL PUSH
The White House named Loyola Law School professor Justin Levitt to be its voting rights adviser Monday in its push for federal legislation that would make sweeping changes to the nation's elections.
"Levitt will assist the President in his efforts to ensure every eligible American has secure, reliable access to a meaningful vote; to provide equitable representation in federal, state and local government; to restore trust in a democracy deserving of that trust; and to shore up and expand the avenues by which all Americans engage in robust civic participation," said a release announcing his appointment.
4/19- Business Insider
MY PILLOW COUNTERSUES VOTING MACHINE COMPANY IN DISPUTE OVER U.S. ELECTION
Jessica Levinson, a professor at Loyola Law School, said My Pillow's lawsuit showed a "misunderstanding" of the First Amendment and would be dismissed.
"It's an abuse of the court system," she said.
4/18- New York Times
VANESSA BRYANT USES HER PLATFORM TO BATTLE THE POWERFUL
4/18- Bloomberg News
WHITE HOUSE ADDS ADVISER ON DEMOCRACY POLICY, VOTING RIGHTS
Justin Levitt, a law school professor at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles and a former deputy assistant attorney general, has been chosen for the role, a White House official said on Monday evening.
Levitt will be a senior policy adviser at the White House, working on voting rights, providing Americans with equitable representation in government, restoring trust in democracy, and strengthening civic participation, the school said.
4/16- San Francisco Chronicle
PUBLIC ATTITUDES ON TASER MIX-UPS HAVE CHANGED, BUT CONVICTING A COP STILL DIFFICULT
4/14- Newsone
RIGHT PERSON AT THE RIGHT TIME’: KRISTEN CLARKE IS POISED TO LEAD DOJ’S CIVIL RIGHTS DIVISION
“If you were building somebody from scratch, as you know, an ideal person to run the Civil Rights Division, you’d end up with somebody a lot like Kristen,” Justin Levitt, a professor at Loyola, told NewsOne.
Levitt has known Clarke for more than 15 years, previously working with her on voting rights and other related civil rights issues. Besides Clarke’s expertise in the civil rights field, her experience as a manager would be an asset to the division, Levitt said.
4/14- KPCC
A use-of-force expert testified that former Officer Derek Chauvin was justified in pinning George Floyd to the ground because of his frantic resistance, contradicting a parade of authorities from both inside and outside the Minneapolis Police Department.
Guest: Stan Goldman, Professor, LMU's Loyola Law School.
4/13- Reuters
BIDEN'S PICK FOR TOP U.S. CIVIL RIGHTS LAWYER, KRISTEN CLARKE, FACES FRAUGHT TASK
"If you were inventing a nominee from scratch... you'd come up with Kristen or someone very, very close," said Justin Levitt, a former colleague who teaches law at Loyola Law School.
4/12- KCRW
WHY SUPREME COURT IS FAST-TRACKING RELIGIOUS FREEDOM CASES ON ITS ‘SHADOW DOCKET’
Late Friday night, the Supreme Court ruled that California cannot prevent people from gathering in homes for religious services. The unsigned order came in a narrow 5-4 vote just before midnight. It was part of the court’s so-called “shadow docket” — not part of the normal court calendar and with no oral arguments before the justices.
Guest: Jessica Levinson, Professor, LMU's Loyola Law School.
4/12-MSNBC
TRUMP'S OUT OF OFFICE, BUT HIS SUPREME COURT APPOINTEES ARE HERE FOR LIFE
Shortly before midnight Friday, when the Supreme Court struck down a California restriction on in-home gatherings as it applies to religious activities, it signaled yet again that alleged infringements on the freedom of religion will likely trump public health and safety restrictions. At least according to the current Supreme Court.
Article by LMU Loyola Law School professor Jessica Levinson.
4/11- Pasadena Star-News
BALDWIN PARK GAVE CANNABIS PERMIT TO MAN NOW SERVING AS ASSISTANT CITY ATTORNEY
4/11- Reuters
ANALYSIS: POLICE AND BYSTANDER ACCOUNTS BOLSTER CHAUVIN PROSECUTION
So far, prosecutors have called eight members of the Minneapolis Police Department, including the chief. Much of the testimony described Chauvin as using excessive force when he pinned a handcuffed Floyd for more than nine minutes, which Loyola Law School professor Jessica Levinson described as "devastating" for the defense.
4/10- Washington Post
'THE TIGER EFFECT?' NEW CRASH DETAILS FUEL QUESTIONS ABOUT SPECIAL TREATMENT FOR WOODS
Laurie Levenson, a professor at Loyola Law School who has studied special treatment given to celebrities by police, described handling such cases as a job hazard common to law enforcement officials in Los Angeles. “In L.A., you have to know both how to do your job and how to do your job when there’s a celebrity involved,” Levenson said. “You are put under microscopic scrutiny by the nation.”
4/8- The Hill
TEXAS GOP OFFICIAL CALLS FOR AN 'ELECTION INTEGRITY BRIGADE' TO MONITOR DIVERSE PRECINCTS
The Post notes that there is no evidence that suggests widespread voter fraud occurs in Texas or anywhere in the U.S. Loyola Law School professor Justin Levitt told Reuters in September of last year that he had only identified 31 incidents of voter impersonation between 2000 and 2014 out of more than 1 billion votes cast.
4/8- Associated Press
EXPLAINER: WHY WOULD AN EXPERT WITNESS GO WITHOUT PAY?
Laurie Levenson, a professor at Loyola Law School, said the state’s decision could have risked another attack from the defense: Arguing that Tobin was so personally invested in the case that he testified for free.
4/8- Rolling Stones
It may be that “replaying shopworn political ads over and over again,” as MeidasTouch puts it, is a “wrong and outdated” way of looking at this. The group says people are taking shots at it because of its success. But if MeidasTouch is wrong — and instead it’s the experts Rolling Stone spoke with and Priorities USA’s internal research that are correct — then its broadcast-TV ad campaign was a huge waste of donor money and its tweets weren’t persuading swing voters. “The law allows [Super PACs] to be stupid and inefficient with how they use their money,” says Jessica Levinson, a professor at Loyola Law School who specializes in election law and political reform. “But it’s strange you would light money on fire when there is so much that could be done with it.”
4/7- NBC News
REPUBLICANS, DEFENDING VOTING RESTRICTIONS, POINT FINGER AT BLUE STATES WITH LAWS THEY SAY ARE WORSE
"It doesn't have to be a partisan thing, 'but New York?' A lot of election advocates respond, 'Yeah — and — New York,'" said Justin Levitt, an election law expert and professor at Loyola Law School at Loyola Marymount University in California, who worked at the Justice Department during the Obama administration.
4/7- MSNBC
HOW INFOWARS HOST ALEX JONES PUSHED THE FIRST AMENDMENT TO ITS LIMIT
On Monday, the Supreme Court refused to hear a case brought by radio host and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, in which Jones claimed his First Amendment rights were being violated.
The move came after Jones was sanctioned for statements he made on air against a lawyer in a defamation suit brought against Jones by parents of victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting. In his eyes, the sanction violated his First Amendment right to free speech.
Article by LMU Loyola Law School professor Jessica Levinson.
4/6- KCRW
COLLEGE ATHLETES V. NCAA ON PLAYERS’ COMPENSATION: WHICH SIDE MIGHT THE SUPREME COURT FAVOR?
Over the weekend, the Stanford women’s basketball team won its first national championship since 1992. In men’s basketball, UCLA’s run to the Final Four came to an agonizing end.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court last week heard a case about the NCAA and compensation for student athletes.
Guest: Jessica Levinson, Professor, LMU's Loyola Law School.
4/4- CNN
DEMOCRATS FEAR A DELAY IN REDISTRICTING THREATENS BLACK AND ASIAN RESIDENTS IN TWO SOUTHERN STATES
4/3- Washington Post
POLICE CRACKDOWNS ON ILLICIT MASSAGE BUSINESSES POSE HARMS TO THE WOMEN THEY AIM TO HELP
The nine-month effort, which culminated in 10 raids and 45 arrests at massage businesses in San Francisco and Los Angeles, was hailed by law enforcement as one of the nation’s largest prostitution busts: Agents seized $3 million and detained about 120 women at a military base, where they were questioned for 24 hours. While none of the defendants faced trafficking-related offenses, most were deported, according to Kathleen Kim, a professor at Loyola Law School who co-authored California’s anti-trafficking law and provided legal representation to the women arrested during the raid.
4/3- Ventura County Star
OXNARD MAN'S 2010 ATTEMPTED MURDER CONVICTION TO BE REVERSED
An Oxnard man's 2010 attempted murder conviction was expected to be reversed because authorities "inadvertently" omitted evidence that could have discredited the prosecution's key witness.
“After a thorough and comprehensive investigation by our conviction integrity unit, we determined that the defendant was entitled to a reversal. Not only is this the legally required outcome, but it is also the right thing to do in light of the newly discovered evidence and information.”
Ixta's attorney Philip Dunn and Loyola Law School's Project for the Innocent also announced the reversal. Both have been involved in Ixta Jr.'s case.
4/2- Associated Press
CALIFORNIA MAN EXPECTED TO HAVE CONVICTION OVERTURNED
A Southern California man who has spent years behind bars for an alleged gang shooting is expected to have his conviction reversed this month, according to a law school project that pursues claims of innocence.
Ignacio Ixta Jr. was 21 in December 2010 when he was convicted of attempted murder in Ventura County and sentenced to 34 years to life in prison, the Loyola Project for the Innocent at LMU Loyola Law School said in a statement Friday.
With the help of attorneys and investigators it was learned that evidence that undermined the prosecution’s theory of the crime and indicated that someone else was the shooter was not disclosed to the defense before the trial, the Loyola Project said.