4/18/2021 I tell my criminal law students to start with jury instructions if they want to understand crimes, by Joyce Alene, MSNBC

The instructions explain what the prosecution must prove to convict.

In my new piece for @msnbcdaily I explain why they're so important in the Chauvin trial

Why Chauvin trial's verdict may hinge on Judge Cahill's jury instructions, by Joyce Alene, MSNBC

3/5/2021 UofM Law Professor and ex USAtty Barb McQuade cohosts a Legal Podcast

with Detroit Journalist Kimberly Atkins, ex USAtty Joyce Vance and Watergate Prosecutor Jill Wine-Banks,

- Detroit Free Press report by Julie Hinds, 3/5/2021

Asha Rangappa is a senior lecturer at Yale’s Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, a former Special Agent for the FBI, and a Contributing Editor at Zócalo Public Square. Rangappa is also recognized for her frequent Network news show expert commentaries, especially in these past several Trump soaked years.

4/8/2021 How the Supreme Court Gave Cops a License to Kill, bBy Elie Mystal, The Nation

Derek Chauvin’s defense team is hoping that the 1989 Graham v. Connor ruling will be his ticket to acquittal.

There is nothing unique or interesting about the defense strategy employed by the lawyers for Derek Chauvin. The trial has produced no made-for-television stunts or rhetorical flourishes. There’s no bloody glove, no rhyming couplets. Chauvin’s defense is so basic that an attorney straight out of law school could pull it off. His lawyers are simply arguing that cops have the right to kill people, if they think they need to.

Those who have watched the Chauvin trial have undoubtedly noticed the string of racist bread crumbs laid out by the defense about Floyd’s apparent “strength.” There is a long and ugly history of white people ascribing super strength to Black people as a way to justify the use of deadly force against those Black people. There’s even a controversial medical term, “excited delirium,” that is often cited by the police to explain why they just had to kill an unarmed Black person.

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