CEDP:

This week, Oct. 13-1, is Death Penalty Awareness Week, sponsored by the Campaign to End the Death Penalty. Get a quick education by reading Five Reasons to End the Death Penalty.

L. and I went to a CEDP "Live from Death Row" event last night where we listened to a former death row inmate talk about his experiences. He had to phone in via speaker phone because he's still hin prison—his sentence was commuted to life w/out parole. He was preaching to the choir as far as L. and I were concerned, but it was still a powerful experience to hear him talk about how the CEDP saved his life. If you keep an eye out, you might find a similar event near you this week.

Posted 08:27 AM | law general

Driving tanks: Not yet a usual activity

Continuing the torts thread of liability for abnormally dangerous activities, such as blasting or keeping tigers in your apartment, yesterday's reading revealed that in determining what qualifies as an abnormally dangerous activity we should consider, among other things, the extent to which the activity is not a matter of common usage. Restat. 2d Torts, § 520 (1977). Helpfully, my torts textbook informs me that:

An activity is a matter of common usage if it is customarily carried on by the great mass of mankind or by many people in the community. … Certain activities, notwithstanding their recognizable danger, are so generally carried on as to be regarded as customary. Thus automobiles have come into such general use that their operation is a matter of common usage. This, notwithstanding the residue of unavoidable risk of serious harm that may result even from their careful operation, is sufficient to prevent their use from being regarded as an abnormally dangerous activity. On the other hand, the operation of a tank or any other motor vehicle of such size and weight as to be unusually difficult to control safely … is not yet a usual activity for many people, and therefore the operation of such a vehicle may be abnormally dangerous. (654)

Thanks, Professor Epstein. It's good to know driving tanks is not yet a usual activity, but we better hurry up and file our class action against all Hummer drivers before it becomes so.

Posted 06:29 AM | Comments (3) | law school

Media: Big v. Little

The cover story on today's USA Today shouts, "Wesley Clark's fledgling campaign hits its stride."

Funny how different that BigMedia noise sounds from the LittleMedia version of the current state of the Clark campaign (also lots more inside detail here, and of course, there's always the letter from the leader of the Draft Clark movement that begins, "By the time you read these words, the bell will be tolling for Wesley Clark's candidacy."

Has the DNC exercised some influence at USA Today, or are this writer and her editors just not doing a very good job researching? Or are the bloggers just wrong?

Posted 06:13 AM | election 2004