Mercer Law School

5th Circuit

Morning Docket: 04.04.12

* AG Eric Holder can thank Obama for this homework assignment from Fifth Circuit Judge Jerry Smith, because it seems like our president, a former con law professor, forgot about Marbury v. Madison. [CBS News] * Dewey need to buy this Biglaw firm a functional calculator? New information shows that the imploding firm was off by roughly $153M when partners reported 2011 earnings to the American Lawyer. [Am Law Daily] * You know there’s got to be something questionable about a law school when the accreditation machine that is the ABA gives it the side eye. And no, Duncan Law, a judge still won’t force its hand. [National Law Journal] * Stephen McDaniel pleaded not guilty at his arraignment for the murder of Mercer Law classmate Lauren Giddings, but will he be released on bail before trial? Only if he’s got $2.5M sitting around. [Macon Telegraph] * More law school lawsuits are coming down the pipeline, but local lawyers in Massachusetts don’t think that they stand a chance. Why? The highly-educated consumer argument strikes again. [Boston Business Journal] * Thanks to Gloria Allred, transgender beauty queen Jenna Talackova may be able to participate in the Miss Universe pageant if she can meet the legal requirements for being a woman in Canada. [MSNBC]

By Staci Zaretsky
Crime

Stephen McDaniel Indicted for Murder of Lauren Giddings

This should not come as a great shock, since he’s been in jail since July, but Stephen Mark McDaniel has been indicted by a grand jury for the murder of Lauren Giddings. McDaniel and Giddings graduated earlier this year from Mercer Law School, where they were classmates, and they were also neighbors in the Barristers […]

By David Lat
Airplanes / Aviation

Morning Docket: 11.14.11

* Pennsylvania may have new child abuse reporting requirements by the year’s end. Apparently the key to efficiency in state government is to sully the reputation of the state’s pride and joy. [CNN] * “There is always room for a good law school, regardless of the climate.” Say hello to Peter C. Alexander, the founding […]

By Staci Zaretsky
American Bar Association / ABA

Morning Docket: 09.12.11

* In November, the Supreme Court will decide whether our Fourth Amendment rights come subject to advances in technology. I, for one, welcome our new Orwellian overlords. [New York Times] * What do you get when two wireless carriers with craptastic coverage and service that goes down more than a porn star have plans to […]

By Staci Zaretsky
Crime

Probable Cause Found Against Stephen McDaniel in Lauren Giddings Murder Case

Bad news keeps on coming for Stephen Mark McDaniel, 25, the recent Mercer Law School graduate accused of killing Lauren Giddings, his former neighbor and classmate. Last week, a judge found probable cause in the murder case against McDaniel, which will now be bound over to Bibb County Superior Court. We were fortunate enough to have a reader at the hearing. Let's hear what this roving reporter has to say....

By David Lat
Crime

Chilling Internet Postings Linked to Stephen McDaniel

It seems that Stephen Mark McDaniel just can't catch a break. He has been in Bibb County jail for almost two months, and the incarceration has been taking its toll on him. And now, McDaniel is being fingered as the author of some exceedingly creepy postings to internet message boards. If the claims of his authorship are true, they will definitely not help his case....

By David Lat
Crime

Hacksaw McDaniel Accused of Child Pornography Possession

Things just got a lot more complicated for Stephen McDaniel, the 25-year-old Mercer Law School graduate accused of killing his former neighbor and classmate, Lauren Giddings. McDaniel has now been hit with seven charges of sexual exploitation of children. So even if McDaniel is cleared of the Giddings murder, he's still looking at a whole host of other allegations....

By David Lat
Crime

The Lauren Giddings Murder Investigation: Some Updates

It has been a few weeks since we last wrote at length about the investigation into the murder of Lauren Giddings. A former neighbor and classmate of Giddings, Stephen M. McDaniel, 25, has been charged with her murder. McDaniel is being held at the Bibb County jail, where he has been for several weeks. There have been a few recent developments in the case -- nothing major, but still worth noting....

By David Lat
Celebrities

Non-Sequiturs: 08.16.11

* I know we’re a little tight for money, but we should find some money in the budget to make sure faded American stars are bailed out of the housing crisis, just like the banks were. [Monsters & Critics] * Illinois’s redrawn legislative districts draw legal fire. I have an idea: let’s use Illinois as […]

By Elie Mystal
Barack Obama

The Collected Writings of Stephen McDaniel

In prior coverage of Stephen McDaniel, the Mercer Law School graduate accused of murdering his former neighbor and classmate, Lauren Giddings, we alluded to several emails that McDaniel sent to some of his classmates. Some students found the emails, which reflected McDaniel's conservative political views, to be strange or disturbing. We will now share them with you....

By David Lat