Inequality Inquiry

Shorter Form Content from the Minnesota Journal of Law & Inequality


Deadly Force: How George Floyd’s Killing Exposes Racial Inequities in Minnesota’s Felony-Murder Doctrine Among the Disenfranchised, the Powerful, and the Police

March 8, 2021

View/Download PDF Version Greg Egan[1] I. Equity in Peril: How Felony-Murder Charging Discretion and Widely Varying Punishments are Deployed Against White Defendants, Defendants of Color, and Peace Officers Minnesota’s second-degree felony-murder statute represents a unique and creative charging mechanism that affords wide discretion to prosecutors. This makes it ripe for inequitable application. It is the…

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Volume 40 is Open for Submissions!

February 17, 2021

Do you have an idea for an article everyone should read? Maybe this is the time to write it! The Minnesota Journal of Law & Inequality is now accepting submissions for its 2021-2022 Volume 40.

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A Supreme Court unto Himself: The Disastrous Effects of the Attorney General’s Self-Certification Power on Immigration

February 13, 2021

The Attorney General has the power under 8 U.S.C. § 1103(g)(2) and 8 C.F.R. § 1003.1(h)(1) to overturn BIA decisions, as well as circuit court precedent, on nearly any immigration case they see fit. This expansive power was given to the Attorney General long ago, when most immigration functions were housed under the Department of Justice. Now that immigrations functions are spread across a range of entities at the federal level, the status quo is problematic. This article examines the Attorney General’s power to self-certify cases to themself, the problems it raises in terms of rationale, due process violations for asylum candidates such as L-E-A-, and larger constitutional issues.

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The Burying of Boumediene v. Bush

Kevin Thomson* At the University of Minnesota Law School in 2018, Chief Justice John Roberts declared that the court “erred greatly” when it gave into political pressure and upheld the internment of Japanese Americans in the “shameful” decision Korematsu v. United States. The Court is at its best, said the Chief Justice, when it stands…

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How Family Law Court Exacerbates the Effects of Domestic Violence

February 2, 2021

Kendra Saathoff* In family law court, custody proceedings can be made difficult by a history of domestic violence between the parents. Ultimately, judges’ interpretation of demeanor influences their fact finding and can lead them to determining domestic violence has not occurred when it has, or that it is not relevant to their determination of custody.…

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Covid-19 in Prisons: Human Rights Violations and Inmate Exploitation

January 29, 2021

Heather Chang* The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in the Spring of 2020 required unprecedent changes. While business and individuals have adapted their policies and behaviors to reflect health and safety recommendations, the prison system remains rigid and dangerous.  As of January 12, 2021, The Marshall Project reports that at least 343,008 prisoners tested positive…

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Locking the Door to the Country on the Way Out: The Trump Administration’s Final Attempt to Eliminate Protections for Asylum Seekers

January 22, 2021

Only weeks before the expiration of the Trump presidency, his Administration sought to create an alarming regulation that opponents have called “the death knell” to asylum law and protections for vulnerable migrants. Check out this post from staff member Katie McCoy, as she outlines the proposed rule and the situation that the Biden-Harris Administration inherits.

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Minimum Wage and the Tipping Culture Divide

January 18, 2021

Annali Cler* On November 3rd, voters flocked to the polls, and election results gripped the nation for the following week. Although the presidential race captured headlines, another important vote occurred that day. In Florida, voters approved an amendment to the state’s minimum wage. Florida’s minimum wage for non-tipped employees will increase to $15 by 2026,…

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The Law in Politics: A Conversation with Rep. Ryan Winkler

January 12, 2021

    In this interview, staff member Jon Erik Haines met with Minnesota House Majority Leader Rep. Ryan Winkler. Mr. Winkler is the Democratic Majority Leader in the Minnesota House of Representatives and represents suburban district 46A, which contains Golden Valley, St. Louis Park and Plymouth. As a graduate of the University of Minnesota Law…

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Opportunity Zones: Gambling with Our General Welfare

January 5, 2021

Economic inequality is at a breaking point. “Opportunity Zones” operate currently to expand specific welfare rather than general welfare. Reforms may be imminent, but OZs reveal how private-public partnerships often prioritize the interests of only a few.

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Does the Minneapolis Police Department Traffic Stop Data Reveal Racial Bias?

November 24, 2020

This study analyzed Minneapolis Police Department traffic stop data from 2016 to 2020 to determine if racial bias influences MPD behavior. Results of the analysis showed that Black drivers are 10.8% percent more likely to be stopped during the day, when officers can observe the driver’s race for profiling, than when Black drivers’ race is not observable during darkness. The effect was highly statistically significant and demonstrated that Minneapolis Police Department traffic stops are racially biased.

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2020 Summit for Civil Rights – The State of American Apartheid

November 20, 2020

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  In “The State of American Apartheid”, scholars and on-the-ground activists discuss the history of school segregation, and, even six decades after Brown v. Board of Education declared “Separate is not equal”, how segregation exists and affects people today. This panel discusses the causes, results, and on-going impact of our society’s unwillingness to challenge racial…

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Avoiding Atkins: How Tennessee is on the Verge of Unconstitutionally Executing an Individual with Intellectual Disabilities

November 18, 2020

Image Courtesy of Attorneys for Pervis Payne

If the state executes an intellectually disabled individual, but no one knows of the intellectual disability, has the state violated the constitution? It is our sincerest hope that Pervis Payne and others in a similar procedural labyrinth that could lead to what everyone agrees would be an unconstitutional execution are provided an opportunity to present the merits of their claims of intellectual disability. Justice, decency, and the Constitution demand it.

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2020 Summit for Civil Rights – Opening Statements

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  The Minnesota Journal of Law & Inequality (JLI) co-hosted the virtual 2020 Summit for Civil Rights with the Institute on Metropolitan Opportunity and Georgetown Law’s Workers’ Rights Institute on July 30 and 31, 2020. The Dean of the University of Minnesota Law School, Garry Jenkins, provided the welcome remarks to kickstart the 2020 Summit…

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