Law in Popular Culture

4th Circuit Tells Lower Court to Consider DNA in Appeal of ‘Fatal Vision’ Doc

A federal appeals court has directed a lower court to consider DNA evidence and witness statements in an appeal by the Army doctor convicted of murdering his wife and two daughters in a case portrayed in the book Fatal Vision. Jeffrey MacDonald claims the 1970 murders were committed by four…

Apr 20, 2011 4:41 PM CDT

Victory in Peeps in Law Contest Goes to ‘Don’t Touch My Peeps, Man!’

With more than 62,000 votes, the 3rd Annual Peeps in Law Contest has a winner, with 43 percent of the vote: “Don’t Touch My Peeps, Man!” by Nicholas Meeker, Lisa Liegeot and Rebecca Sherry. The winning trio will be awarded with $150 of Peeps memorabilia from Just Born, the manufacturer…

Apr 19, 2011 5:29 PM CDT

‘The Wire’ Cast Members Participate in Panel at Harvard Law About Urban Poverty

The creators and five cast members of The Wire—a TV series about police officers and inner-city drug dealers in Baltimore—participated in a panel discussion at Harvard Law School on Tuesday where they talked about both the celebrated show and America’s inner-city poor. “We’re going to need to pick up a…

Apr 14, 2011 2:09 PM CDT

Judgment Day: Voting Begins on the Top 8 Peeps in Law Dioramas

In our third annual Peeps in Law contest, we received 40 outstanding dioramas. From the Little Peep Nine desegregating schools to the sad tableau of a death by document review boredom, our readers really brought it this year. Judging these dioramas wasn’t easy, but with the help of last year’s…

Apr 7, 2011 5:44 PM CDT

TV’s ‘Divorce Court’ Judge Hated Law School and Law Practice

The judge who presides on TV’s Divorce Court didn’t enjoy working 60 hours a week at a law firm, and was too shy to enjoy law school. Lynn Toler talked to McClatchy News Service about her path to a TV judgeship. She goofed off at Harvard University and hated law…

Apr 6, 2011 10:30 AM CDT

Duke Law’s ‘Tricky Dick’ Musical Signals Shift in Administration’s Stance on Nixon

For decades, the Duke University School of Law has downplayed its association with arguably its most notorious graduate: Richard M. Nixon. However, in a sign that the university is slowly embracing its ties with the embattled president, Duke law students on Friday performed Tricky Dick, a musical imagining an ethically…

Apr 4, 2011 7:03 PM CDT

Westboro Peeps, BPeep Oil Spill & More Depicted in ‘Peeps in Law’ Diorama Contest

Entries for this year’s Peeps in Law Story 3 diorama contest are coming in, and we’ve learned that no subject is too touchy to depict in sugary form. So far there are three entries—including one from yours truly—inspired by the infamous Westboro Baptist Church demonstrators. There are also entries featuring…

Apr 4, 2011 6:31 PM CDT

Comics Provide More Than Relief for the Blog Law and the Multiverse

Most comic books are full of action and intrigue but bereft of quirky legal debate. Stepping up to fill that void are attorneys James Daily and Ryan Davidson, whose blog Law and the Multiverse has developed a cult following faster than a speeding bullet. Since starting the blog last November,…

Apr 1, 2011 8:50 AM CDT

Peeps in Law Gallery Is Live

Submissions are starting to come in, albeit slowly, for our 3rd annual Peeps diorama contest: Peeps in Law Story 3. There’s still plenty of time to dream up a concept and submit your photo by our April 5 deadline. As in past years, we’ll pick our favorites, then ask readers…

Mar 23, 2011 5:59 PM CDT

Lawyer’s Free-Speech Ethics Challenge Inspires Legal Blogger’s Novel

A Kentucky lawyer who criticized a decision by the state’s Legislative Ethics Commission is in the middle of an ethical controversy once again that is the fictional subject of a blogger’s new novel. Lawyer John Berry Jr. claims in a suit against the Kentucky Bar Association that he had a…

Mar 22, 2011 2:24 PM CDT

Mixed Reviews of New ‘Lincoln Lawyer’ Movie: ‘Poorly Directed Yet Surprisingly Watchable’

A number of individuals who have seen the new movie The Lincoln Lawyer have liked it. Reviewer Colin Covert of the Minneapolis Star Tribune is not among them. Under a headline that describes the drama about Los Angeles defense attorney Mickey Haller as “truly a trial” for the viewer, he…

Mar 17, 2011 8:47 PM CDT

Story of New Law Grad’s Work on Tim McVeigh’s Defense Team Is Headed to Hollywood

As 1996 neared an end, Chad Wold’s life course seemed set. The recent law school graduate was getting settled in Montana, where he was about to get married and study for the bar exam. But then, in a stunning development that illustrates the power of networking, came a phone call…

Mar 17, 2011 7:52 PM CDT

NYU 3L Contemplates Charlie’s Sheen’s Winning Life in YouTube Rap Video

NYU law student and rapper Eli Northrup has a funny hit video on YouTube, but until recently he kept it a secret from students and professors. The video, “Charlie Sheen: Always Winning,” includes these lines: “Charlie Sheen two men, everybody else a half. Success rate 100 percent, I did the…

Mar 17, 2011 3:05 PM CDT

Peeps in Law Story 3: Time to Get Crafty

Have you been wondering what a Charlie Sheen courtroom drama might look like if his threats to sue play out? Here’s your chance to show the world (or at least a legal audience), in diorama form, using marshmallowy Peeps as your main characters. That’s right, it’s time for our 3rd…

Mar 10, 2011 2:00 PM CST

News Station Apologizes for Airing Version of the F-Word Uttered During Casey Anthony Trial

In its coverage of the Casey Anthony case, Central Florida’s News 13 aired a “version of the F-bomb,” prompting the channel to apologize. “We deeply apologize that that word went out on the air, anchor Adam Longo said, reports the Orlando Sentinel’s The TV Guy blog. “We’re taking steps to…

Mar 8, 2011 9:46 PM CST