Justice

animal welfare, civil law and procedure, criminal law, disability, drug policy, family law, freedom of speech, guardianship, gun violence, housing law, immigration, indigenous agenda, lgbtq rights, policing, privacy, sexual child abuse, terrorism, women's rights

Privacy – It’s not just the NSA, it’s Boston Police abusing Your Rights

For anyone interested in how well meaning government policies and practices can be subverted or simply mis-implemented, please see the Globe article: http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2013/12/14/boston-police-suspend-use-high-tech-licence-plate-readers-amid-privacy-concerns/B2hy9UIzC7KzebnGyQ0JNM/story.html *Direct quotes from this article are indicated by trailing asterisk Summary: The Boston Police operate an automated license plate scanner program. The purpose is to gather as much information as possible and …

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Gun Violence — Overview and Reference

NOTE: This post has been superseded by this post. There many distinct types of gun violence including domestic violence, gang violence, and suicide. All are tragic, but mass murder by irrational shooters has catapulted to the top of the legislative agenda as a result of the Sandy Hook tragedy. There is a clear need for …

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Sentencing Reform — Overview

At this stage in our history, we are overusing incarceration as a tool for protecting the public. We tend to focus on the terrible cases where we fail to lock up very dangerous people who go on to commit horrendous crimes. But of equal concern are the thousands of instances in which we lock up …

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H1433 and S1171, An Act to prevent shackling and promote safe pregnancies for female inmates

Senator Brownsberger submitted the following written testimony to the Joint Committee on the Judiciary. I write in support of H1433/S1171, An Act to prevent shackling and promote safe pregnancies for female inmates. This bill would prohibit the shackling of pregnant women in state and county correctional facilities during pregnancy, childbirth, and post-delivery recuperation unless they …

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Video games and violence

About this time last year, after the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School, a constituent from Watertown approached me with concern about the role that “first person shooter” games play in training people to commit acts of violence.  We developed and, with the support of Representatives Hecht and Lawn from Watertown, filed legislation to study …

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