CWR Legal Advisor
What's Going On?
By Attorney Jermaine A. Wyrick
What do Civil Rights, the Death Penalty, Religion, Interrogation, Teenagers, and Guns have in common? The aforementioned are all issues of controversy up for decision by the United States Supreme Court. This week, in US v. Seale, the court denied to review a Civil Rights Case which allowed prosecutors to charge a reputed Ku Klux Klansman with kidnapping more than 40 years after two black men were abducted and killed in rural Mississippi. In religion, the court rejected an appeal to stop the release of documents generated for sexual abuse lawsuits against priests. The Diocese says the U.S. Constitutions' First Amendment prohibits civil authorities from intruding into internal church decisions about priest assignments. In another religion case, Salazar v. Buono, the court will decide whether the government can permit the display of a crucifix on public land as per the Establishment Clause.
In a Criminal Law, in the case of Maryland v. Shatzer, the court will decide the scope of interrogation rights for police suspects, as given in the watershed 1966 decision of Miranda v. Arizona. According to the precedental 1981 case of Edwards v. Arizona, admissions made by a suspect without the presence of an attorney, when one was requested, are inadmissible. In a Juvenile Law case, Graham v. Florida/Sullivan v. Florida, the court will decide whether life imprisonment for juveniles on non-homicide charges constitutes cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the 8th Amendment.
The Second Amendment allows citizens to bear arms. In the case of National Rifle Association v. Chicago/ McDonald v. Chicago, the court will decide a challenge to the City of Chicago's ban on handgun sales within the city limits, which is designed to curb violence in the city. In a 2008 decision, District of Columbia v. Heller, the court struck down a ban on handguns and automatic weapons in Washington, D.C, which acknowledge the individual right to bear arms. Keep your eyes and ears wide open. Once the aforementioned issues are decided, they will have a far reaching impact on the rights of citizens.
About the author: Attorney Jermaine A. Wyrick has practiced law since 1997. His areas of practice are civil rights, criminal defense, and personal injury. Wyrick is also a lecturer and is currently a member of the Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association, the State Bar of Michigan, the National Bar Association, and the Board of Directors for the Wolverine Bar Association.
Wyrick's awards include the Pepsi "Everyday Freedom Hero" Award; "Civil Rights and Education" United States Attorney's Office Black History Month Award, and the "Five under Ten" Award from the University of Michigan, African American Alumni Council; Who's Who in America, the Federal Bar Association, Pro Bono Project Award; Respect for Law, Optimist International, and an award from the Detroit Branch NAACP for Outstanding Leadership in Affirmative Action.
Law Offices of Jermaine A. Wyrick 615 Griswold St.
Detroit, MI 48226
313-964-8950