Constitution Day panel presentation is Sept. 17

A Constitution Day panel presentation titled “Justice and the Constitution: The Right to Counsel, Gideon v. Wainwright, and its Legacy at Fifty” will be held Tuesday, Sept. 17, at Saint Mary’s.

The event, free and open to the public, will be held from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in the President’s Room of the Toner Student Center.

Panelists will include:

• Rich McCluer, J.D. — Criminal law attorney with Price, McCluer & Plachecki; formerly chief trial lawyer for the Third Judicial District Public Defenders Office and named a “Minnesota Superlawyer” by the Minnesota Journal of Law and Politics

• Larry Price, J.D. — Assistant professor, Department of Business, Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota

• Karin Sonneman, J.D. — Winona County attorney; formerly public defender for Minnesota’s Third Judicial District and two-time Gideon Award recipient, awarded to a public defender best exemplifying the principles of Gideon

• Judge Jeffrey D. Thompson, J.D. — Chief judge for Minnesota’s Third Judicial District, formerly Rice County attorney and assistant Winona County attorney

Gideon v. Wainwright was the 1963 Supreme Court case which led to the government appointing defense attorneys at no cost to those not able to afford it. This is widely believed to have made the U.S. legal system more accurate and fair, but 50 years later, some question whether the ideals upheld in Gideon have been eroded by underfunding, heavy case loads and plea-bargains. This panel of legal experts will explore the original case and the state of justice in the U.S. court system 50 years later.

This Constitution Day presentation is sponsored by the Department of Social Science. For more information, contact moderator Dr. David Lynch, professor and chair, Department of Social Science, at dlynch@smumn.edu or Ext. 1526.

Constitution Day panel presentation is Sept. 17

A Constitution Day panel presentation titled “Justice and the Constitution: The Right to Counsel, Gideon v. Wainwright, and its Legacy at Fifty” will be held Tuesday, Sept. 17, at Saint Mary’s.
The event, free and open to the public, will be held from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in the President’s Room of the Toner Student Center.

Panelists will include:

• Rich McCluer, J.D. — Criminal law attorney with Price, McCluer & Plachecki; formerly chief trial lawyer for the Third Judicial District Public Defenders Office and named a “Minnesota Superlawyer” by the Minnesota Journal of Law and Politics

• Larry Price, J.D. — Assistant professor, Department of Business, Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota

• Karin Sonneman, J.D. — Winona County attorney; formerly public defender for Minnesota’s Third Judicial District and two-time Gideon Award recipient, awarded to a public defender best exemplifying the principles of Gideon

• Judge Jeffrey D. Thompson, J.D. — Chief judge for Minnesota’s Third Judicial District, formerly Rice County attorney and assistant Winona County attorney

Gideon v. Wainwright was the 1963 Supreme Court case, which led to the government appointing defense attorneys at no cost to those not able to afford it. This is widely believed to have made the U.S. legal system more accurate and fair, but 50 years later, some question whether the ideals upheld in Gideon have been eroded by underfunding, heavy case loads and plea-bargains. This panel of legal experts will explore the original case and the state of justice in the U.S. court system 50 years later.

This Constitution Day presentation is sponsored by the Department of Social Science. For more information, contact moderator Dr. David Lynch, professor and chair, Department of Social Science, at dlynch@smumn.edu or Ext. 1526.

SMU’s first mock trial labeled a success

Saint Mary’s held its historic first Mock Trial on Oct. 27. The event was sponsored by the Business and Social Sciences departments.

Student “attorneys” represented the plaintiff and the defendant in a hotly contested case in which the plaintiff alleged that the defendant served alcohol at a party to a student who was drunk and was therefore responsible when the student crashed into the plaintiff’s car, injuring him.

The plaintiff was represented by Anna Sonday, Loren Galloway, and Morgan Carlson. The defendant was represented by Colin Norris, Marty Purintun, and Andrew Seifert. The Department of Theatre and Dance contributed greatly to the success of the event: the witnesses were expertly played by Bryan Moore, Jacob Rivet, Tom Conry, and Alex Green. Alex Akers and Taylor Marshall-Miernicki helped to design the set for the trial. Nancy Wiltgen, Development, played the role of judge and also gave some advice to the attorneys after the case was over, drawing on her more than 20 years of experience as an attorney in a prominent Minneapolis law firm.

The event was well attended and included a reception afterwards. The success of the event insures that it will become an annual event at Saint Mary’s. The entire Mock Trial can be viewed online at https://tegr.it/y/6qu9.

Lynch to discuss ‘The War Over War Powers’

Dr. David Lynch, Social Science, will present “The War Over War Powers” 7 p.m. Monday, Sept. 15, at the Toner Student Center’s President’s Room. The talk will examine the tension between Congress and the President over the authority to use force. The event — which falls near Constitution Day (Sept. 17) — is free and open to the public.

Rodgers interviewed on Radio City Network News

Dr. Jim Rodgers, Social Science, did a taped radio interview on terrorism with Curtis Beckmann of Radio City Network News for the public affairs program “Minnesota This Week” July 13 at the Woodbridge Cooperative Community in New Hope. The program was available for stations to download with primary airing on Sunday, July 29.