Thomas Frampton
@tframpton.bsky.social
UVA Law, visiting at GW Law, sometimes lawyer, full-time Ruth wrangler. Speaking as private citizen, outside official job duties, on matters of political/social/other concern.
Stuff I write: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=1785600
Stuff I write: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=1785600
Tonight our family—age range 73 years to 11 days—joined many hundreds of others in the freezing cold and dark outside ICE HQ to oppose fascism. We are going to win.
(Also, this is the “me & yoyokellyo.bsky.social had a baby” post. Meet Jasper Pauli (“JP”); she’s already sick of their BS.)
(Also, this is the “me & yoyokellyo.bsky.social had a baby” post. Meet Jasper Pauli (“JP”); she’s already sick of their BS.)
January 25, 2026 at 2:47 AM
Tonight our family—age range 73 years to 11 days—joined many hundreds of others in the freezing cold and dark outside ICE HQ to oppose fascism. We are going to win.
(Also, this is the “me & yoyokellyo.bsky.social had a baby” post. Meet Jasper Pauli (“JP”); she’s already sick of their BS.)
(Also, this is the “me & yoyokellyo.bsky.social had a baby” post. Meet Jasper Pauli (“JP”); she’s already sick of their BS.)
Reposted by Thomas Frampton
Kare 11 local news just read, in full, this statement from Michael and Susan Pretti, the parents of Alex Pretti.
"Please get the truth out about our son."
"Please get the truth out about our son."
January 25, 2026 at 12:43 AM
Kare 11 local news just read, in full, this statement from Michael and Susan Pretti, the parents of Alex Pretti.
"Please get the truth out about our son."
"Please get the truth out about our son."
If you're in DC and heartbroken/enraged, I'll see you at the ICE protest at 6PM at Hancock Park (650 Maryland Ave SW, L'Enfant Plaza Metro just off the mall).
It'll be cold, but if folks in Minnesota can do it, so can we. Snow won't start until a few hours later.
It'll be cold, but if folks in Minnesota can do it, so can we. Snow won't start until a few hours later.
January 24, 2026 at 7:12 PM
If you're in DC and heartbroken/enraged, I'll see you at the ICE protest at 6PM at Hancock Park (650 Maryland Ave SW, L'Enfant Plaza Metro just off the mall).
It'll be cold, but if folks in Minnesota can do it, so can we. Snow won't start until a few hours later.
It'll be cold, but if folks in Minnesota can do it, so can we. Snow won't start until a few hours later.
Reposted by Thomas Frampton
I have spent my entire adult life being lectured by Republican politicians and conservative legal movement types about how important it is to preserve the sacred constitutional right to self-defense of *specifically this person* and then secret police murdered him in the street
Minneapolis police chief Brian O'Hara says that the victim was a 37-year-old white man and US citizen with no criminal record and that he was a legally permitted gun owner.
January 24, 2026 at 6:29 PM
I have spent my entire adult life being lectured by Republican politicians and conservative legal movement types about how important it is to preserve the sacred constitutional right to self-defense of *specifically this person* and then secret police murdered him in the street
Judge Katherine Menendez's preliminary injunction could have taken down the temperature significantly, and provided a modicum of accountability for the ongoing lawlessness of federal officers. But the judges of the 8th Circuit entered an "administrative stay" less than 72 hours ago.
January 24, 2026 at 5:35 PM
Judge Katherine Menendez's preliminary injunction could have taken down the temperature significantly, and provided a modicum of accountability for the ongoing lawlessness of federal officers. But the judges of the 8th Circuit entered an "administrative stay" less than 72 hours ago.
Reposted by Thomas Frampton
DC-area friends looking for a fun & cozy event before the Big Storm: come join my conversation with @brsoucek.bsky.social at Politics & Prose Bookstore (Conn Ave location) tonight from 5-6pm about his excellent and timely new book, The Opinionated University! politics-prose.com/brian-soucek
politics-prose.com
January 24, 2026 at 3:30 PM
DC-area friends looking for a fun & cozy event before the Big Storm: come join my conversation with @brsoucek.bsky.social at Politics & Prose Bookstore (Conn Ave location) tonight from 5-6pm about his excellent and timely new book, The Opinionated University! politics-prose.com/brian-soucek
Reposted by Thomas Frampton
lol this is lsu football level stuff
How much is UVa / the Commonwealth going to have to pay to get out of this mess?
richmond.com/opinion/colu...
richmond.com/opinion/colu...
Poison-pill presidency: How the board priced accountability at $8.5 million | Guest column
The agreement UVa signed with its new president functions as a poison pill: it converts any effort to unwind a contested appointment into a costly and legally fraught undertaking, these columnists arg...
richmond.com
January 18, 2026 at 12:46 PM
lol this is lsu football level stuff
Reposted by Thomas Frampton
I think we went a little overboard on the king cake baby this year 👶
January 17, 2026 at 5:26 PM
I think we went a little overboard on the king cake baby this year 👶
I'm in a minority here among people who study/write about juries, but I think it would be a vast improvement if (with some VERY small exceptions) we picked the first 12 names out of the hat.
(Among other things, it would save lots of time. Which is one reason people hate jury duty.)
(Among other things, it would save lots of time. Which is one reason people hate jury duty.)
Update. About 50 of us were dismissed. Wonder what incentives one could set up to get parties to settle before the day of trial.
January 12, 2026 at 5:52 PM
I'm in a minority here among people who study/write about juries, but I think it would be a vast improvement if (with some VERY small exceptions) we picked the first 12 names out of the hat.
(Among other things, it would save lots of time. Which is one reason people hate jury duty.)
(Among other things, it would save lots of time. Which is one reason people hate jury duty.)
This shouldn't be hard.
Let's poll: "Do you support a bill that lets someone sue for damages if a federal officer violates their [clearly established] rights under the U.S. Constitution?"
I doubt most people realize SCOTUS has said you can't sue in most cases now ("clearly established" or not).
Let's poll: "Do you support a bill that lets someone sue for damages if a federal officer violates their [clearly established] rights under the U.S. Constitution?"
I doubt most people realize SCOTUS has said you can't sue in most cases now ("clearly established" or not).
@repdangoldman.bsky.social @ericswalwell.bsky.social I admire your efforts to increase ICE officer accountability. But ending qualified immunity wont address a much bigger problem-there is essentially no right to sue federal officers for violating the Constitution. First codify Bivens. Then end QI.
Instead of accountability, the Trump admin deflects & smears victims of their agencies’ militarized violence.
My ICE OUT Act with @ericswalwell.bsky.social will end current qualified immunity standard for ICE agents who abuse their authority, ensuring accountability for those on the receiving end.
My ICE OUT Act with @ericswalwell.bsky.social will end current qualified immunity standard for ICE agents who abuse their authority, ensuring accountability for those on the receiving end.
January 12, 2026 at 3:06 PM
This shouldn't be hard.
Let's poll: "Do you support a bill that lets someone sue for damages if a federal officer violates their [clearly established] rights under the U.S. Constitution?"
I doubt most people realize SCOTUS has said you can't sue in most cases now ("clearly established" or not).
Let's poll: "Do you support a bill that lets someone sue for damages if a federal officer violates their [clearly established] rights under the U.S. Constitution?"
I doubt most people realize SCOTUS has said you can't sue in most cases now ("clearly established" or not).
Reposted by Thomas Frampton
@repdangoldman.bsky.social @ericswalwell.bsky.social I admire your efforts to increase ICE officer accountability. But ending qualified immunity wont address a much bigger problem-there is essentially no right to sue federal officers for violating the Constitution. First codify Bivens. Then end QI.
Instead of accountability, the Trump admin deflects & smears victims of their agencies’ militarized violence.
My ICE OUT Act with @ericswalwell.bsky.social will end current qualified immunity standard for ICE agents who abuse their authority, ensuring accountability for those on the receiving end.
My ICE OUT Act with @ericswalwell.bsky.social will end current qualified immunity standard for ICE agents who abuse their authority, ensuring accountability for those on the receiving end.
As the Minneapolis killing gets darker for Trump, Reps Eric Swalwell and Dan Goldman talk about their plan to check ICE—and about Trumpworld’s broader plunge into violence and lawlessness.
"Trump has sent these mother-murdering thugs into our community." trib.al/snLrhRO
"Trump has sent these mother-murdering thugs into our community." trib.al/snLrhRO
January 12, 2026 at 5:52 AM
@repdangoldman.bsky.social @ericswalwell.bsky.social I admire your efforts to increase ICE officer accountability. But ending qualified immunity wont address a much bigger problem-there is essentially no right to sue federal officers for violating the Constitution. First codify Bivens. Then end QI.
One thing the last few days have underscored (for me anyways) is that the U.S. is addicted to criminal law and criminal law enforcement. So we'll start our first day of 1L Criminal Law at GW Law tomorrow not with murder, or rape, or kidnapping, but with . . .
January 12, 2026 at 2:03 AM
One thing the last few days have underscored (for me anyways) is that the U.S. is addicted to criminal law and criminal law enforcement. So we'll start our first day of 1L Criminal Law at GW Law tomorrow not with murder, or rape, or kidnapping, but with . . .
Updating my C.V. to reflect “over 700 peer reviewed publications and/or tweets.”
This seems to strongly suggest that the incoming president of UVA doctored his CV to the edge of outright dishonesty, and that the most recent changes came months before Jim Ryan was forced, as if they were made in anticipation in Ryan’s removal. augustafreepress.com/news/vanishi...
How UVA’s presidential search missed what took us an hour to find
Inside Higher Ed frames the controversy surrounding Scott C. Beardsley's appointment as the University of Virginia's president.
augustafreepress.com
January 11, 2026 at 9:51 PM
Updating my C.V. to reflect “over 700 peer reviewed publications and/or tweets.”
The problem is not "lack of training" and I don't understand why Democrats are so unfathomably bad about this.
January 11, 2026 at 5:41 PM
The problem is not "lack of training" and I don't understand why Democrats are so unfathomably bad about this.
So that wasn't a slip of the tongue on Meet The Press.
He's going around to every Sunday morning program trying to normalize killing civilians for engaging in protected First Amendment activity.
He's going around to every Sunday morning program trying to normalize killing civilians for engaging in protected First Amendment activity.
Homan: "There will be more bloodshed unless we decrease the hateful rhetoric"
January 11, 2026 at 4:46 PM
So that wasn't a slip of the tongue on Meet The Press.
He's going around to every Sunday morning program trying to normalize killing civilians for engaging in protected First Amendment activity.
He's going around to every Sunday morning program trying to normalize killing civilians for engaging in protected First Amendment activity.
How is MAGA-world framing Trump's incessant (and quite successful) pressure campaign to get NATO countries to increase their military spending as a % of GDP now that we're going to war with NATO?
January 11, 2026 at 4:34 PM
How is MAGA-world framing Trump's incessant (and quite successful) pressure campaign to get NATO countries to increase their military spending as a % of GDP now that we're going to war with NATO?
For those baffled at others' reactions to the video, I really can't recommend this classic article enough. "What people see will often be a reflection of what they value."
("Motivated cognition" is a hell of a drug. For others. Not for me.)
www.stanfordlawreview.org/wp-content/u...
("Motivated cognition" is a hell of a drug. For others. Not for me.)
www.stanfordlawreview.org/wp-content/u...
January 10, 2026 at 12:09 AM
For those baffled at others' reactions to the video, I really can't recommend this classic article enough. "What people see will often be a reflection of what they value."
("Motivated cognition" is a hell of a drug. For others. Not for me.)
www.stanfordlawreview.org/wp-content/u...
("Motivated cognition" is a hell of a drug. For others. Not for me.)
www.stanfordlawreview.org/wp-content/u...
The U.S. Supreme Court heard a case in 1981 about a criminal prosecution brought by state prosecutors under state law (removed to federal court) against a federal immigration officer who fired three shots at a "fugitive" civilian.
supreme.justia.com/cases/federa...
supreme.justia.com/cases/federa...
Arizona v. Manypenny, 451 U.S. 232 (1981)
Arizona v. Manypenny
supreme.justia.com
January 9, 2026 at 9:39 PM
The U.S. Supreme Court heard a case in 1981 about a criminal prosecution brought by state prosecutors under state law (removed to federal court) against a federal immigration officer who fired three shots at a "fugitive" civilian.
supreme.justia.com/cases/federa...
supreme.justia.com/cases/federa...
I’ve been doom-scrolling a lot the past 24 hours. Here’s an uplifting three-part 🧵. We’re gonna win.
(Bricking my phone for a couple days.)
(Bricking my phone for a couple days.)
I'm helping pack the gallery at immigration court today because ICE thugs arrested and jailed the dad of one of my daughter’s preschool classmates. Born in Haiti, he's lived in the US for more than 20+ years, but in November ICE ambushed him when he duly appeared for a routine immigration check-in.
January 8, 2026 at 6:10 PM
I’ve been doom-scrolling a lot the past 24 hours. Here’s an uplifting three-part 🧵. We’re gonna win.
(Bricking my phone for a couple days.)
(Bricking my phone for a couple days.)
Reposted by Thomas Frampton
Just to clear his up b/c some folks are confusing it a bit. (It's confusing, no slight at anyone.)
There's qualified immunity against a civil suit for damages. There is also "Supremacy Clause Immunity" (SCI) against state prosecution and criminal liability, if it attaches.
1/
There's qualified immunity against a civil suit for damages. There is also "Supremacy Clause Immunity" (SCI) against state prosecution and criminal liability, if it attaches.
1/
But there is no immunity from criminal prosecution, only civil liability. And there's some precedent for state charges against federal officers when feds won't prosecute.
I think the issue here is asking why a U.S. attorney would intervene to stop the FBI from cooperating with local police.
I think the issue here is asking why a U.S. attorney would intervene to stop the FBI from cooperating with local police.
January 8, 2026 at 5:22 PM
Just to clear his up b/c some folks are confusing it a bit. (It's confusing, no slight at anyone.)
There's qualified immunity against a civil suit for damages. There is also "Supremacy Clause Immunity" (SCI) against state prosecution and criminal liability, if it attaches.
1/
There's qualified immunity against a civil suit for damages. There is also "Supremacy Clause Immunity" (SCI) against state prosecution and criminal liability, if it attaches.
1/
This is awful; looks like feds trying to bury it.
A state grand jury can compel sworn testimony and subpoena “books, papers, documents, or objects designated in the subpoena, including medical reports and records.”
But that would require DA Moriarty playing hardball and would be super unusual.
A state grand jury can compel sworn testimony and subpoena “books, papers, documents, or objects designated in the subpoena, including medical reports and records.”
But that would require DA Moriarty playing hardball and would be super unusual.
"The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension has just revealed that federal officials have 'reversed course,' and the investigation into the killing of a Minneapolis woman by an ICE agent will be conducted by the FBI without assistance from the BCA."
Live: FBI pushes Minnesota investigators aside in ICE shooting probe
Demonstrators gathered near the Whipple Federal Building after thousands attended vigils to remember Renee Nicole Good, who was killed by an ICE agent in Minneapolis. Minneapolis public school classes...
www.startribune.com
January 8, 2026 at 5:07 PM
This is awful; looks like feds trying to bury it.
A state grand jury can compel sworn testimony and subpoena “books, papers, documents, or objects designated in the subpoena, including medical reports and records.”
But that would require DA Moriarty playing hardball and would be super unusual.
A state grand jury can compel sworn testimony and subpoena “books, papers, documents, or objects designated in the subpoena, including medical reports and records.”
But that would require DA Moriarty playing hardball and would be super unusual.
What are the odds Trump invites this cop to the White House?
January 8, 2026 at 1:24 AM
What are the odds Trump invites this cop to the White House?
Highly recommend this podcast episode from @socialistdogmom.bsky.social if anyone's interested in a deep-dive on the topic. All kinds of weird projection going on here.
podcasts.apple.com/ie/podcast/a...
podcasts.apple.com/ie/podcast/a...
January 8, 2026 at 12:33 AM
Highly recommend this podcast episode from @socialistdogmom.bsky.social if anyone's interested in a deep-dive on the topic. All kinds of weird projection going on here.
podcasts.apple.com/ie/podcast/a...
podcasts.apple.com/ie/podcast/a...