Nora Demleitner
@norademleitner.bsky.social
Writer, educator, lawyer, immigrant. Served as college president & law dean. Writing on problems — and ways forward — in criminal justice & sentencing and higher education, often with a look abroad for different approaches.
Similarly, there’s data on maternal incarceration impacting not just her child but other children in the community.
We need to focus on broader societal harm of law enforcement & ICE action on children & communities.
We need to focus on broader societal harm of law enforcement & ICE action on children & communities.
Nice summary of our paper and related work by @tomdee.bsky.social and @kslungaardmumma.bsky.social here.
www.chalkbeat.org/2025/11/10/i...
www.chalkbeat.org/2025/11/10/i...
November 11, 2025 at 5:35 AM
Similarly, there’s data on maternal incarceration impacting not just her child but other children in the community.
We need to focus on broader societal harm of law enforcement & ICE action on children & communities.
We need to focus on broader societal harm of law enforcement & ICE action on children & communities.
No fridge magnets in Mar-a-Lago.
November 10, 2025 at 9:39 PM
No fridge magnets in Mar-a-Lago.
Since the presidential pardon power is unrestricted — or more accurately it was restrained by custom & presidential concerns about their reputation — there is no formal way to stop clemency.
BREAKING:
A whistleblower tells House Judiciary Democrats that convicted sex offender Ghislaine Maxwell is in the process of seeking a commutation of her 20-year prison sentence from Donald Trump. tinyurl.com/582addcc
A whistleblower tells House Judiciary Democrats that convicted sex offender Ghislaine Maxwell is in the process of seeking a commutation of her 20-year prison sentence from Donald Trump. tinyurl.com/582addcc
November 10, 2025 at 7:47 PM
Since the presidential pardon power is unrestricted — or more accurately it was restrained by custom & presidential concerns about their reputation — there is no formal way to stop clemency.
Presidents in recent decades have been risk averse in handing out clemency. Beneficiaries were carefully vetted to assure that they wouldn’t run afoul of the law again & leave the president embarrassed & worse.
In the current age of impunity, all of these standards have been discarded.
In the current age of impunity, all of these standards have been discarded.
Felon Freed by Trump Is Sentenced Again, This Time to 27 Months
www.nytimes.com
November 10, 2025 at 7:45 PM
Presidents in recent decades have been risk averse in handing out clemency. Beneficiaries were carefully vetted to assure that they wouldn’t run afoul of the law again & leave the president embarrassed & worse.
In the current age of impunity, all of these standards have been discarded.
In the current age of impunity, all of these standards have been discarded.
How does insurance work? Apparently some so-called experts lack a basic understanding of how our modern economy works. Car insurance, flood insurance, home owners insurance & health insurance — all built on the same core principles, controlling risk.
Tell me you don’t understand risk pools without telling me you don’t understand risk pools
November 10, 2025 at 7:35 PM
How does insurance work? Apparently some so-called experts lack a basic understanding of how our modern economy works. Car insurance, flood insurance, home owners insurance & health insurance — all built on the same core principles, controlling risk.
Pardons are about the past. Are these pardons also signals for the future? In light of the breadth here, it’s a legitimate & important question.
The language of this pardon is extremely broad.
It includes “all United States citizens for conduct relating to the advice, creation, organization, execution, submission, support, voting, activities, participation in, or advocacy for or of any slate or proposed slate of Presidential
electors…”
It includes “all United States citizens for conduct relating to the advice, creation, organization, execution, submission, support, voting, activities, participation in, or advocacy for or of any slate or proposed slate of Presidential
electors…”
November 10, 2025 at 5:32 AM
Pardons are about the past. Are these pardons also signals for the future? In light of the breadth here, it’s a legitimate & important question.
Uncontroversial & doable in the wealthiest country in the world.
I just want everyone to have the experience of living in dignity with access to sufficient food, safe housing, needed medical care, high quality education, and time to engage with what sparks their curiosity and spirit
this should not be controversial 🫠
this should not be controversial 🫠
November 10, 2025 at 5:10 AM
Uncontroversial & doable in the wealthiest country in the world.
Cuts to crime victim support & restitution amounts forgiven in pardons = disrespect for victims & the impact of crime on them.
Why?
Why?
While Trump declared “unending support to every victim of crime,” his administration abruptly canceled $72 million worth of grants intended to support crime survivors. bit.ly/483zmiY
Justice Department Slashes Essential Services for Crime Victims
After four decades of bipartisan progress, federal support for crime victims is unraveling.
www.brennancenter.org
November 8, 2025 at 4:49 PM
Cuts to crime victim support & restitution amounts forgiven in pardons = disrespect for victims & the impact of crime on them.
Why?
Why?
Local independent journalism matters.
They ask questions & see issues nobody else does.
@thebaltimorebanner.com rocks! Its investigative journalism would be commendable for any venerable publication. It’s just astounding for a relatively young one.
They ask questions & see issues nobody else does.
@thebaltimorebanner.com rocks! Its investigative journalism would be commendable for any venerable publication. It’s just astounding for a relatively young one.
November 8, 2025 at 2:06 PM
Local independent journalism matters.
They ask questions & see issues nobody else does.
@thebaltimorebanner.com rocks! Its investigative journalism would be commendable for any venerable publication. It’s just astounding for a relatively young one.
They ask questions & see issues nobody else does.
@thebaltimorebanner.com rocks! Its investigative journalism would be commendable for any venerable publication. It’s just astounding for a relatively young one.
Time to listen to “Empire City”, hosted & conceived by the amazing @chenjerai.bsky.social
Historic parallels are uncanny.
Historic parallels are uncanny.
Reggie Williams was walking to a corner store when armed authorities aggressively asked him if he was from Ethiopia or Ghana, he said
He and other Black Memphis residents have been reporting harassment by Trump’s police task force: "I don't feel safe"
He and other Black Memphis residents have been reporting harassment by Trump’s police task force: "I don't feel safe"
“I Don’t Feel Safe”: Black Memphis Residents Report Harassment by Trump’s Police Task Force
A pastor was pulled over for looking lost. A 72-year-old was marched out in his bathrobe due to mistaken identity. Memphis’ mayor welcomed the federal law enforcement surge, but some residents say the...
www.propublica.org
November 3, 2025 at 11:15 PM
Time to listen to “Empire City”, hosted & conceived by the amazing @chenjerai.bsky.social
Historic parallels are uncanny.
Historic parallels are uncanny.
The opposite of what the liberal arts stand for.
In which Palantir recruits high school students for fellowships by telling them to skip college because its holds little value and then puts them through a cherry-picked curriculum that oddly resembles… college
The older I get the more I value conscientiousness over raw intelligence or anything like that — when someone has completed college that’s a stronger signal of being able to handle tasks in an independent environment on a consistent basis: www.wsj.com/business/pal...
November 2, 2025 at 2:11 PM
The opposite of what the liberal arts stand for.
The obsession with what students say & do, especially at elite universities, is widespread. It may be tied to changing demographics as aging societies may see student behavior of all sorts as more distressing.
If the right really wants free speech in universities, why is it so obsessed with discrediting students? | Jason Okundaye
If the right really wants free speech in universities, why is it so obsessed with discrediting students? | Jason Okundaye
The media loves to manufacture outrage about what students get up to – and to discipline those who dare challenge conservatives, says Jason Okundaye, a Guardian assistant newsletter editor
www.theguardian.com
November 1, 2025 at 11:30 AM
The obsession with what students say & do, especially at elite universities, is widespread. It may be tied to changing demographics as aging societies may see student behavior of all sorts as more distressing.
London is a cosmopolitan city that was once the center of an empire with a diverse population.
Why would London today be less diverse, aka women in mini skirts & those wearing the hijab?
Why would London today be less diverse, aka women in mini skirts & those wearing the hijab?
So here's Andrew Cuomo reacting to Maria Bartiromo wondering if Mamdani will "change the look of New York" and have Muslim women "completely covered up," telling her that Mamdani "doesn't understand New York culture" because he has "dual citizenship" and "he's a citizen of Uganda."
October 30, 2025 at 1:28 AM
London is a cosmopolitan city that was once the center of an empire with a diverse population.
Why would London today be less diverse, aka women in mini skirts & those wearing the hijab?
Why would London today be less diverse, aka women in mini skirts & those wearing the hijab?
The failure to think through the impact of new technologies is already coming to haunt us.
Next up: pulling up prior criminal records based on facial screening, without any sense of quality of input & technology & reliability of outcome.
Next up: pulling up prior criminal records based on facial screening, without any sense of quality of input & technology & reliability of outcome.
Although absolutely horrifying, this is almost certainly Constitutional under existing 4A law because this is not a "search." A person likely does not have a "reasonable expectation of privacy" in the appearance of their face in public. And the device does not trespass by touching a person. 1/
New: Videos show ICE/CBP agents are scanning peoples' faces on the street to verify citizenship. ICE has tool to instantly look up unprecedented number of databases with just a photo
“I’m an American citizen so leave me alone”
“Alright, we just got to verify that”
www.404media.co/ice-and-cbp-...
“I’m an American citizen so leave me alone”
“Alright, we just got to verify that”
www.404media.co/ice-and-cbp-...
October 30, 2025 at 1:18 AM
The failure to think through the impact of new technologies is already coming to haunt us.
Next up: pulling up prior criminal records based on facial screening, without any sense of quality of input & technology & reliability of outcome.
Next up: pulling up prior criminal records based on facial screening, without any sense of quality of input & technology & reliability of outcome.
Free or low-fee prison calls are smart re-entry & rehabilitation investment.
High fees are essentially another tax on those who can least afford it, those incarcerated & their families.
Now if we raised pay/hour for the incarcerated to a reasonable amount,then charges would be defensible.
High fees are essentially another tax on those who can least afford it, those incarcerated & their families.
Now if we raised pay/hour for the incarcerated to a reasonable amount,then charges would be defensible.
It literally took decades of advocacy to pass these reforms, which would have prevented prison phone and teleconferencing companies from ripping off inmates and their families to the tune of hundreds of millions annually
F.C.C. Changes Course on the Price of Prisoners’ Phone Calls
www.nytimes.com
October 29, 2025 at 3:53 AM
Free or low-fee prison calls are smart re-entry & rehabilitation investment.
High fees are essentially another tax on those who can least afford it, those incarcerated & their families.
Now if we raised pay/hour for the incarcerated to a reasonable amount,then charges would be defensible.
High fees are essentially another tax on those who can least afford it, those incarcerated & their families.
Now if we raised pay/hour for the incarcerated to a reasonable amount,then charges would be defensible.
Most voters know little about judicial candidates.
In some places candidates with the most party endorsements win. Sometimes a single case makes or breaks a judge’s career.
None of this assures quality candidates — strong lawyering skills, fitting temperament & fairness— will be elected.
In some places candidates with the most party endorsements win. Sometimes a single case makes or breaks a judge’s career.
None of this assures quality candidates — strong lawyering skills, fitting temperament & fairness— will be elected.
Democracy at work!
We are the only country that elects judges, ostensibly bc of the sunlight is a disinfectant for corruption.
But, I mean, this seems inefficient and problematic?
(Voting for judges is generically bad, so can’t decide if this is better or worse than something contested.)
We are the only country that elects judges, ostensibly bc of the sunlight is a disinfectant for corruption.
But, I mean, this seems inefficient and problematic?
(Voting for judges is generically bad, so can’t decide if this is better or worse than something contested.)
October 27, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Most voters know little about judicial candidates.
In some places candidates with the most party endorsements win. Sometimes a single case makes or breaks a judge’s career.
None of this assures quality candidates — strong lawyering skills, fitting temperament & fairness— will be elected.
In some places candidates with the most party endorsements win. Sometimes a single case makes or breaks a judge’s career.
None of this assures quality candidates — strong lawyering skills, fitting temperament & fairness— will be elected.
Nevermore Haunt in Baltimore.
When the haunted house is more relaxing than reading the news. (Not for lack of them trying)
When the haunted house is more relaxing than reading the news. (Not for lack of them trying)
October 25, 2025 at 1:19 AM
Nevermore Haunt in Baltimore.
When the haunted house is more relaxing than reading the news. (Not for lack of them trying)
When the haunted house is more relaxing than reading the news. (Not for lack of them trying)
If we were really interested in combatting addiction & the overuse of (legal & illegal) drugs in the US, we'd take a careful look at the demand side: increase residential treatment opportunities & funding (rather than cut health coverage), adopt evidence-based harm reduction efforts, & so much more.
Check out my new op-ed on Trump’s terror attacks.
Blowing Up Fishing Boats Won’t Win the Drug War - OtherWords
There’s a reason we don’t want drug warriors playing judge, jury, and executioner.
otherwords.org
October 24, 2025 at 2:51 AM
If we were really interested in combatting addiction & the overuse of (legal & illegal) drugs in the US, we'd take a careful look at the demand side: increase residential treatment opportunities & funding (rather than cut health coverage), adopt evidence-based harm reduction efforts, & so much more.
Good information is always essential but especially these days. Important to have experts take out time to explain the difference between routine and extraordinary measures and events.
This is a grossly misleading description of what's actually happening. They're deciding the cert petition. That happens in every single case anybody asks them to take. There are thousands of cert petitions they "officially consider," it is completely mundane and the vast majority are rejected.
Breaking: The Supreme Court is now officially considering taking up a case overturning same-sex marriage.
This is the first time in history the court has considered rolling back this right.
This is the first time in history the court has considered rolling back this right.
October 24, 2025 at 2:46 AM
Good information is always essential but especially these days. Important to have experts take out time to explain the difference between routine and extraordinary measures and events.
The US president: “we’re just gonna kill” drug couriers, aka people he alleges to be drug couriers.
Fitting for reality TV, not a policy announcement. These are premeditated killings on little (if any) evidence of people w/ varying (if any) level of culpability. No application of criminal law here.
Fitting for reality TV, not a policy announcement. These are premeditated killings on little (if any) evidence of people w/ varying (if any) level of culpability. No application of criminal law here.
Trump: "I don't think we're necessarily going to ask for a declaration of war, I think we're just gonna kill people that are bringing drugs into our country. We're going to kill them. They're going to be, like dead."
October 23, 2025 at 10:17 PM
The US president: “we’re just gonna kill” drug couriers, aka people he alleges to be drug couriers.
Fitting for reality TV, not a policy announcement. These are premeditated killings on little (if any) evidence of people w/ varying (if any) level of culpability. No application of criminal law here.
Fitting for reality TV, not a policy announcement. These are premeditated killings on little (if any) evidence of people w/ varying (if any) level of culpability. No application of criminal law here.
Let’s be clear that the crime wasn’t trading bitcoins. Instead Binance operates essentially as a criminal organization, intentionally violating a host of US financial laws.
With Trump pardoning Changpeng Zhao and accusing the Biden administration of persecuting him because it hated cryptocurrency, here's a reminder of what the IRS's cybercrime investigators dug up on CZ and Binance. www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/int...
October 23, 2025 at 4:42 PM
Let’s be clear that the crime wasn’t trading bitcoins. Instead Binance operates essentially as a criminal organization, intentionally violating a host of US financial laws.
Clearly the framers envisioned a very different president when they wrote an unreviewable pardon power into the Constitution.
There are ways to recover but it will require a different set of checks and balances and processes.
There are ways to recover but it will require a different set of checks and balances and processes.
trump's consistent use of the pardon power as a tool of corruption reflects not merely a kind of lawlessness blessed by the roberts court. it's constitutes a complete breakdown in rule of law and accountability that should outrage all americans, across the political spectrum.
October 23, 2025 at 4:01 PM
Clearly the framers envisioned a very different president when they wrote an unreviewable pardon power into the Constitution.
There are ways to recover but it will require a different set of checks and balances and processes.
There are ways to recover but it will require a different set of checks and balances and processes.
Bombing boats without providing any form of evidence of criminal wrongdoing (let alone legal support for the actions) is even more curious as the same president issues pardons to convicted money launderers.
What gives?
What gives?
"Walter Olson, a senior fellow at @cato.org, says these strikes would be unlawful even if smuggling allegations were true." The White House puts out "videos of these extrajudicial killings as part of its propaganda" yet withholds key facts that would enable the public and Congress to evaluate them.
WATCH: Trump says he could attack drug cartels on land amid boat strikes
(The Center Square) – President Donald Trump said the U.S. military could soon go after drug smuggling on land and would consider taking the matter to Congress, but said that
www.thecentersquare.com
October 23, 2025 at 3:58 PM
Bombing boats without providing any form of evidence of criminal wrongdoing (let alone legal support for the actions) is even more curious as the same president issues pardons to convicted money launderers.
What gives?
What gives?
Money laundering is the backbone of organized crime, from drugs and human trafficking to financing terrorism. And that's how prosecutors and courts treated it.
Now it's apparently a gentleman's offense.
Now it's apparently a gentleman's offense.
“World Liberty has generated significantly more income for the Trump family in the past year than their property portfolio ever has annually.”
President Trump has pardoned Changpeng Zhao, the convicted founder of the crypto exchange Binance…
www.wsj.com/finance/curr...
President Trump has pardoned Changpeng Zhao, the convicted founder of the crypto exchange Binance…
www.wsj.com/finance/curr...
Exclusive | Trump Pardons Convicted Binance Founder
The pardon follows months of efforts by Changpeng Zhao to boost Trump crypto company.
www.wsj.com
October 23, 2025 at 3:55 PM
Money laundering is the backbone of organized crime, from drugs and human trafficking to financing terrorism. And that's how prosecutors and courts treated it.
Now it's apparently a gentleman's offense.
Now it's apparently a gentleman's offense.
Versailles photo, please.
October 23, 2025 at 3:14 AM
Versailles photo, please.