Sam J. Merchant
@sammerchant.bsky.social
Law Prof: Con Law, Crim Pro, Sentencing, Habeas at Minnesota Law
Enjoyed workshopping a piece at Georgetown Law today, and thank you Michael Klarman for commentary!
October 10, 2025 at 9:36 PM
Enjoyed workshopping a piece at Georgetown Law today, and thank you Michael Klarman for commentary!
Our drift from Thomas Paine:
“The word ‘republic’ means the public good, or the good of the whole, in contradistinction to the despotic form, which makes the good of the sovereign, or of one man, the only object of the government.”
“The word ‘republic’ means the public good, or the good of the whole, in contradistinction to the despotic form, which makes the good of the sovereign, or of one man, the only object of the government.”
August 27, 2025 at 2:52 PM
Our drift from Thomas Paine:
“The word ‘republic’ means the public good, or the good of the whole, in contradistinction to the despotic form, which makes the good of the sovereign, or of one man, the only object of the government.”
“The word ‘republic’ means the public good, or the good of the whole, in contradistinction to the despotic form, which makes the good of the sovereign, or of one man, the only object of the government.”
Honored to be appointed to the U.S. Sentencing Commission‘s Advisory Group on Research and Data Practices. This group combines sentencing scholars with experts from other fields to inform criminal sentencing policies and practices.
www.ussc.gov/about/news/p...
www.ussc.gov/about/news/p...
August 18, 2025 at 10:15 PM
Honored to be appointed to the U.S. Sentencing Commission‘s Advisory Group on Research and Data Practices. This group combines sentencing scholars with experts from other fields to inform criminal sentencing policies and practices.
www.ussc.gov/about/news/p...
www.ussc.gov/about/news/p...
GEO (private prison) stock, 6x since the last election.
June 21, 2025 at 7:23 PM
GEO (private prison) stock, 6x since the last election.
Stock is a falling knife.
June 5, 2025 at 7:16 PM
Stock is a falling knife.
I agree with the Trump Administration that sometimes superimposing text on an image can add helpful context. Adding just a few words here makes for a very accurate summary of the SCOTUS decision today.
May 17, 2025 at 12:30 AM
I agree with the Trump Administration that sometimes superimposing text on an image can add helpful context. Adding just a few words here makes for a very accurate summary of the SCOTUS decision today.
One of Scalia's most fiery opinions was in Hamdi v. Rumsfeld, essentially screaming that (1) only Congress can suspend habeas (it's in Art. I), and (2) Congress didn't do so, so the detentions were unlawful.
May 9, 2025 at 8:19 PM
One of Scalia's most fiery opinions was in Hamdi v. Rumsfeld, essentially screaming that (1) only Congress can suspend habeas (it's in Art. I), and (2) Congress didn't do so, so the detentions were unlawful.
The U.S. Sentencing Commission's 2025 Amendments to the Federal Sentencing Guidelines span 682 pages. I provide a summary here for law profs and practitioners. Most of these changes decrease the severity of the Guidelines and give judges more discretion. lawprofessors.typepad.com/crimprof_blo...
May 2, 2025 at 7:53 PM
The U.S. Sentencing Commission's 2025 Amendments to the Federal Sentencing Guidelines span 682 pages. I provide a summary here for law profs and practitioners. Most of these changes decrease the severity of the Guidelines and give judges more discretion. lawprofessors.typepad.com/crimprof_blo...
History’s chilling reminder of the importance of an independent judiciary.
March 27, 2025 at 3:27 PM
History’s chilling reminder of the importance of an independent judiciary.
Or this T-41 Confederate note that literally has slaves working in a field on the front. (I pass one around during Civil War lectures.)
March 19, 2025 at 6:24 PM
Or this T-41 Confederate note that literally has slaves working in a field on the front. (I pass one around during Civil War lectures.)
I had a wonderful time presenting at the Northwestern Pritzker School of Law Public Law Colloquium today!
February 28, 2025 at 4:40 AM
I had a wonderful time presenting at the Northwestern Pritzker School of Law Public Law Colloquium today!
I plug state courts in my clerkship primers. Somewhat relatedly, we discussed this chart in Con Law today.
February 27, 2025 at 3:46 AM
I plug state courts in my clerkship primers. Somewhat relatedly, we discussed this chart in Con Law today.
Not relevant to the Founding at all.
February 25, 2025 at 2:50 AM
Not relevant to the Founding at all.
I also don’t want to lose sight of what started this. We were promised the entire alternative literature in the NYT piece. And we got a brand new theory of what’s “possible.”
My refrain: extraordinary claims (that everyone/tradition has been wrong) require extraordinary evidence.
My refrain: extraordinary claims (that everyone/tradition has been wrong) require extraordinary evidence.
February 19, 2025 at 4:35 PM
I also don’t want to lose sight of what started this. We were promised the entire alternative literature in the NYT piece. And we got a brand new theory of what’s “possible.”
My refrain: extraordinary claims (that everyone/tradition has been wrong) require extraordinary evidence.
My refrain: extraordinary claims (that everyone/tradition has been wrong) require extraordinary evidence.
Also tangentially relevant: the looming fear in the background for many of these English scholars. (Not unlike Galileo.) This is from the first day's reading in my Con and Crim Pro classes (from Schwartz, The Roots of Freedom, recounting 5 Knights Case, 6 Members Case, etc.)
February 18, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Also tangentially relevant: the looming fear in the background for many of these English scholars. (Not unlike Galileo.) This is from the first day's reading in my Con and Crim Pro classes (from Schwartz, The Roots of Freedom, recounting 5 Knights Case, 6 Members Case, etc.)
Join us today for this great (and free) CLE: Breakthrough Brain Discoveries and the Law, hosted by the Neuroscience and Law Center at Fordham Law:
t.e2ma.net/message/e1bj...
t.e2ma.net/message/e1bj...
February 5, 2025 at 3:01 PM
Join us today for this great (and free) CLE: Breakthrough Brain Discoveries and the Law, hosted by the Neuroscience and Law Center at Fordham Law:
t.e2ma.net/message/e1bj...
t.e2ma.net/message/e1bj...
The Senate failed to reconfirm US Sentencing Commissioners Judge Claria Horn Boom and Judge John Gleeson (Ret.) yesterday, meaning there will be two open spots for President-elect Trump to fill.
December 22, 2024 at 2:28 AM
The Senate failed to reconfirm US Sentencing Commissioners Judge Claria Horn Boom and Judge John Gleeson (Ret.) yesterday, meaning there will be two open spots for President-elect Trump to fill.
I suspected that some justices might overemphasize James Madison. After WL searching (summarized here), it’s not as extreme as I thought—though they still cite him nearly twice as often as other Founders. I also expected citations to rise with originalism, which seems to be only minimally true.
December 20, 2024 at 10:54 PM
I suspected that some justices might overemphasize James Madison. After WL searching (summarized here), it’s not as extreme as I thought—though they still cite him nearly twice as often as other Founders. I also expected citations to rise with originalism, which seems to be only minimally true.
UPDATE: Plea agreement rejected, in large part based on DEI (sua sponte). Gov't argued that its measures broaden the pool because there was corruption in the past re: selection of monitors. Relatedly, the "only the most qualified person" mantra is interesting in light Gaetz, Hegseth, Patel, etc...
December 6, 2024 at 5:40 PM
UPDATE: Plea agreement rejected, in large part based on DEI (sua sponte). Gov't argued that its measures broaden the pool because there was corruption in the past re: selection of monitors. Relatedly, the "only the most qualified person" mantra is interesting in light Gaetz, Hegseth, Patel, etc...
He seems to have pulled one line from the hundreds of pages of briefing, which might tank the entire plea deal and years of litigation. The US response says "it's an anti-corruption measure, and we use the same language in all of these plea agreements and its never been an issue."
November 29, 2024 at 9:21 PM
He seems to have pulled one line from the hundreds of pages of briefing, which might tank the entire plea deal and years of litigation. The US response says "it's an anti-corruption measure, and we use the same language in all of these plea agreements and its never been an issue."
Fascinating. I think Judge Reed O'Connor (NDTX) might tank a huge plea agreement between the U.S. and Boeing (plane crash case), sua sponte, because of...the parties' internal DEI policies? His theory suggests that the DEI policies will result in less qualified monitors overseeing Boeing safety?
November 29, 2024 at 9:17 PM
Fascinating. I think Judge Reed O'Connor (NDTX) might tank a huge plea agreement between the U.S. and Boeing (plane crash case), sua sponte, because of...the parties' internal DEI policies? His theory suggests that the DEI policies will result in less qualified monitors overseeing Boeing safety?