Archive for the ‘Fifth Amendment’ Category
This Is What the Twenty-fifth Amendment Was Designed For – The New Yorker
In a live broadcast of The Daily Show immediately after the Presidential debate last week, the comedian Jon Stewart joked about President Joe Bidens open-mouthed stare: A lot of people have resting Twenty-fifth Amendment face. A once obscure constitutional provision, the Twenty-fifth Amendment became familiar to the public during Donald Trumps Presidency, when there was constant chatter about his mental unfitness and incapacity. (I wrote about it for The New Yorker on five separate occasions.)
The Constitution allows a President who is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office to step aside or be removed and have the Vice-President immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President. Soon after January 6, 2021, when a mob incited by Trump stormed the Capitol to disrupt the certification of Bidens win, Chuck Schumer, then the Senate Minority Leader, and Nancy Pelosi, then the Speaker of the House, said that Trump should be removed from office using the Twenty-fifth Amendment, with Schumer describing it as the most effective legal means of removing a President and saying that it can be done today. That did not happen. Now is really a good time for Democratic leaders to dust off their knowledge of the Amendmentthis time regarding their own partys President.
The widespread anxieties about Bidens age-related impairment have increased over time, only to be shushed by his allies. They became most plainly justified during his painful and prolonged public exposure on television during last weeks debate. The fact that many prominent Democrats have yet to say the obvious and instead have told voters not to worry about one bad debate is a poignant national version of the denial that almost every family eventually goes through with respect to an aging patriarch or matriarch. This is clearly happening in Bidens own family, with his wife, Jill, and his son Hunter reportedly insisting that he continue his campaign, and with Hunter even said to have accompanied Biden to White House meetings. It is time for our leaders to realize that this is not in fact a family matter and take seriously their own constitutional responsibility to determine whether the Presidentnot the team around himhas the capacity to govern.
The will he or wont he speculation in the past few days has been about whether Biden will choose to step aside as the Democratic nominee in the Presidential race, which reflects a desire to leave the President to make the decision about whether he can beat Trump in November. This is misguided. First, it puts the cart before the horse: the initial question for any campaign should be whether the candidate has the ability to lead. Second, if Biden were to step aside as the nominee, we all know it would open up possibly catastrophic uncertainty about who the Democratic nominee will be, even if he were to indicate which candidate he preferred to take his place on the ticket. The chaotic process of quickly selecting a new nominee could consume Democrats and doom their chances in November. That makes it difficult for me to confidently wish for Biden to decide to step aside as the nomineeand likely impossible for him, his family, and Democratic leaders to think it is the responsible thing to do at this point.
But there is a better path. Instead of making a choice between remaining on the ticket or stepping off of it, Biden should resign from the Presidency altogether as soon as possible. The Twenty-fifth Amendment says that in the case of the Presidents resignation, the Vice-PresidentKamala Harrisbecomes the President. (Harris would have to nominate a Vice-President, who would then take office upon being confirmed by both houses of Congress.) President Harris could then run as the incumbenta benefit to her candidacy that would also offer the stability we desperately need. We would not have to fret intensely about an open convention or anticipate a divisive and bruising fight over who the nominee will be. This allows an orderly transitionin place of mayhemin which Biden cedes smoothly to Harris and sets the stage for a campaign season focussed on a version of the Biden-Harris Administration with Harris as its representative. By November, President Harris would already have had four months on the job. Biden and those who love him could campaign for her based on his Administrations record and accomplishments.
If Biden resigns soon, then there is little reason to discuss the ins and outs of the Twenty-fifth Amendment. If a permanent resignation seems too extreme for him to contemplate, the Amendments Section Three provides a way for the President to cede the office to the Vice-President without the finality of a resignation. Biden can make a written declaration that he is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, and Harris would become the acting President. That would still likely place Harris in the political position to immediately become the de-facto incumbent.
But if Biden resists either an outright resignation or a break for the rest of his term under the Twenty-fifth Amendment, then it would be time to look to Section Four of the Amendment, which covers removing the President involuntarily. The Vice-President and a majority of the Cabinet can declare that Biden is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, whereupon Harris would become the acting President. At that point, Biden could say that no inability exists and resume his office, but I cant imagine that he would do so after his Vice-President and Cabinet have taken such a step. (In that event, Harris and a majority of the Cabinet, or some other body as Congress may by law provide, could once again declare the Presidents inability, and he could be removed by a two-thirds vote in both houses.)
I doubt it would ever have to get so far as involuntary removal. Indeed, the Twenty-fifth Amendments removal mechanism is most useful right now for persuading Biden to leave the office voluntarilyso that Harris can become the President for the remainder of the year. In 1974, a delegation from Congress went to the White House and told President Richard Nixon that he would be impeached if he did not resign, and he resigned the next day. Something similar needs to happen today, with Democratic leaders and Cabinet members talking to Biden about what they might be willing to do under the Twenty-fifth Amendment if he does not resign. This did not happen after President Woodrow Wilson had a stroke, in 1919; his wife Edith took over many of his duties until his second term ended, in 1921, and the American public was none the wiser. President Ronald Reagan began showing signs of Alzheimers as early as three years into his first term, according to his son Rons 2011 book, My Father at 100. His family and staff managed to hide the symptoms from the public as long as he was in office. We should feel grateful that it is much harder to hide or credibly deny such impairment in a President today.
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This Is What the Twenty-fifth Amendment Was Designed For - The New Yorker
Young Thug trial: State witness held in contempt, taken into custody – The Atlanta Journal Constitution
The immunity has been signed so you are required to testify. If you dont testify, the state is probably going to ask me to jail you and Im probably going to do that, Glanville told Copeland.
Credit: Jason Getz
Credit: Jason Getz
Copeland told Glanville that he was going to testify.
After a lunch break, Copeland took the stand. ADA Simone Hylton began to question Copeland at that time:
Hylton: Do you want to be here?
Copeland: Im here.
Hylton: Let me ask you some questions, how old are you?
Copeland: Grown.
Hylton: What does grown mean?
Copeland: Im an adult.
Hylton: When you say you are an adult, what number in years are you?
Copeland: I plea the Fifth.
Glanville dismissed the jury and ordered deputies to take Copeland into custody.
Mr. Copeland, given the fact you have invoked your Fifth Amendment privilege but the state has already given you immunitythis court holds you in willful contempt and well see you on Monday, Glanville told Copeland.
Tempers flared after Chief Deputy DA Adriane Love questioned whose interest Melnick was representing.
Melnick told Glanville that nobody from the DAs office had contacted him about Copeland since June 2023, even though they knew he was Copelands attorney of record.
Theyve put us in this position, where at the last minute, Im trying to advise him, as best I can, what I think its best for him, Melnick told Glanville
Credit: Jason Getz
Credit: Jason Getz
Melnick then took exception to Loves allegation.
I owe nothing to anybody over here. I owe nothing to anybody at any of these tables. I dont, candidly and no offense, care what happens with their cases, Melnick said. The only thing I care about is what happens to Kenneth Copeland. For an assertion to be made that I or Mr. Copeland are somehow being influenced by someone over here is absolutely ridiculous, I take great offense to it.
Melnick would later say that he plans to report Love to the State Bar of Georgia for contacting Copeland, knowing he is represented by counsel.
Hylton told the court that they subpoenaed Copeland last Friday and he told prosecutors that Melnick was not his attorney. It wasnt until an email sent Thursday evening that they were made aware that Melnick represented Copeland.
Melnick told Glanville he wont be able to appear on Monday but advised that another attorney will appear on behalf of him to represent Copeland. He also told Glanville that Copeland intends to exercise his Fifth Amendment privilege on Monday again.
Tempers also flared between Love and Young Thugs attorney Brian Steel. Glanville simply reminded both that they have professional obligations and should be professional toward each other.
Copeland, a YSL associate, is a key witness in the states case. His leaked interrogation video showed him speaking to Atlanta for nearly four hours offering to provide information about their yearslong gang investigation in exchange for leniency.
Copeland is mentioned in the indictment, but wasnt among the 28 alleged YSL associates charged. Copeland will be called to testify on Monday but its expected to be taken back to jail after exercising his Fifth Amendment right.
Love asked for Copeland to be held in jail until the end of trial if he refuses to testify.
Jury selection began on Jan. 4, 2023; opening statements followed more than 10 months later, on Nov. 27. Repeated delays, juror problems and time off has resulted in just over 85 days of actual proceedings, some conducted outside the jurys presence. Out of around 200 witnesses, less than 80 have been called to testify.
That’s Not How Pleading The Fifth Works – Above the Law
Historical ordering aside, the Fifth Amendment is easily one of the top 10 amendments to the Constitution so good, in fact, that it inspired one of the best court sketch comedy bits. One of the many things it affords is the right against self-incrimination: no person can be compelled in a criminal case to be a witness against themselves. That said, the provision only activates when theres a consequence to being your own star witness. Once that worry gets waived, throwing up the Fifth is an easy way to get thrown behind bars for not listening. From AJC:
A major witness in the states case against Atlanta-rapper Young Thug and five of his alleged associates was taken into custody after Judge Ural Glanville held him in contempt of court for refusing to testify.
Kenneth Copeland, also known as Lil Woody, was subpoenaed to testify Friday morning. Before the jury was brought out, Copelands attorney John Melnick told Glanville that Copeland did not wish to cooperate or testify and planned to exercise his Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination. Mr. Copeland, given the fact you have invoked your Fifth Amendment privilege but the state has already given you immunitythis court holds you in willful contempt and well see you on Monday, [Judge] Glanville told Copeland.
You can see the interaction for yourself here:
If youve been following the YSL RICO trial, you know that this thing has been shenanigans heavy since the start. Surprisingly enough, the short stint behind bars sufficed to get Copeland with the program:
Things seem to be normal for now but, given this trials history, something else will go wrong within the next appearance or two.
Young Thug trial: State Witness Held In Contempt, Taken Into Custody [AJC]
Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord in the Facebook groupLaw School Memes for Edgy T14s. He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who cannot swim,a published author on critical race theory, philosophy, and humor, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email atcwilliams@abovethelaw.comand by tweet at@WritesForRent.
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That's Not How Pleading The Fifth Works - Above the Law