Word: courtly
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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Mendelsohn praised Minow--once a law clerk to former Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall--calling her "one of Harvard's most humane intellects...
...sole and nearly-omnipotent disciplinary mechanism of Harvard College, the Administrative Board has, for the most part, succeeded in avoiding any kind of in-depth public scrutiny. Criticisms that the Ad Board should adopt court-like procedures have been deftly deflected by administrators who insist the board is an educational, rather than legal, institution. And, as ethics of privacy prevent public access to specific cases, it is difficult to gauge empirically whether these procedures are truly fair...
Conceding its own limitations, the Ad Board relies on the reports of disciplinary subcommittees in complicated cases. But whereas the Ad Board can conceivably distinguish itself from a court of law if it does not engage in fact-finding, a disciplinary subcommittee cannot. Subcommittees, like courts of law, interview the accused and accuser, examine witnesses and summarize their findings in a written report. No matter how hard the administration attempts to avoid using the language of the law, it is ultimately a semantic distortion to refer to such investigative disciplinary subcommittees--implicitly extensions of the Ad Board--as "educational" bodies...
Even more troubling is that these disciplinary subcommittees are clearly ill-equipped to deal with serious disciplinary matters, especially criminal offenses such as rape and sexual assault. While a court of law has the resources to gather evidence, a subcommittee does not. While a court of law affords the opportunity for both parties to cross-examine witnesses, a subcommittee does not. While a court of law allows independent attorney representation, a subcommittee does not. And finally, while a court of law brings facts in direct contact to those passing judgment, a subcommittee, at best, acts as an unpredictable filter...
...cause c?l?bre of this outcry involves one Ronnie Hawkins, a defendant in Long Beach, Calif., who was deemed disruptive in court by a judge last June. The judge ordered Hawkins zapped by the bailiff, and the tempest was on. But is it teacup-size? Supporters of the belts say they're the best and safest way to restrain a crazed defendant, and that they're used only for that purpose, never for punishment (that would be torture). But the watchdogs worry that when the belts are used not only in the courts but in jails by prison guards, the possibilities...