Welcome to the video-blog of Hamline University School of Law

Dean Donald Lewis

Available in both video and text format for your convenience

Today, I am blogging from our Annette Levine Moot Court Room. Next Thursday, November 5, the seven justices of the Minnesota Supreme Court will sit at the bench behind me to hear the criminal case of State v. Swaney. I invite you to attend a brunch with the court followed by the oral argument. But first, let me tell you a little about the case.

In May 2001, 20-year-old Carrie Nelson was bludgeoned to death during a robbery in a state park office where she worked near Luverne, MN. Fingerprints were found. There was also DNA evidence taken from a watch which appeared to be ripped from someone's arm at the scene. But otherwise, the evidence trail was cold.

Welcome to the video-blog of Hamline University School of Law

Dean Donald Lewis

Available in both video and text format for your convenience

Hi there. Registration is coming up next week and it's never too early to think about what you're going to do after the holidays during the two-week J-Term. This is especially true when there are opportunities to escape the Minnesota winter to study abroad.

One option is our program in Jerusalem.  We all know that Israel is at the center of long-standing political and religious conflicts.  Our J-Term program there studies how law and religion interact, and how both are employed to resolve conflict.  There is no better city in the world to study the interaction of law and religion than Jerusalem, where Islam, Judaism and Christianity meet.

Inside two weeks, you can learn how the values of these three religious traditions have shaped their dispute resolution methods; explore how these methods have been adapted to resolve modern day conflicts; and visit with people actually involved in the peacemaking process in the Middle East.

You have to go to class, complete reading assignments, and take an exam.  For an extra credit you can write a paper. Professor David Cobin leads this program.  We work with the Rothberg International School of Hebrew University, and the classes meet on its campus from Jan. 4 - Jan. 14. Learn more at http://law.hamline.edu/study-abroad/study-abroad-jerusalem.html

Welcome to the video-blog of Hamline University School of Law

Dean Donald Lewis

Available in both video and text format for your convenience

Hi there.  I have three items of interest today. Item No. 1 is the Innocence Project of Minnesota, a non-profit, volunteer organization that provides pro bono investigative and legal assistance to prisoners trying to prove their innocence.  The Innocence Project in Minnesota investigates potential claims of wrongful conviction from prisoners convicted of crimes in this state, and some cases in North and South Dakota.

The Project not only takes on cases of convicted but innocent people; it also educates attorneys and criminal justice professionals on DNA and other forensic practices, and works to reform criminal procedures, for example, its advocacy on the use of audio and videotaping of interrogations.

Due to the efforts of the Innocence Project nationwide, more than 200 innocent people have been released from prison after serving an average of 12 years for crimes they did not commit. Most of those exonerations have come as a result of DNA-testing. But the Minnesota Innocence Project does not limit itself to DNA cases, and will work on any case in this state where there is clear evidence of innocence.  It also reaches out to community groups to increase public understanding of innocence-related issues.