LAWS 3347 Federal Criminal Civil Rights Laws: Their Development and Enforcement
This course examines the legal underpinnings and enforcement strategy of federal criminal civil rights laws, and explores how they have responded over time to changing societal mores. The areas of focus include (1) the willful deprivation of constitutional rights by officials acting under color of law e.g. police brutality; (2) federal hate crime laws; (3) violent interference with reproductive rights; and (4) human trafficking. In each of these areas, the course will examine the laws that have been passed to address the protection of these rights from criminal interference. In particular, significant Supreme Court and other appellate court cases that have shaped the application of these statutes will be studied. For example, the course will address the history of Title 18 U.S.C. 241 and 242, which emanate from the Civil Rights Act of 1866 and the Supreme Courts constitutional interpretation of those statutes; the passage in 1968 of modern federal hate crimes laws and judicial interpretation of those laws; and the statutory evolution of hate crime and anti-trafficking laws, highlighted by the enactment of the 2000 Trafficking Victim Protection Act and the 2009 enactment of the Shepard-Byrd hate crime law, the first hate crime law to cover sexual orientation, gender identity and disability. As new legislative initiatives emerge, the course will incorporate any relevant changes to existing federal and Massachusetts laws. The course will also explore the federal enforcement effort of these criminal laws with an eye towards the role played by the Criminal Section of the Department of Justices Civil Rights Division where both Instructors worked. In particular, there will be a focus on the implementation of the policy of successive federal prosecutions to vindicate rights after failed state prosecutions, such as the landmark cases of the beating of Rodney King and the killing of Vincent Chin. It will also examine more contemporary direct federal prosecutions initiated after the racially-biased killings at the AME Church in Charleston, S.C. and in Charlottesville, VA. Besides the Instructors' personal involvement in some of these cases, other guest speakers with experience in criminal civil rights enforcement are expected. Students will also be asked to participate in mock trial openings and closings in cases which highlight the issues of proof endemic to these types of prosecutions.
Course overview
- Department
- Law
- School
- LAW
- Credits
- 2
- Level
- Graduate
- Offered
- Annually
Course evaluations
- Course rating
- 4.67 / 5 · Excellent
- Instructor rating
- 4.69 / 5 · Excellent
- Terms evaluated
- 4
| Term | Instructor | Course overall | Instructor overall | Well organized | Clear learning objectives | Intellectually challenging | Helpful assignments | Applicable beyond course | Attendance necessary | Weekly effort | Responses |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring 2026 | S Theodore Merritt | 4.8 | 4.6 | 4.9 | 4.9 | 4.5 | 4.9 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 4–6 hrs/week | 8 of 11 |
| Spring 2026 | Stephen Curran | 4.8 | 4.6 | 4.9 | 4.9 | 4.5 | 4.9 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 4–6 hrs/week | 8 of 11 |
| Spring 2025 | S Theodore Merritt | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 4.8 | 4–6 hrs/week | 5 of 5 |
| Spring 2025 | Stephen Curran | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 4.8 | 4–6 hrs/week | 5 of 5 |
| Spring 2024 | S Theodore Merritt | 4.8 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.9 | 4.6 | 4.9 | 4.9 | 4.7 | 1–3 hrs/week | 12 of 13 |
| Spring 2024 | Stephen Curran | 4.8 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.9 | 4.6 | 4.9 | 4.9 | 4.7 | 1–3 hrs/week | 12 of 13 |
| Spring 2023 | S Theodore Merritt | 4.6 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.7 | 1–3 hrs/week | 12 of 15 |
| Spring 2023 | Stephen Curran | 4.6 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.7 | 1–3 hrs/week | 12 of 15 |