Norm Pattis

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Kumbaya In New Haven? The Show Trial Goes On

Monday, September 20, 2010 | by Norm Pattis | The Connecticut Law Tribune

If you have heard enough about the show-trial taking place in New Haven regarding the Cheshire home invasion, you might be tempted to skip this column. But I ask you to hang in for a paragraph or two. I'd like to talk about the administration of justice in Connecticut courtrooms.

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Foxhole Dick Spouting Off On Craigslist. Why?

Monday, September 13, 2010 | by Norm Pattis | The Connecticut Law Tribune

When I hear Richard Blumenthal chest-thump about Craigslist and its advertising of adult services, two words come to mind: Eliot Spitzer. What is it about aneroxic moralists that chills the blood?

• Communications & Media Law

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Judge Not Comfortable With Child Porn Sentence

Monday, August 23, 2010 | by Norm Pattis | The Connecticut Law Tribune

Milford Superior Court Judge Eddie Rodriguez Jr. was in the hot seat the other day. The editorial board of the New Haven Register took aim at him for comments he made while sentencing a man who pled guilty to the possession of child pornography to five years in prison.

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No Simple Explanation For Delayed Cases In State, Federal Courts

Monday, August 16, 2010 | by Norm Pattis | The Connecticut Law Tribune

I've toyed with the idea of a form letter along the following lines to be sent every six months to clients: "Herewith a periodic report on the status of your case. We are ready for trial and have been for some time. We are awaiting assignment of the case.

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Bracing For Backlash To Gay Marriage Ruling

Monday, August 9, 2010 | by Norm Pattis | The Connecticut Law Tribune

Expect an early Halloween. This year's favored outfit is that of the Old Testament prophet. Expect the street corners, the airwaves and the world of print to be swamped with cries of doom and gloom.

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Illegal Immigrants Have A Familiar Face

Monday, August 2, 2010 | by Norm Pattis | The Connecticut Law Tribune

I am the son of an illegal immigrant. My father was born in Crete. He and his father snuck across the border from Canada to the United States in the 1930s. My father eventually forged papers to create a paper trail that permitted him to live in the United States for the vast majority of his 84 years.

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Supreme Court Dialogue Creates Meeting Of Minds

Monday, July 19, 2010 | by Norm Pattis | The Connecticut Law Tribune

Last week, my wife and I traveled to Boston to visit my mother-in-law, who lives in a residence for people with special needs. She is in a ward where the doors are kept locked. But she does not really see this as a prison. She suffers from dementia, you see; and in her late-80s, she seems somehow helpless now.

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Left And Right Both Now Mistrust Federalism

Monday, July 12, 2010 | by Norm Pattis | The Connecticut Law Tribune

There's something funky about the Justice Department's lawsuit to invalidate Arizona's immigration legislation. I keep thinking about Roe v. Wade and the right to abortion. Could it be that federalism is in its death throes?