IN THE NEWS
Prof. Paul Finkelman was involved in the research for the recent posthemous pardon to Thomas and Meeks Griffin for a controversial murder conviction nearly 100 years ago.
Here are links to the news stories from around the world:
Radio host seeks pardon for executed SC ancestors
By Seanna Adcox
Associated Press, Oct 8, 2009.
Joyner: 'We got it! We got it!' of pardon for ancestors
By Roddie Burris
The State, Oct. 15, 2009.
Brothers sent to electric chair are cleared of killing
By Alex Spillius
Irish Independent, Oct. 19, 2009.
RECENT QUOTES FROM PROFESSOR FINKELMAN ON:
- THE '08 PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION
- LOCAL POLITICS
- BASEBALL AND THE LAW
- CIVIL RIGHTS
- CONSTITUTIONAL LAW
- SLAVERY AND THE CONSTITUTION
- RACE AND THE LAW
- NATIONAL EVENTS
FINKELMAN ON THE '08 PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION:
"As far as I know, he's the first politician since the Civil War to recognize how deeply embedded slavery and race have been in our Constitution. That's a profoundly important thing to say. But what's important about the way he said it is he doesn't use this as a springboard for anger or for frustration. He doesn't say, 'O.K., slavery was bad, therefore people are owed something.' This is not a reparations speech. This is a speech about saying it's time for the nation to do better, to form a more perfect union." Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "Obama chooses reconciliation over rancor" in the New York Times and the International Herald Tribune, 03/19/08.
"What voters want is to be reassured that the candidate cares about them, has the ability to accomplish something, and that the candidate will promise a better future." Professor Paul Finkelman in his editorial titled "Will Happy Days Be Here Again?" posted on The Huffington Post on 03/02/08.
"When you look at the most successful presidents, many of them have been lawyers." Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "For next president, USA likely to call on lawyer" in USA Today, 09/06/07.
FINKELMAN ON LOCAL POLITICS:
"Albany seems to be in utter chaos; it's as though an atomic bomb was dropped on the state capital." Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "Sex scandal hits Albany like 'an atomic bomb'" in The Globe and Mail, 03/12/08.
FINKELMAN ON BASEBALL AND THE LAW:
"It appears to me that when it went into the net, it went into the legal possession of the New York Yankees, and if stadium officials retrieve the ball and say ‘We'll give it to you' - whoever they're pointing to - they have the right to do that." President William McKinley Distinguished Professor of Law and Public Policy Paul Finkelman in an article titled "At the Stadium, Possession Is Some Tenths of the Law" in the New York Times, 9/24/08.
"We have come to live in a world where honesty is not considered virtuous. Culturally, the United States has become a place where there is an expectation that you do not have to tell the truth. ... Rather than tell the truth, you try and give a spin." Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "Ask Martha, Marion and Scooter, federal authorities don't like to be lied to" in The Canadian Press, 02/15/08.
"To do so would immediately put that person under suspicion. Wouldn't Canseco realize that no baseball player could afford to back one of his movies?" Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "TARGETED TIGER: Jose Canseco targets Tigers' Magglio Ordonez in newest book" in the Detroit Free Press, 01/25/08.
"What this potential suit really raises is the failure of Major League Baseball and the players' union to be concerned about the welfare of players." Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "Rich Hartmann: Opportunity denied?" in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 01/13/08.
"I think being indicted for all of these felonies is enough to say, 'We're going to suspend you for a year until this is settled,' . . . . And I think he can get away with that." Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "Home run king's future uncertain; Selig to see how case unfolds," in the Washington Times, 11/17/07.
"GMs are very sophisticated people. A lot of them may not think A-Rod is even worth what he already was getting." Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "Why A-Rod's Not Worth It" on Forbes.com, 11/15/07.
Professor Paul Finkelman was featured as a guest on KNPR's "State of Nevada." He discussed the legal ownership of sports memorabilia in the wake of OJ Simpson's arrest on 09/19/07. Click here to listen.
Professor Paul Finkelman was interviewed by Law.com bloggers and co-hosts, J. Craig Williams and Robert Ambrogi, about steroids scandals, homerun balls and the reputation of Major League Baseball on the Legal Talk Network show, "Lawyer 2 Lawyer," an internet radio program, designed for lawyers and the legal community nationwide on 08/22/07. Click here to listen.
"The reality is this: Professional baseball has a system by which fans are allowed to keep balls that go in the stands. This has been true since the 1920s. The ball does not belong to the player. The ball belongs to the fan. The price of admission is like a lottery ticket." Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "Biggest bang for the ball" in the Albany Times Union, 08/08/07.
"It's absolutely an attempt to provoke a fight. And it's not a fight about steroids. Selig is not saying, 'We've got to do this to protect against steroids.' He's doing this to attack the union. Bud Selig is the classic robber baron in this: he's trying to break the union." Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "Players Association architect questions union boss' strategy" in the New York Daily News, 06/24/07.
Professor Paul Finkelman was interviewed about Jackie Robinson's 60th anniversary of breaking the color barrier and Barry Bonds 73rd home run ball lawsuit on WGNU-AM in St. Louis, Missouri on 04/12/07.
FINKELMAN ON CIVIL RIGHTS:
"I would love to live in a world where race doesn't matter, but the problem is, our culture has never, ever taken that position. To say we should simply ignore using race when the whole world uses race is ignoring the elephant in the room." Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "Mulling court's schools ruling" in the Seattle Post Intelligencer, 02/09/08.
"As an illustration of how deeply segregated Oklahoma was is the fact that there was a law requiring the telephone booths to be segregated." Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "Racial bias, from schools to phone booths: Discrimination rooted in Oklahoma history" in Tulsa World, 07/15/07.
"Michigan is sometimes called the second New York. Contrast that with Ohio, whose population was from Alabama and Virginia, whereas Michigan is a Yankee state, populated by people who vigorously were opposed to slavery." Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "State blazed civil rights trail, lawyer-author says" in the Grand Rapids Press on 05/07/07.
FINKELMAN ON CONSTITUTIONAL LAW:
"The conference stems from the idea that we need to move away from a confrontational and irreconcilable debate between people who claim there can never be any regulation of firearms and people who are utterly opposed to the ownership of firearms.'' Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "Conference aims for truce in debate on guns" in the Albany Times Union, 10/10/07.
Professor Paul Finkelman was interviewed about the U.S. Constitution on "Viewpoints," a public affairs radio program that is broadcasted weekly on over 340 radio stations around the country. The segment entitled "The U.S. Constitution: How do we know the Framers' Intent?" aired on July 1, 2007. Click here to listen.
"The constitution's free exercise of religion puts the burden on the state to prove why they should be able to invade the sanctuary of the church." Albany Law School Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "Trinity sues to revive rock shows: Albany shut down youth program after complaints from neighbors" in the Albany Times Union, 01/23/07.
FINKELMAN ON SLAVERY AND THE CONSTITUTION:
"There are people who still refuse to admit slavery was wrong. It's very easy for people today to say, ‘Well, this has nothing to do with me. I wasn't around then.' But the American nation has to come to terms that the Constitution and laws of the state condoned slavery." Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "Why All the Slave Apologies Now?" in The Crisis, July/August 2007.
Professor Paul Finkelman served as conference director for "Congress & Slavery in the District of Columbia", an all-day, Washington, D.C. symposium on slavery, held by the U.S. Capitol Historical Society. The event was broadcasted live on C-SPAN on April 27.
Professor Paul Finkelman was interviewed about the 150th anniversary of the Dred Scott decision on WGNU-AM in St. Louis, Missouri on 03/06/07.
Professor Paul Finkelman was interviewed about the 150th anniversary of the Dred Scott decision on WAMC-FM, an Albany, N.Y. NPR affiliate, on 03/05/07.
"Absent Roswell Field, this case never would have gone to the Supreme Court. Lincoln argued that the decision was part of a conspiracy to impose slavery on the nation. His response helps make him nationally prominent." Albany Law School Professor Paul Finkelman in the article "Eugene Field House is up for landmark status" in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 11/02/06.
FINKELMAN ON RACE AND THE LAW:
"Black History Month should be understood as something that primarily educates white people. African-Americans are far more aware of their history and contributions. It's important, especially in communities where there are few black students, teachers or people living." Albany Law School Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled, "BLACK HISTORY MONTH: Celebration or obligation?" in the Richmond Times-Dispatch, 02/14/07.
Professor Paul Finkelman was interviewed about the significance of Black History Month on WAMC-FM, an Albany, N.Y. NPR affiliate, on 02/13/07.
Professor Paul Finkelman was interviewed about his book The History of Michigan Law on WLNZ-FM in Lansing, Michigan on 03/16/07. The radio show also aired on LCC TV Comcast in Lansing, Michigan.
FINKELMAN ON NATIONAL EVENTS:
"It's just hard to make the argument that the federal government could legally get in to the business of regulating what you could install in your car." President William McKinley Distinguished Professor of Law and Public Policy Paul Finkelman in an article titled "Can the Law Stop Excessive Noise from Car Stereos?" in the Albany Times Union, 10/20/08.
"The problem is, their hands are tied as to what they can do with it." Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "Rays' Hands Tied In Dukes Case" in the Tampa Tribune, 06/03/07.
Professor Paul Finkelman was interviewed about immigration officials allegedly drugging two deportees in Los Angeles on KPFK-FM, Los Angeles Pacifica Radio, on 05/09/07.
"The court should be a solemn and serious place. The public has a right to see those snapshots. But let them go down to the court to do it." Albany Law School Professor Paul Finkelman in the article titled "Legislation would open courts to cameras" in the Albany Times Union, 03/16/07.
"It's just hard to make the argument that the federal government could legally get in to the business of regulating what you could install in your car." President William McKinley Distinguished Professor of Law and Public Policy Paul Finkelman in an article titled "Can the Law Stop Excessive Noise from Car Stereos?" in the Albany Times Union, 10/20/08.FOR THE MEDIA
If you are a member of the media and would like additional information about or to request an interview with Paul Finkelman, contact:
Nick Crounse
Assistant Director of Communications
Albany Law School
ncrou@albanylaw.edu
Office: 518-445-3208
Fax: 518-445-3255
