News

College of Law’s Criminal Defense Clinic Offers Hands-On Experience to Students for More Than 50 Years 

Gary Pieples

The College of Law’s Criminal Defense Clinic has been helping students gain practical experience in the courtroom and hone their craft since 1971. 

The CDC represents low-income individuals pro bono throughout Onondaga County, working mainly on civil matters such as shoplifting, vandalism, and traffic violations. Students involved in the clinic said the experience has made them realize the impact of their work. Always under faculty supervision, they learn how to negotiate plea agreements, conduct legal research, and analyze the criminal justice system as a whole.

Members of the clinic typically discuss their cases with Gary Pieples, the director of the CDC and a teaching professor at SU. They then travel to one of several courts to meet with their clients prior to appearing before the judge.

Read on for student stories from the CDC in the Daily Orange.

Staci Dennis-Taylor L’14 and Lisa Peebles L’92 Lead Panel on the Challenges Facing Criminal Justice 

As a part of Orange Central 2022, Staci Dennis-Taylor L’14, Senior Assistant District Attorney at the Chief of Municipal Courts Bureau, and Lisa Peebles L’92, Federal Public Defender at the Northern District of New York, returned to the College of Law for a panel on “the Challenges Facing Criminal Justice.” 

An audience of alumni and students gathered to hear from Dennis-Taylor and Peebles about the challenges facing criminal justice practitioners from their work experiences and perspectives over the years. College of Law Professor Paula Johnson moderated the discussion.

3L Jorge Estacio Represents the College of Law at the ABA Business Law Section’s Annual Meeting 

3L Jorge Estacio, a Hispanic man with short dark brown hair with a black suit with a matching black tie, a white formal shirt, and brown oxfords stands in front of a semi-circle shaped, transparent building surrounded by six peers dressed in business attire. To Estacio’s right is a woman with dark brown hair with a long tan dress and tan ballet flats. To his right is a white man with short grey hair, with a white formal shirt, brown blazer, and black pants, with black oxfords. Estacio and his peers are all wearing matching name tags.

3L Jorge Estacio recently met with senior government officials, big law partners, and judges from around the world at the ABA Business Law Section’s Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. Estacio works at the Innovation Law Center as a Special Projects Consultant researching and writing reports covering intellectual property, freedom to operate, and marketing information for clients.  He is also a student attorney in the Transactional Law Clinic.

Distinguished Visiting Lecturer David Cay Johnston discusses NYAG Letitia James’ lawsuit against former president Donald Trump with Anderson Cooper 

David Cay Johnston, a white man with short gray hair and gray beard, wearing a black suit jacket over a blue collared shirt, with a gray tie and thin, rectangular glasses, smiles.

Distinguished Visiting Lecturer David Cay Johnston was on the Anderson Cooper 360 podcast discussing New York Attorney General Letitia James’ lawsuit against former president Donald Trump and the Trump Organization. Johnston confirmed that the accusation in the lawsuit “lines up perfectly” with the former President’s actions throughout his life. The segment on the lawsuit starts at 17:44 and Johnston weighs in starting at 18:40.

Professor Shubha Ghosh Speaks on Panel for International Gaming: Laws and Regulations Around Games in the Digital Era 

In early September 2022, Crandall Melvin Professor of Law Shubha Ghosh served as a guest panelist at a conference on International Gaming: Laws and Regulations Around Games in the Digital Era. Durham Law School, England, and InGAME International hosted the two-day conference, exploring the dynamic of gaming and the legal/regulatory framework at both national and international levels, from an interdisciplinary perspective. 

Ghosh virtually participated on a panel discussing competition law and the regulatory framework of games, specifically speaking about platforms, game development, and competition law. 

The abstract listing for his topic references the ongoing antitrust dispute between Apple and Epic Games and highlights critical issues in game development and dissemination. Contractual restrictions that prevent game developers from distributing their games through direct dissemination to users raise questions about limits on competition. Although these restrictions are justified through the risk taken by platform creators (such as Apple through its App Store), this business justification ignores other aspects of the market for games: the needs of end users and the talents of programmers. Ghosh analyzed the dispute between Apple and Epic and the district court’s decision in favor of Apple, currently on appeal.

Special Screening of Samantha Cheng’s Documentary: Honor and Duty: The Mississippi Delta Chinese 

Syracuse University students, friends, and faculty members gathered for a special screening of Journalist/Filmmaker Samantha Cheng’s Documentary “Honor & Duty: The Mississippi Delta Chinese” on Friday, Sept. 16 at the National Veteran’s Resource Center.

Attendees enjoyed a reception before moving to the auditorium for an introduction to the Mississippi Delta, the viewing of the documentary, and a Q&A hosted by Cheng. Focusing on the story of the Chinese who were recruited to work in the Mississippi Delta after the Civil War, the documentary explores how the community steadily grew in the early part of the 20th century. Despite the Chinese Exclusion Acts (1882-1943), which barred both immigration and citizenship for Chinese, more than 22,000 Chinese and Chinese Americans served in WWII. Among the Mississippi Delta Chinese, 132 served in the Army, 24 in the Air Force, 19 in the Navy, and two in the Marines. These unsung heroes discuss their lives before, during, and after the war. 

Cheng came to Syracuse at the invitation of Professor Mary Szto, who teaches Asian Americans and the Law at the College of Law. Szto and Cheng were childhood friends in the Chinese American church in New York City that Szto’s father founded, but were only reunited this year after losing touch for several decades. 

According to Szto, Cheng’s work in telling the story of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) veterans dovetails with the D’Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF)’s groundbreaking research on current AAPI veterans in their transition from service to civilian life. Szto says these stories and research are critical to addressing current anti-Asian and other racial violence in the U.S., and growing global tensions. 

See more details in SU Today.

Family Law Society Hosts “Conversation with Family Law Practitioners” for Students 

In a “Conversation with Family Law Practitioners” hosted by the Family Law Society, students gathered over lunch for an opportunity to hear from and ask questions to local family law judges, attorneys, and referees. Thank you to our alums and local professionals, including Hon. Julie Cecile L’91, Family Court Judge; Mary John, Attorney, Volunteer Lawyers Project; Kimberly Pedone L’93, Family Court Referee; Lourdes Rosario, Family Court Referee; Ronnie White Jr. L’13, Attorney, Law Office of Ronnie White; and Heather Youngman, Attorney, Nave Law, for your words of wisdom and advice.

Professor Lauryn Gouldin Addresses New IL Law and “Safe-T Act” with AP News

On January 1, 2023, Illinois will become the first state to test out a new law ending cash bail, or payments imposed by a judge, as a condition of a person’s release pending trial. This law is a part of the “Safe-T Act”, a wide-ranging criminal justice bill Illinois lawmakers passed in 2021. 

Professor Lauryn Gouldin addressed the new law with AP News, explaining that it doesn’t create a new classification of “non-detainable” offenses. Suspects can still be jailed on pretrial if they are considered a public safety risk or likely to flee to avoid criminal prosecution.

The new law states, “Detention only shall be imposed when it is determined that the defendant poses a specific, real and present threat to a person, or has a high likelihood of willful flight.”

Visiting Professor Michal Krotoszyński Presents “From ‘Legal Impossibilism’ to the Rule of Law Crisis” 

Visiting Professor Michal Krotoszyński from Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poland presented a lecture to College of Law students last week, “From ‘Legal Impossibilism’ to the Rule of Law Crisis: Transitional Justice and Polish Counter-Constitutionalism.” 

Since 2015, Poland’s Law and Justice political party has significantly altered the composition of the Polish Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court, and the National Council of Judiciary; and expanded the power of the executive branch in relation to the courts. This process – commonly referred to as a period of ‘anti-constitutional populist backsliding’ (Sadurski 2014) – also has a transitional justice dimension. Krotoszynski posits that the cornerstone of this counter-constitutionalism is a myth of ‘legal impossibilism’: a belief in strict constitutional constraints supposedly stopping the parliamentary majority from introducing crucial reforms, including transitional justice measures.

Alumni Return to Campus to Enrich 2022 Orientation and Summer Residency Programs

Thank you to alums and friends who took time out of their schedules to participate in our August Orientation and JDi Residency programs.  The line-up included:

  • In a Fireside Chat moderated by Assistant Dean of Career Services Lily Hughes, Nazak Nikakhtar L’02, G’02 discussed her career path and the opportunities that led her to her current post. 
  • Kim Wolf Price L’03 and Stephanie H. Fedorka L’17 led a panel on “DEI in Practice”.
  • Michael Kiklis L’93 and his business partner, Kimani Clark, visited students at the Innovation Law Center (ILC) and shared their wisdom and words of advice with the incoming JDinteractive (JDi) class. 
  • Katherine Martin L’99, Managing Director at Rock Creek Global Advisors LLC moderated a discussion with SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce as the keynote event of the Crypto and Digital Assets Class.
  • Leadership Greater Syracuse Representative Ronnie White L’13, SULAA Board President Colleen Gibbons L’17, President and CEO of Visit Syracuse Danny Liedka, Volunteer Lawyers Project of CNY Representatives Mary John and Adam Martin L’20, and Onondaga County Bar Association Executive Director Jeff Unaitis welcomed the incoming classes and shared the many ways in which students can get involved in our Syracuse community.
  • Four panels of alumni welcomed the JDi Class of 2026, offering advice on law school and work/school balance and exchanging stories of their journeys.