Mike Fox
@foxmike90.bsky.social
Criminal Justice @CatoInstitute | Human-Companion to Miranda the Husky
Reposted by Mike Fox
BREAKING: Comey case dismissed without prejudice. Halligan invalidly appointed, judge rules. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
November 24, 2025 at 5:36 PM
BREAKING: Comey case dismissed without prejudice. Halligan invalidly appointed, judge rules. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
Reposted by Mike Fox
"When those in power can pressure private actors to silence disfavored voices without consequence, expression is stifled and people self-censor." Yet the Second Circuit upheld qualified immunity for a New York official who violated the First Amendment this way. Cato amicus brief seeks cert review
National Rifle Association v. Vullo
The First Amendment’s promise of free speech means little if public officials who violate it face no consequences.
www.cato.org
November 24, 2025 at 1:11 PM
"When those in power can pressure private actors to silence disfavored voices without consequence, expression is stifled and people self-censor." Yet the Second Circuit upheld qualified immunity for a New York official who violated the First Amendment this way. Cato amicus brief seeks cert review
Reposted by Mike Fox
Citizens & immigrants whose rights are trashed by state sponsored #ICE terror squads deserve legal redress. Legal loopholes & insane court-created police violence shields like #qualifiedimmunity make it nearly impossible. My colleague @foxmike90.bsky.social has the fix.
www.cato.org/blog/what-go...
www.cato.org/blog/what-go...
What Good Is a Right Without a Remedy?
Flagrant civil rights abuses are enabled by a legal scheme that makes it all but impossible to sue federal agents for constitutional violations and shields them with immunity should that barrier ever ...
www.cato.org
November 21, 2025 at 10:05 PM
Citizens & immigrants whose rights are trashed by state sponsored #ICE terror squads deserve legal redress. Legal loopholes & insane court-created police violence shields like #qualifiedimmunity make it nearly impossible. My colleague @foxmike90.bsky.social has the fix.
www.cato.org/blog/what-go...
www.cato.org/blog/what-go...
Reposted by Mike Fox
"Olson, a senior fellow... [said GOP tactical bungling] led to the court ruling that Republicans had likely created a map that ran afoul of the Constitution’s ban on racial gerrymandering.
“'Very often the unintended consequences take years to manifest,' he said. 'Seldom do they take only weeks.'"
“'Very often the unintended consequences take years to manifest,' he said. 'Seldom do they take only weeks.'"
As Trump plans backfire, Democrats are ahead in House redistricting fight
After early redistricting wins, Trump faces setbacks over maps for Texas, Indiana and other Republican-led states, frustrating his allies.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 20, 2025 at 11:35 PM
"Olson, a senior fellow... [said GOP tactical bungling] led to the court ruling that Republicans had likely created a map that ran afoul of the Constitution’s ban on racial gerrymandering.
“'Very often the unintended consequences take years to manifest,' he said. 'Seldom do they take only weeks.'"
“'Very often the unintended consequences take years to manifest,' he said. 'Seldom do they take only weeks.'"
Reposted by Mike Fox
Abolish #qualifiedimmunity NOW.
Georgia police chief charged with using license plate readers to stalk and harass people
A police chief in suburban Atlanta has been arrested on charges of using the city's license plate cameras to stalk and harass people.
apnews.com
November 21, 2025 at 6:44 PM
Abolish #qualifiedimmunity NOW.
Reposted by Mike Fox
Useful overview of why ICE and Border Patrol agents cannot in fact legally do whatever they want (and quotes me at the end).
As ICE escalates its tactics, are federal agents truly ‘untouchable’ in the eyes of the law? | CNN
After recent high-profile use of force encounters, federal officials have seemingly rushed to offer full-throated defenses of immigration agents, raising questions about whether previously enshrined m...
www.cnn.com
November 15, 2025 at 4:02 PM
Useful overview of why ICE and Border Patrol agents cannot in fact legally do whatever they want (and quotes me at the end).
Reposted by Mike Fox
"Assessing whether a police officer’s use of force was reasonable under the circumstances is precisely the type of judgment call the Framers tasked jurors to make." Cato amicus brief urges Fifth Circuit to vacate panel decision against family in police shooting case [Matt Cavedon]
Barnes v. Felix Brief: Juries, Not Judges, Need to Decide the Reasonableness of Force
Our brief argues that the Framers intended for juries—comprised of ordinary Americans—to adjudicate disputes between citizens and their government. Assessing whether a police officer’s use of force wa...
www.cato.org
November 12, 2025 at 2:43 PM
"Assessing whether a police officer’s use of force was reasonable under the circumstances is precisely the type of judgment call the Framers tasked jurors to make." Cato amicus brief urges Fifth Circuit to vacate panel decision against family in police shooting case [Matt Cavedon]
Reposted by Mike Fox
Cato podcast with @scottlincicome.bsky.social and Brett Skorup on the tariffs case at the Supreme Court. "They explore how the case could reshape executive authority, revive dormant constitutional doctrines, and determine whether Congress or the White House truly controls U.S. trade policy."
The Supreme Court’s $300 Billion Tariff Showdown
Featuring Scott Lincicome and Brent Skorup
www.cato.org
November 12, 2025 at 7:17 PM
Cato podcast with @scottlincicome.bsky.social and Brett Skorup on the tariffs case at the Supreme Court. "They explore how the case could reshape executive authority, revive dormant constitutional doctrines, and determine whether Congress or the White House truly controls U.S. trade policy."
Reposted by Mike Fox
This case underscores how SCOTUS made it impossible to hold immigration cops accountable for the abuses you see in all those videos.
A federal task force cop manufactured evidence to put an innocent woman behind bars for two years. Because of SCOTUS-conferred immunity, the case never got to a jury.
A federal task force cop manufactured evidence to put an innocent woman behind bars for two years. Because of SCOTUS-conferred immunity, the case never got to a jury.
Minnesota cop who fabricated a sex-trafficking ring won't be held accountable
The officer made up information and lied multiple times under oath but the government says she has federal immunity.
reason.com
October 29, 2025 at 1:36 PM
This case underscores how SCOTUS made it impossible to hold immigration cops accountable for the abuses you see in all those videos.
A federal task force cop manufactured evidence to put an innocent woman behind bars for two years. Because of SCOTUS-conferred immunity, the case never got to a jury.
A federal task force cop manufactured evidence to put an innocent woman behind bars for two years. Because of SCOTUS-conferred immunity, the case never got to a jury.
Reposted by Mike Fox
An excellent piece on why juries are foundational to our system & why prosecutors do their utmost to keep thinking, feeling jurors out of the courtroom.
Now Is Not the Time for Federal Judges to Be Removing ICE Skeptics From Jury Selection
The government has made its bed, and now it must lie in it.
slate.com
October 23, 2025 at 9:56 PM
An excellent piece on why juries are foundational to our system & why prosecutors do their utmost to keep thinking, feeling jurors out of the courtroom.
Reposted by Mike Fox
From my Cato colleague @foxmike90.bsky.social: judges in protest cases have excused jurors who admit they don't trust ICE or have strong feelings against it. But those are legitimate positions, and a jury lacking them isn't representative of the local community ("vicinage") the Constitution demands.
Now Is Not the Time for Federal Judges to Be Removing ICE Skeptics From Jury Selection
The government has made its bed, and now it must lie in it.
slate.com
October 23, 2025 at 9:57 PM
From my Cato colleague @foxmike90.bsky.social: judges in protest cases have excused jurors who admit they don't trust ICE or have strong feelings against it. But those are legitimate positions, and a jury lacking them isn't representative of the local community ("vicinage") the Constitution demands.
Reposted by Mike Fox
From my colleague @foxmike90.bsky.social.
From pretrial detention to the threat of foreign rendition, the Abrego Garcia case shows how political prosecutions and coercive plea deals have eroded the promise of a fair trial.
What's really at stake in the Kilmar Abrego Garcia case?
From pretrial detention to the threat of foreign rendition, the Abrego Garcia case shows how political prosecutions and coercive plea deals have eroded the promise of a fair trial.
reason.com
October 9, 2025 at 8:30 PM
From my colleague @foxmike90.bsky.social.
Reposted by Mike Fox
The latest from my colleague @foxmike90.bsky.social on the stakes in the Kilmar Abrego Garcia case.
What's really at stake in the Kilmar Abrego Garcia case?
From pretrial detention to the threat of foreign rendition, the Abrego Garcia case shows how political prosecutions and coercive plea deals have eroded the promise of a fair trial.
reason.com
October 9, 2025 at 8:02 PM
The latest from my colleague @foxmike90.bsky.social on the stakes in the Kilmar Abrego Garcia case.
Reposted by Mike Fox
A federal judge in Chicago has found that ICE conducted numerous illegal warrantless arrests in Illinois and nearby states in defiance of a 2022 consent decree. It also prepared post hoc arrest rationales after the fact based on details agents "did not know at the time they made the arrests". /1
ICE Violated Consent Decree With Warrantless Arrests, Federal Judge In Chicago Says
Attorneys argued that the recent arrest of an Albany Park family at Millennium Park violated a consent decree that limits the conditions under which federal agents can make warrantless arrests.
blockclubchicago.org
October 8, 2025 at 9:15 PM
A federal judge in Chicago has found that ICE conducted numerous illegal warrantless arrests in Illinois and nearby states in defiance of a 2022 consent decree. It also prepared post hoc arrest rationales after the fact based on details agents "did not know at the time they made the arrests". /1
Reposted by Mike Fox
Holy hell. DHS just openly stated that its agents use “reasonable suspicion” to make ARRESTS. This is blatantly unconstitutional. The Supreme Court is clear that you need probable cause to arrest someone, as opposed to stop them to ask them a question or two. This is huge b/c…
October 3, 2025 at 1:34 AM
Holy hell. DHS just openly stated that its agents use “reasonable suspicion” to make ARRESTS. This is blatantly unconstitutional. The Supreme Court is clear that you need probable cause to arrest someone, as opposed to stop them to ask them a question or two. This is huge b/c…
Reposted by Mike Fox
Three cheers for the Constitution's right to a jury: a federal jury in Los Angeles "took just over an hour to acquit [Brayan] Ramos-Brito of a misdemeanor assault count" in an ICE-scuffle case hinging heavily on the testimony of border sector chief Gregory Bovino, now doing raids in Chicago.
October 2, 2025 at 11:38 PM
Three cheers for the Constitution's right to a jury: a federal jury in Los Angeles "took just over an hour to acquit [Brayan] Ramos-Brito of a misdemeanor assault count" in an ICE-scuffle case hinging heavily on the testimony of border sector chief Gregory Bovino, now doing raids in Chicago.
Reposted by Mike Fox
From my colleague @foxmike90.bsky.social: The Framers saw citizen juries as a bulwark against tyranny, and D.C. juries could do much to curb Jeanine Pirro’s penchant for pressing doubtful charges in politically charged cases.
The Home Team Advantage: How DC Jurors Can Become a Bulwark Against Government Oppression
When prosecutors overstep their bounds, the Framers tasked citizen jurors with exercising their widely recognized power to reject their advances through a verdict of acquittal.
www.cato.org
October 2, 2025 at 8:06 PM
From my colleague @foxmike90.bsky.social: The Framers saw citizen juries as a bulwark against tyranny, and D.C. juries could do much to curb Jeanine Pirro’s penchant for pressing doubtful charges in politically charged cases.
Reposted by Mike Fox
From my colleague Matthew Cavedon: under the Constitution, it's up to states (and not, as he seems to think, Donald Trump) to decide to what extent to rely on cash bail. Either way, improved pretrial supervision can offer an option better tailored to the rights of defendants and needs of the public.
Pretrial Supervision Can Offer More Freedom—and Safety—than Jail or Cash Bail
Pretrial supervision represents a smarter approach than the extremes of warehousing defendants or turning them loose. The momentum now exists to review pretrial release.
www.cato.org
September 25, 2025 at 4:23 PM
From my colleague Matthew Cavedon: under the Constitution, it's up to states (and not, as he seems to think, Donald Trump) to decide to what extent to rely on cash bail. Either way, improved pretrial supervision can offer an option better tailored to the rights of defendants and needs of the public.
Reposted by Mike Fox
Some preliminary thoughts on Trump's new executive order "Countering Domestic Terrorism and Organized Political Violence," which declares a law enforcement crackdown on some ill-specified blend of action and speech by his political adversaries, on grounds that they encourage and abet violence. /1
Countering Domestic Terrorism and Organized Political Violence
NATIONAL SECURITY PRESIDENTIAL MEMORANDUM/NSPM-7 MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF STATE THE SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
www.whitehouse.gov
September 25, 2025 at 11:06 PM
Some preliminary thoughts on Trump's new executive order "Countering Domestic Terrorism and Organized Political Violence," which declares a law enforcement crackdown on some ill-specified blend of action and speech by his political adversaries, on grounds that they encourage and abet violence. /1
Reposted by Mike Fox
Critics including Elon Musk have assailed my @cato.org colleague Alex Nowrasteh's study finding that most politically motivated terrorist killings in the U.S. since 1975 have been done by persons on the right. Alex responds to the critics here and explains his methods and classifications.
Alex Responds to the Critics: Politically Motivated Terrorist Killings in the United States
The critics are mistaken
www.alexnowrasteh.com
September 24, 2025 at 1:06 AM
Critics including Elon Musk have assailed my @cato.org colleague Alex Nowrasteh's study finding that most politically motivated terrorist killings in the U.S. since 1975 have been done by persons on the right. Alex responds to the critics here and explains his methods and classifications.
Reposted by Mike Fox
The Supreme Court’s ruling in Barnes v. Felix was counted as a major win for police accountability. By the time the Fifth Circuit was done with the case, though, the Barnes family’s hopes were dashed, writes my colleague @foxmike90.bsky.social
A Moat of Crocodiles: How Judicially Confected Doctrines Devoured a Supreme Court Victory
The Framers intended for juries—comprised of ordinary citizens—to adjudicate disputes between citizens and their government. However, thanks to judicially confected doctrines that lack a legitimate ba...
www.cato.org
September 20, 2025 at 3:40 AM
The Supreme Court’s ruling in Barnes v. Felix was counted as a major win for police accountability. By the time the Fifth Circuit was done with the case, though, the Barnes family’s hopes were dashed, writes my colleague @foxmike90.bsky.social
Reposted by Mike Fox
My tribute to my friend @rethinkintel.bsky.social
A Retired FBI Agent's Advice on Fighting Authoritarianism
Every governor, mayor, and county executive in this country should read Mike’s piece and use it as a blueprint for dealing with the Trump regime’s de facto attempts to commandeer state and local polic...
www.cato.org
September 19, 2025 at 6:50 PM
My tribute to my friend @rethinkintel.bsky.social
Reposted by Mike Fox
The Constitution protects both the right to keep and bear arms and the right to travel. Massachusetts nonetheless prosecutes out-of-staters who drive in MA with a gun in their trunk, even though they never used it in MA. Cato urges certiorari of Mass. top court ruling upholding that [Matt Cavedon]
Marquis v. Massachusetts Brief: Americans Have the Right to Travel Armed
Massachusetts forbids nonresidents from carrying a firearm for self-defense on pain of a felony conviction and a minimum of eighteen months in prison—even though the Constitution protects the right of...
www.cato.org
September 10, 2025 at 12:57 PM
The Constitution protects both the right to keep and bear arms and the right to travel. Massachusetts nonetheless prosecutes out-of-staters who drive in MA with a gun in their trunk, even though they never used it in MA. Cato urges certiorari of Mass. top court ruling upholding that [Matt Cavedon]