Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Nancy Gertner

@ngertner.bsky.social

29K followers 76 following 38 posts

Retired federal judge, Harvard law School Professor of Practice 2011-2014, currently part time teaching sentencing, law and neuroscience, writer (opeds, books), occasional CNN and MSNBC commentator, regular WGBH Jim and Margery show, wife, mom, grandmom.

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Reposted by Nancy Gertner

Jen Rubin @jenrubin.bsky.social · 1d

someone should tell Trump they don't give the Peace Prize to people who blow up boats and murder those on high seas nor to those who deploy military against their own people. NEVER.

140 720 3.4K

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · 4d

open.substack.com/pub/harrylit...

Portland Judge’s Vital Lesson: Deference Is Not Blind Obedience

Judges can’t defer to determinations “untethered to facts.”

open.substack.com

3 39 200

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · 29d

open.substack.com/pub/contrari...

No apology necessary

Being right on the law means never having to say you're sorry.

open.substack.com

2 13

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Aug 29

Wonderful note!! You are?

1 1

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Aug 28

urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=htt...

The hard-won hope of the long defeat

A mindset for a dark time

urldefense.proofpoint.com

2 2 7

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Aug 1

contrarian.substack.com/p/the-rich-a...

The rich and powerful go unpunished: Julie K. Brown on the scale of the Epstein scandal

"These victims feel betrayed once again, by the DOJ and by our government officials who, they believe, are still covering up for wealthy and powerful men."

contrarian.substack.com

2 19 70

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Jul 29

www.stevevladeck.com/p/170-dojs-r...

170. DOJ's (Ridiculous) Misconduct Complaint Against Chief Judge Boasberg

DOJ's complaint that Chief Judge Boasberg engaged in "misconduct" would be laughably stupid if it didn't reflect such a transparently obvious and dangerous attempt to delegitimize the federal courts.

www.stevevladeck.com

1 3 16

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Jul 27

x.com/GozukaraFurk...

Furkan Gözükara on X: "This is the best ever true news BBC ever made about Israel, 4 minutes but every minute is extremely important https://t.co/ZnSEpPvusb" / X

This is the best ever true news BBC ever made about Israel, 4 minutes but every minute is extremely important https://t.co/ZnSEpPvusb

x.com

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Jul 22

www.bostonglobe.com/2025/07/22/o...

I served on the federal bench. Emil Bove is unfit to be a judge. - The Boston Globe

Bove won’t follow the law. He will follow the president.

www.bostonglobe.com

7 35

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Jun 8

open.substack.com/pub/data4dem...

Federal Judges Are Begging Us to Pay Attention

A Data-Driven Analysis of nearly 300 Federal Cases Reveals Judges Quoting Kafka and Warning of Democracy in Peril

open.substack.com

10 18

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Jun 7

www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...

She's in ICE detention. From 1,500 miles away, his piano lulls her to sleep.

Harvard scientist Kseniia Petrova has been in ICE detention for 3 months. She is one of a growing number of non-criminal immigrants detained by ICE.

www.usatoday.com

7 13

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Jun 6

Bondi‘s quote about Abrego Garcia? “He now will meet the full force of American justice.” Well, that’s good. Because he already has met the full force of American injustice!

14 80 470

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Jun 6

news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...

Big Law Has Won Three Cases. But Trump Is Ahead in the Long Game

Opinion: Deans Erwin Chemerinsky and David Faigman, and retired federal Judge Nancy Gertner say that Big Law's quick court wins don't erase Trump's damage to the profession, underscoring that law firm...

news.bloomberglaw.com

1 6

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Jun 2

The Tragic History of Neoliberalism
open.substack.com/pub/robertre...

The Tragic History of Neoliberalism

Don’t buy revisionist attempts to rehabilitate it. Instead, push for a bold progressive populism.

open.substack.com

1 2

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · May 16

www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZHW...

Land of Hope and Dreams

YouTube video by Bruce Springsteen

www.youtube.com

6 24

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · May 15

open.substack.com/pub/contrari...

Trump Is Defunding Public Safety

Across-the-board cuts at DOJ are endangering American lives—and exposing the hypocrisy of an administration that claims to care.

open.substack.com

1 7 12

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Apr 28

Cruelty and Intimidation are the Goals
open.substack.com/pub/contrari...

Cruelty and Intimidation are the Goals

The prosecution of Judge Hannah Dugan had nothing to do with ICE enforcement and everything to do with intimidation

open.substack.com

1 4 15

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Apr 23

open.substack.com/pub/contrari...

The Disappeared

Deported. Disappeared. Dehumanized.

open.substack.com

11 33

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Apr 21

www.nytimes.com/2025/04/19/u...

Former Trump Staff Members Liken His Actions to Those of ‘Royal Despot’

In an open letter, prominent Republicans criticized President Trump for using his power to punish two former administration officials who criticized him.

www.nytimes.com

3 11 32

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Apr 14

news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...

Trump Discriminating Against Blue States Sets Up Historic Crisis

Opinion: Judge Nancy Gertner, David L. Faigman, and Erwin Chemerinsky warn Donald Trump targeting his enemies in blue states could lead to conflicts between the federal government and states not seen ...

news.bloomberglaw.com

14 20

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Apr 9

We Should All Be Very, Very Afraid www.nytimes.com/2025/04/09/o...

Opinion | Trump’s Gulag Archipelago

He is seeking to establish a truly chilling proposition: that no one can stop his administration from imprisoning anyone it wants, anywhere in the world.

www.nytimes.com

21 40

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Apr 7

www.nytimes.com/2025/04/07/o...

Opinion | Trump’s Crusade Against Antisemitism Is Extremely Bad for the Jews

Antisemitism is real. But the enemy of our enemy is not necessarily our friend.

www.nytimes.com

2 13

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Mar 30

www.nytimes.com/2025/03/30/o...

Opinion | For God’s Sake, Fellow Lawyers, Stand Up to Trump

The time has come to defend the oath we took when we became officers of the court.

www.nytimes.com

1 12 54

Nancy Gertner @ngertner.bsky.social · Mar 29

Donald Trump is seeking to erase the United States as we know it

4 6 62

Reposted by Nancy Gertner

Ruth Marcus @ruthmarcus.bsky.social · Mar 15

The White House has gone after another leading law firm. This time Paul Weiss. I cannot overstate how dangerous this is—and how urgent for the private bar to respond with solidarity to this assault on the legal profession and rule of law.

12 150 660