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Ethics

Today in U.S History: Thurgood Marshall Sworn In As First Black Supreme Court Justice

Thurgood Marshall became the first African-American to take the oath of office as a Supreme Court Justice on October 2, 1967.

President Johnson observed, “Thurgood Marshall symbolizes what is best about our American society: the belief that human rights must be satisfied through the orderly processes of law. … it is a cause of profound satisfaction to me that in [then-] Judge Marshall we shall have an advocate whose lifelong concern has been the pursuit of justice for his fellow man.”

Pentagon Grants Honorable Discharges To Veterans Expelled For Sexual Orientation

The Pentagon on Tuesday granted honorable discharges to more than 800 veterans who were separated from the U.S. military because of their sexual orientation during the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, which was in effect February 1994.

In December 2010, President Barack Obama signed into law a repeal of the policy, which took effect in September 2011.

CJA Panel Rep. Natali Todd Receives Champion of the Community Award

Natali Todd, a distinguished trial lawyer and the CJA Panel Representative for the Southern District of New York, has been honored with Gideon’s Promise's Champion of the Community Award. (access event page) The award is given to an outstanding individual or organization that embodies true leadership and actively contributes to the improvement of our criminal legal system.

Second Circuit: Naturalized Citizens Must Be Told if Plea May Lead to Deportation

Following up on the Supreme Court's Padilla v. Kentucky holding that non-citizen criminal defendants must be advised of any risk of deportation associated with a guilty plea, En banc Second Circuit: If a guilty plea could lead to denaturalization and deportation, lawyers must advise their clients of that fact or they're giving unconstitutionally ineffective counsel.