All laws tell stories, says Harvard law professor Mary Ann Glendon-stories about who we are, where we came from, where we are going, and what we value. Can Americans learn something from the abortion and divorce laws of other countries? Glendon says we have a lot to learn, and that it may surprise us. Glendon, whose field is comparative law, found her own assumptions challenged when she started the research for her prize-winning book, Abortion and...

According to prime-time television, criminals are brought to justice in a speedy and efficient yet drama-filled manner. In reality, the process can be slow and meticulous, as rules must be followed to safeguard the defendant's constitutional rights. This program provides a solid grounding in the processes and players involved in the court system and takes viewers step-by-step through a trial and sentencing. Legal experts explain probable cause, plea...

A Milwaukie jury sided with two officers who claimed a gun store bore some responsibility in the illegal sale of a gun used to shoot them.

Returning home to find her two children and her Japanese-born husband gone, Regan Haight soon discovered that Japanese law and custom were heavily stacked against her. But Haight's isn't the only case in which the Japanese legal system is on the side of a kidnapper spouse. Australian Chayne Inaba has long battled for access to his daughter, to no avail. Craig Morrey first saw his daughter fleetingly in a courtroom when she was six months old. And...

From the two-time Peabody Award-winning team of director Kate Davis and producer David Heilbroner (The Newburgh Sting, Stonewall Uprising), this haunting and compelling Academy Award®-nominated, 30-minute, documentary short tells the story of Breaion King, a 26-year-old African-American school teacher from Austin, Texas, who was stopped in 2015 for a routine traffic violation—an encounter that escalated into a dramatic and violent arrest. Caught...

This program is an indispensable tool for helping students to understand the constitutional amendment process and to see its importance in their own lives. It defines what an amendment is, explains why amendments have been needed down through the centuries, and describes the process for proposing and ratifying an amendment. Amendments used as illustrations of the process of changing the Constitution have been carefully selected for their interest...

In 1992, Stella Liebeck spilled scalding McDonald's coffee in her lap and later sued the company, attracting a flood of negative attention. It turns out, there’s more to the story.

This documentary film is a concise and captivating review of the legal battle waged by Dr. Henry Morgentaler in Quebec and federal courts between 1970 and 1976. Through a combination of newsreel footage, interviews, and dramatic reenactments (in which Dr. Morgentaler and his lawyer play themselves), this docudrama unravels the complexities of the case that began as a challenge to Canada's abortion law and turned into a precedent-setting civil rights...

This program features discussions with three prominent historians about the roots of the Constitution and its impact on our society since its writing. Michael Kammen, Pulitzer Prize winner and professor of history at Cornell University, discusses the Constitution's place and role as a symbol in American life; Forrest McDonald, professor of history at the University of Alabama, talks about the intellectual origins of the Constitution; and Dr. Olive...

To many, worrying about constitutional rights seemed like an archaic luxury while Ground Zero was still smoking. The need for tighter homeland security made civil liberties take a back seat to urgent measures such as the USA PATRIOT Act designed to defend America from terrorists. But two years later, that piece of legislation came under fire from both the left and the right. In this ABC News program, Ted Koppel takes a hard look at the law with representatives...