My demons were real : constitutional lawyer Joseph Calamia's journey

My demons were real : constitutional lawyer Joseph Calamia's journey

  • Author: Ybarra, Bob
  • Publisher: Arte Público Press
  • Serie: Hispanic Civil Rights
  • ISBN: 9781558856080
  • eISBN Pdf: 9781611923698
  • Place of publication:  Houston , United States
  • Year of publication: 2010
  • Pages: 288

"Even as a teenager, Joseph Albert Calamia understood the need to live by the rule of law. In high school, a class bully’s continual harassment of a skinny Hispanic kid led Joseph to confront him. But he wisely did so with the coach’s permission, challenging the boy to a boxing match. The tormentor went down quickly and Calamia settled the score under the jurisdiction of the high school coach.
Calamia began his career as a criminal defense attorney in El Paso, Texas, in 1949. He was a crusader for justice, considered by many to be akin to Don Quixote, tilting at windmills. But he disagreed, “The big difference is that my demons were real.” His demons were the institutionalized practices that favored expediency over the rights of individuals

  • Cover
  • Title page
  • Copyright page
  • Table of contents
  • The Quest Begins
    • A whirlwind of idealism: young Joe
    • Calm before the storm. The judiciary in the 1950s
    • A quick start: corruption and cavalier attitudes
  • Setting Precedents. The Early Cases
    • The early cases: seemingly innocuous, but
    • Drug laws: tough but with reservations
    • Constitutionality: the fourteenth amendment and the states
  • Light in a Dark Period
    • The commies are coming mine-smelter and Hollywood
    • First commie trial: Salt of the Earth
    • The first Jencks's case: quick and simple
    • Matusow and Jencks false witness, contempt and discovery
    • Aftermath: Jencks, mine-mill adn no calamity in Joe
  • Tenacity Calamia Style
    • The 1960s: judge Thomason passes the torch
    • Clanahan: even "La Migra" deserves a fair trial
    • Nagell: discovery, insanity, clear and convincing evidence
    • Federal judges: attitudes and the law of contempt
    • Fernández and the fifth: no silver platter for the federal tacman
    • Muñiz and Habeas corpus: no mexican americans in a grand jury
  • Change and Reflection
    • 1970s and beyond: turmoil and change
    • Pate and filing fees: now Chuy de la O can run for Mayor
    • Judge Vs Judge: investigative grand juries
    • Jones: crimes of sudden passion and reflection
  • Endnotes
  • Photo insert

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