Events
Lowering the Bar for Preventative Detention: United States v. Salerno
The Peter L. Zimroth Center at NYU School of Law invites you to its annual conference, which will be held on April 7, 2026 from 5:30-8:00 pm at Greenberg Lounge in Vanderbilt Hall at NYU School of Law, with light food and refreshments to follow. This event is approved for 2.5 hours of NYS CLE in the Areas of Professional Practice. The credit is both transitional and non-transitional; it is appropriate for both experienced and newly admitted attorneys.
This year's conference will discuss the Supreme Court's role in mass incarceration, with a special focus on United States v. Salerno and the Court's approval of preventative detention based on grounds of "dangerousness." Panel One will discuss the the history of bail in the United States and its limited usage, the Supreme Court's ruling in Salerno and its flawed constitutional analysis, and the widespread expansion of pretrial detention at both the state and federal levels in the aftermath of Salerno.
Panelists include:
- Professor Rachel Barkow, Charles Seligson Professor of Law, Faculty Director, Zimroth Center at NYU School of Law
- Professor Kellen Funk, Michael E. Patterson Professor of Law, Columbia Law School
- Professor Justine Olderman, Adjunct Professor of Clinical Law, Scholar in Residence, Center on Race, Inequality and the Law at NYU School of Law
- Professor Alison Siegler, Lillian E. Kraemer Clinical Professor in Public Interest Law, Director of the Federal Criminal Justice Clinic, University of Chicago Law School
Panel Two will discuss successful litigation challenges in the aftermath of Salerno, as well as the political and media landscape within which reformers operate, including federal litigation that has constrained the widespread use of pretrial detention on grounds of "danger," state litigation that has successfully challenged local jurisdictions' pretrial detention practices for violating the federal and state constitution, and tips and pitfalls for litigators and advocates to consider in their efforts to limit unnecessary pretrial detention practices.
Panelists include:
- Laura Bennett, Founder and Director, The Center for Just Journalism
- Andrew Grindrod, Assistant Federal Defender, Eastern District of Virginia
- Courtney Oliva, Executive Director, Zimroth Center at NYU School of Law
- Carson White, Supervising Attorney, Civil Rights Corps
You can RSVP for the event here.
Excessive Punishment, Mass Incarceration, and Reimagining the Justice System: A Book Talk
Hosted by The Brennan Center for Justice & The Peter L. Zimroth Center on Criminal Law at NYU School of Law
Monday, September 30th, 2024 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Location: NYU School of Law’s Greenberg Lounge located in Vanderbilt Hall, 40 Washington Square South New York, NY 10012
The United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world. Today, nearly 1.2 million people are confined to federal and state prisons, and approximately 700,000 more are locked up in local jails. Recidivism rates remain stubbornly high, and racial disparities persist; Black Americans are still imprisoned at five times the rate of whites.
The new book Excessive Punishment: How the Justice System Creates Mass Incarceration, features essays from scholars, practitioners, activists, writers who experienced incarceration, and others. The contributors explore the social costs of excessive punishment and how to ensure public safety without perpetuating the harms of mass incarceration.
Join us to hear from several of the book’s contributors as they discuss why the U.S. criminal justice system is so punitive and how to reimagine a system of safety and justice.
Speakers include:
- Jeremy Travis, Senior Fellow, Columbia Justice Lab
- Dr. Monica Bell, Professor of Law, Associate Professor of Sociology, and Counselor to the Dean at Yale Law School
- David A. Singleton, Associate Professor of Law at the University of District of Columbia (UDC) David A. Clarke School of Law
- L.B. Eisen, Senior Director, Justice Program, Brennan Center