Yes, Trump Is (Still) Engaged in an Attempted Coup; and Yes, It Might Lead to a Constitutional Crisis and a Breaking Point

NEIL H. BUCHANAN

UF Levin College of Law professor and economist Neil H. Buchanan explains why Donald Trump’s actions reflect an attempted coup and might still lead to a constitutional crisis. In this column, Buchanan first explains what a coup is and describes the ways that Trump has failed in his attempts thus far. Buchanan warns about how all this could still end in a constitutional crisis that Trump creates and exploits to stay in power.

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State v. Casper

Docket: 19-0849

Opinion Date: November 20, 2020

Judge: Edward M. Mansfield

Areas of Law: Civil Rights, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's conviction and sentence for operating while intoxicated first offense, holding that a peace officer does not violate a duty under Iowa Code 321J.11(2) by agreeing to a detainee's request for a retest on the machine that has already tested the detainee's blood alcohol level without also informing the detainee of the statutory right to an independent test at the detainee's expense. Specifically, the Supreme Court held (1) an officer must inform the detainee of the right to an independent test only in circumstances when the detainee has reasonably asked about that right or when a failure to disclose that right could be misleading; and (2) because neither of those circumstances were present in this case, the district court did not err in denying Defendant's motion to suppress.

State v. Roby

Docket: 19-0551

Opinion Date: November 20, 2020

Judge: Thomas D. Waterman

Areas of Law: Civil Rights, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's convictions and sentences for eluding while speeding and several unrelated offenses, holding that trial counsel was not ineffective for failing to challenge Defendant's eluding charge on double jeopardy grounds based on his guilty plea to speeding in the same incident. At age seventeen, Defendant pled guilty to a speeding citation without pleading guilty to the accompanying charge of eluding. When Defendant turned eighteen, the State charged him by trial information with eluding while speeding. Defendant pled guilty to the eluding charge. The court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) speeding is a lesser included offense that at trial would merge into a conviction for eluding while speeding, but under the circumstances of this case, Defendant cannot use double jeopardy principles as a sword to defeat his conviction for eluding; and (2) therefore, Defendant's ineffective assistance of counsel claims fail.