Famous Trials: Trials That Shaped History

I stumbled across a neat little site by Professor Douglas Linder, a professor at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law. 

You can view Professor Linder’s website here: Famous Trials – UMKC School of Law – Prof. Douglas Linder.

Would John Brown have fled in a white SUV?

Linder teaches a class on “Famous Trials” in his law school and has had his class materials “on line” since 1996. I don’t recall ever having any “cool” classes like this at Wake Forest Law School. I think he has done a great job of collecting the “best of” list of trials that shaped our world and our courts. From the simply “sexy”, like Charles Manson and OJ Simpson, to the political and social watershed cases, like the Scopes Monkey Trial and The Trial Of John Brown.

Warning: You may lose time here

Professor Linder has provided great resource material for each trial, including time-lines, historical accounts, transcripts, and appellate decisions. It is easy to “lose yourself” for a few hours on this site, so you have been warned. Linder also has some neat “personal stuff” linked to famous trials, like his personal political views and his feelings about pies (yes, as in fruit). I like a guy that puts it out there and stands by his own gut. Given that he’s been at this since at least 1996 (which makes him a pioneer in using the Internet in law, simply because most lawyers lag about half a decade behind the real technology world), he has good insight in what to do, and what not to do with the Internet. Thanks Prof. L!

-Chris Nichols
www.NicholsTrialLaw.com