Author: Neil Schoenherr

In the wake of the Aug. 12 confrontations between protesters and counter-protesters in Charlottesville, Virginia, some progressives are calling for legal restrictions on the display of the Nazi flag. These arguments are entirely understandable, but they often misapply existing First Amendment law, and they suppress free speech values that progressives — more than anyone else — should want to defend, says a constitutional law expert at Washington University in St. Louis.

Should physicians be required to disclose their religious beliefs to patients? How should we think about institutional conscience in the health care setting? How should health care providers deal with families with religious objections to withdrawing treatment? These questions and more are tackled in a new book co-edited by an expert on health law at Washington University in St. Louis.

Constrained by post crisis regulatory limits, investment banks surviving as bank holding companies have curtailed their investment banking and other activities. At the same time, private equity firms—among them, Blackstone, KKR, Apollo and Carlyle—have grown massively and ventured into areas previously the domain of investment banks, with important effects.

Some children born with birth defects may be at increased risk for specific types of cancer, according to a new review from the Brown School and the School of Medicine at Washington University in St. Louis.

President Donald Trump declaring the opioid epidemic a national emergency is an important statement and first step toward admitting a problem, said an expert on opioid addiction at Washington University in St. Louis, while warning that without science-informed solutions and plans of action, the epidemic will worsen.

As Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia continue to become more prevalent, it may not be long before there is a push for legalizing physician-assisted death in dementia cases in the United States. American officials must thoroughly consider the moral and social consequences of such an action, says an expert on medical ethics at Washington University in St. Louis.

Grand juries play a major role in the U.S. criminal justice system. Special Counsel Robert Mueller has called upon a federal grand jury to help him investigate Russia’s role in the 2016 election. It is a logical step in an investigation where there is some evidence that needs to be be gathered. The new grand jury widens the scope of the investigation, and it is likely focusing on others associated with the Trump campaign.

Missouri may be the borderline reality, the psychic edge, emblematic of the deeply divided American mind itself. The shooting death of Michael Brown, an unarmed teenager, at the hands of police in 2014 and the violent disorder that resulted from it seem to have both traumatized and energized those of us who live here, radicalized and retrenched us.

The 21st Century Cures Act and key changes made during its drafting remain controversial and show the need for a more informed comment period for future health care legislation, says an expert on health law at Washington University in St. Louis.

A ban on transgender people serving in the United States military is an attempt to make policy with no logical foundation in evidence or expertise on the matter, said an expert on transgender aging at Washington University in St. Louis.