My Country – The Homestead Act In May 1862, President Lincoln signed a law that changed the basic American land policy. The Homestead Act opened up settlement in the western United States. Any American, including freed slaves, could put in for a claim for up to 160 free acres of federal land. Eventually, 1.6 million …
My Country – Juvenile Courts On April 21, 1899, Illinois enacted the first Juvenile Courts system. Other states followed their example. By the mid-twentieth century, we had many judicial clinics for juveniles. The goal was to shift criminal courts from focusing on punishments and encouraging rehabilitation based on the individual juvenile’s needs. After Illinois enacted the law, …
On Tuesday, I voted in the local municipal elections. It took about five minutes because I had done my research before hand. However, at approximately 5:30, I was voter number 70 at my precinct. I have no knowledge how many voters are in my precinct, but I would imagine, that’s about 10%. Of a town …