Author Archives: F. E. Guerra-Pujol

Duncan v. Kirby was a state court case decided in March of 1958 arising out of the 1957 Little Rock Crisis. The moving party in this case, one Vernon Duncan, a pro-segregation protestor, was arrested in front of Central High … Continue reading →

We have been reviewing the federal statutes that President Dwight D. Eisenhower invoked when he sent federal troops into Little Rock, Arkansas in the fall of 1957. I now want to switch gears, so to speak, to discuss three obscure cases … Continue reading →

Thus far, we have reviewed a number of historic federal laws authorizing the president to use military force inside the U.S. But what if Congress had never enacted these laws, or what if it were to repeal them tomorrow? In … Continue reading →

In our previous post, we surveyed the last major piece of emergency power legislation enacted by Congress prior to the 1957 Little Rock crisis. In all, there are four separate laws authorizing the president to use military force to respond … Continue reading →

We have thus far reviewed four major pieces of legislation authorizing the president to use military force inside the United States: (1, 2) the Militia Acts of 1792 and 1795, (3) the Insurrection Act of 1807, and (4) the Suppression … Continue reading →

We have thus far reviewed the Militia Acts of 1792 and 1795 as well as the Insurrection Act of 1807. The legislative trend should now be crystal clear. Each time Congress has enacted legislation authorizing the president to use military … Continue reading →

Thus far, we have reviewed the Militia Acts of 1792 and 1795. Those laws authorized the president to activate only state or local militias and only in three specific situations: invasions, insurrections, and obstructions of U.S. laws. But Congress would … Continue reading →

When can a president use military force within the United States to respond to an emergency? As we saw in our previous post, Congress addressed this question for the first time when it enacted the first Militia Act of 1792, … Continue reading →

We posed a provocative question in our previous post, where we asked whether President Eisenhower acted lawfully when he sent federal troops into Little Rock in the fall of 1957. Although the president is the “commander in chief” of the … Continue reading →

One of the most dramatic moments in our nation’s history occurred in sleepy Little Rock, Arkansas in the fall of 1957, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower sent 1,000 U.S. Army paratroopers from the 101st Airborne Division to restore order at … Continue reading →