Busy criminal day in the 1st Circuit

Today was a big day for criminal dispositions in the First Circuit on a range of topics, and all the action is well covered over at Appellate Law & Practice.  The biggest news, covered effectively at both AL&P and How Appealing, is the First Circuit's grant of the government's write of mandamus to prevent US District Judge Nancy Gertner's creative effort to try to get more African-Americans on the jury to decide a federal death penalty case.