Wiley Rutledge (1894–1949) served as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1943 to 1949. The ninth and final justice appointed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, he is known for his impassioned defenses of civil liberties. He practiced law in Colorado before becoming a law school professor and dean. Rutledge supported New Deal policies and other proposals by Roosevelt, who appointed him to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals in 1939 and to the Supreme Court in 1943. Rutledge favored broad interpretations of the First Amendment, and he argued that the Bill of Rights applied in its totality to the states. In other cases, Rutledge fervently supported broad due process rights in criminal cases, and he opposed discrimination against women and racial minorities. However, he joined the majority in two cases – Hirabayashi v. United States (1943) and Korematsu v. United States (1944) – that upheld the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiley_Rutledge

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1921:

Russian Civil War: Bolshevik forces suppressed a rebellion of sailors and civilians in Kronstadt. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kronstadt_rebellion

1965:

Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov ventured outside the Soviet spacecraft Voskhod 2, becoming the first person to walk in space. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexei_Leonov

1985:

The first episode of the soap opera Neighbours was broadcast on the Seven Network, later becoming the longest-running drama in Australian television history. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neighbours

1990:

Unidentified thieves stole thirteen works of art collectively valued at $500 million from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, Massachusetts. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isabella_Stewart_Gardner_Museum_theft

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

knock about: 1. (transitive) To hit (someone or something) all over repeatedly; hence, to behave violently towards or mistreat (someone or something). 2. (intransitive) 3. To move or roam around aimlessly. 4. (by extension) To live an unconventional life. 5. To be present at or inhabit a certain place. 6. (by extension) To engage in a relaxing activity in a place; to hang around in. 7. (by extension) Often followed by with: to spend time companionably; to hang around. 8. (by extension, usually in present participial form) To be mislaid in a place. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/knock_about

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Today, 17th of March 2023, the International Criminal Court has issued two warrants of arrest in the Ukraine situation for Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation and for Maria Lvova-Belova, Commissioner of the Russian President's [office] for children’s rights, for the alleged war crimes of deportation of children from Ukrainian occupied territories into the Russian Federation. It is forbidden by international law for occupying powers to transfer civilians from the territory they live in to other territories. Children enjoy special protection under the Geneva Convention. The contents of the warrants are secret in order to protect victims. The ICC attaches great importance to the protection of victims especially children. Nevertheless, the judges of the chamber dealing with this case decided to make the existence of the warrants public in the interest of justice and to prevent the commission of future crimes. This is an important moment in the process of justice before the ICC, the judges have reviewed the information and evidence submitted by the prosecutor, and determined that there are credible allegations against these persons for the alleged crimes.   --International Criminal Court https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/International_Criminal_Court