Commentaries by Michael J. Kelly

France May Invoke NATO Article 5 In Wake of Paris ISIS Attacks

November 18, 2015 12:15:10 pm

JURIST Contributing Editor Michael Kelly of Creighton University School of Law argues that France has the legal right to invoke Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty following the Paris ISIS attacks...Following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire after the...

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THIS DAY @ LAW

Sewing machine patented

On September 10, 1846, United States patent number 3640 was awarded to Elias Howe for his sewing machine. In 1854, Howe brought legal action against Isaac Singer, because he alleged Singer's machine infringed upon the patent. Howe won the case and was awarded royalties from the Singer sewing machines.
Learn more about Elias Howe from the University of Rochester.

Last French execution by guillotine

On September 10, 1977, Hamida Djandoubi, a Tunisian immigrant convicted of murder, became the last person executed by guillotine in France.

The French death penalty was formally abolished by President Francois Mitterand in 1981. Learn more about the history of the guillotine.