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David D. Cole

デイビッド・D・コール

Deibiddo D. Kōru

Profile

Gender
Male
Nationality
United States
Languages
English

Career

Occupations
Law professor, Lawyer, Civil liberties advocate, Author
Active Years
1984-
Affiliations
Georgetown University Law Center (faculty), American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Center for Constitutional Rights, University College London (visiting)

Education

Yale University (Yale College)
Yale College
Degree: BA (magna cum laude)
Period: 1976–1980
Year of Graduation: 1980
Country: United States
Yale Law School
Law School
Degree: J.D.
Period: 1981–1984
Year of Graduation: 1984
Country: United States
Earned Juris Doctor (J.D.)

Awards

Palmer Civil Liberties Prize
Result: 受賞
American Book Award
2004
Result: 受賞
Boston Book Review Best Non-Fiction Book
1999
Organization: Boston Book Review
Result: 受賞
William J. Brennan Award
2004
Organization: Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression
Result: 受賞
ACLU Norman Dorsen Presidential Prize
2013
Organization: ACLU
Result: 受賞（初回受賞者）

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

No Equal Justice: Race and Class in the American Criminal Justice System

2000 Law / Non-fiction

A study analyzing racial and class disparities within the American criminal justice system.

Criminal justiceRaceClass disparities

Terrorism and the Constitution: Sacrificing Civil Liberties in the Name of National Security

2002 Law / Non-fiction

Co-authored work discussing how civil liberties are sacrificed in the name of national security and the constitutional issues involved.

National securityCivil libertiesConstitutional law

Enemy Aliens: Double Standards and Constitutional Freedoms in the War on Terrorism

2003 Law / Non-fiction

Critically examines double standards and constraints on constitutional freedoms enacted in the name of the war on terror.

Counter-terrorismDisparate treatmentCivil liberties

The Torture Memos: Rationalizing the Unthinkable

2009 Law / Non-fiction 304 pages

Analyzes legal memos and policy decisions related to torture, examining the logic used to justify them.

TortureLaw and ethicsState responsibility

Engines of Liberty: The Power of Citizen Activists to Make Constitutional Law

2016 Law / Non-fiction

Discusses how citizen activists have shaped constitutional interpretation and driven legal change.

Citizen activismConstitutional developmentSocial movements

Bibliography

  • No Equal Justice: Race and Class in the American Criminal Justice System
  • Terrorism and the Constitution: Sacrificing Civil Liberties in the Name of National Security (co-authored)
  • Enemy Aliens: Double Standards and Constitutional Freedoms in the War on Terrorism
  • The Torture Memos: Rationalizing the Unthinkable
  • Engines of Liberty: The Power of Citizen Activists to Make Constitutional Law

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Legal and analytical styleScholarly yet accessible to general readers
Recurring Motifs
Tension between civil liberties and national securityRole of courts and citizen activism

Legacy

Widely recognized scholar-practitioner in constitutional law and civil liberties, influencing public policy through litigation, scholarship, and media commentary.

Academic Societies

  • American Bar Association (related committees)
  • The Constitution Project (Liberty & Security Committee)

In Popular Culture

  • Interviewed in the BBC documentary 'The Power of Nightmares'

Quotes

  • "one of the nation's most accomplished advocates for freedom of expression and an outstanding scholar of the First Amendment"
    Source: Thomas Jefferson Center (William J. Brennan Award citation) (2004)

Trivia

  • Former Georgetown Law professor and served as ACLU National Legal Director (until 2024).
  • Married to Nina Pillard (D.C. Circuit judge); two children (Sarah and Aidan).