Greetings, Court fans!
So, it is indeed true. Justice O’Connor has formally announced her retirement. According to the AP news reports, the following is from her letter to the President:
“This is to inform you of my decision to retire from my position as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, effective upon the nomination and confirmation of my successor. It…
Greetings, Court fans, and welcome back from the long recess!
The Court returned yesterday, and so far we have three opinions and a few cert grants. Today, the Court issued its decision in Johnson v. California (03-636), in which a 5-3 majority (no Chief) held that the California prison system’s race-based initial cell assignment policy must satisfy strict scrutiny. For the first 60 days of …
Read More Johnson v. California (03-636), Smith v. Massachusetts (03-8661) and Stewart v. Dutra Construction Co. (03-814)
Greetings Court fans!
Just when we were getting bogged down in this mid-March snowstorm, Justice Scalia comes to the rescue with a lively opinion denying Sierra Club’s motion for recusal. This is clearly an issue that has bugged Scalia; I hope he feels better getting this off his chest.
As you probably know, Sierra Club asked Scalia to recuse himself from the case reviewing actions…
Read More Justice Scalia denies Sierra Club’s motion for recusal.
Greetings, Court Fans!
Today, the Court released its opinion in one of the more controversial cases of the Term, Gonzalez v. Oregon (04-623), the Oregon assisted suicide case. In a 6-3 decision, the Court, led by Justice Kennedy, found that the Attorney General lacks authority under the Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”) to prohibit doctors from prescribing regulated drugs for use in physician-assisted suicides in accordance…
Read More Gonzalez v. Oregon (04-623), Wachovia Bank, N.A. v. Schmidt (04-1186) and order list
…
Read More Yarborough v. Alvarado (02-1684) and Kansas v. Colorado (105, Orig.)
Greetings Court fans!
Only one grant on Friday’s order list: Benitez v. Wallis (03-7434). In this case, the Court will consider the legality of Benitez’s continued detention by the INS in light of the Court’s recent decision in Zadvydas v. Davis (2001). Benitez is a Mariel boatlift Cuban, and he argues that the presumptive 6-month limit on detention identified in Zadvydas applies to him even…
