Over a decade after it ruled that the Second Amendment protects the right to have a handgun in the home for self-defense, the Supreme Court agreed on Monday to decide whether the Constitution also protects the right to carry a gun outside the home. The justices’ announcement that they will take up a challenge to… Read More
Court upholds life-without-parole sentence for Mississippi man convicted as juvenile
This post was updated on Thursday, April 22, at 7:40 p.m. The Supreme Court on Thursday declined to impose new restrictions on the ability of states to sentence juveniles to life without parole, rejecting a challenge from a Mississippi man, Brett Jones, who was convicted of the 2004 stabbing death of his grandfather, a crime… Read More
Justices add confrontation-clause case to next term’s docket
The Sixth Amendment gives a defendant in a criminal prosecution the right “to be confronted with the witnesses against him.” On Monday, the Supreme Court agreed to take up the case of Darrell Hemphill, who was convicted for the 2006 shooting death of a child, who was a passenger in a car that drove by… Read More
Biden to create bipartisan commission on Supreme Court reform
President Joe Biden will issue an executive order to create a commission to study potential reforms to the Supreme Court, the White House announced on Friday. The announcement fulfilled a campaign promise by the president, who last fall proposed the idea of a commission after he declined to endorse efforts by liberals to expand the… Read More
In Harvard speech, Breyer speaks out against “court packing”
Emphasizing that the Supreme Court’s authority hinges on the public’s trust in the court, Justice Stephen Breyer used a speech on Tuesday at Harvard Law School to argue against efforts to expand the number of seats on the Supreme Court. The 82-year-old Breyer contended that public trust in the court rests in the public’s perception… Read More
Court to take up case on “harmless error” standard in habeas proceedings
The Supreme Court on Monday announced that it would add the case of a Michigan inmate convicted of premeditated murder to its docket for next term. The justices granted Brown v. Davenport, a petition filed by the state of Michigan on the standard for whether a constitutional error is “harmless” when a defendant is seeking… Read More
Justices throw out Trump Twitter case
Just under three months after former President Donald Trump was permanently banned from Twitter, the Supreme Court put an end to a legal battle over Trump’s personal Twitter account, throwing out a lower-court ruling against the former president and instructing that court to dismiss the case on the ground that it is moot – that… Read More
Court upholds FCC’s changes to media ownership rules
Update (April 1, 1:23 p.m.): This article has been updated with expanded analysis. The Supreme Court unanimously agreed on Thursday that the Federal Communications Commission could loosen restrictions on ownership of radio stations, television stations and newspapers. The justices rejected a challenge by public-interest and consumer-advocacy groups, which argued that the FCC had not adequately… Read More
Justices employ full-court press in dispute over college athlete compensation
With just a few days until college basketball begins its “Final Four” to crown the men’s and women’s champion, the attention at the Supreme Court on Wednesday turned to college sports. The spotlight was often harsh, with several justices openly criticizing the state of elite college sports – and, by extension, efforts by the National… Read More
Justices appear inclined to curb standing in credit-reporting class action
The Supreme Court on Tuesday seemed to favor a middle-ground approach in a dispute over the rules that limit when consumers can bring class-action lawsuits against corporations. Some justices suggested that an 8,000-member class action against TransUnion, one of the country’s three major credit-reporting companies, should be significantly narrowed — but not tossed out entirely…. Read More