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16 Sep 2011 11:12

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U.S.: What death row inmate Duane Edward Buck said after learning of his stay

  • He said, ‘God is worthy to be praised. God’s mercy triumphs over judgment, and I feel good.’
  • Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesman Jason Clark • Discussing the reaction by Duane Edward Buck, the death row inmate whose sentence was stayed by the Supreme Court last night. He already had his last meal and was praying at the time. While the reprieve is only temporary pending the Supreme Court’s evaluation of the claims his equal protection rights have been violated, it nonetheless ensured that his last meal — a dish of fried chicken, fried fish, french fries, salad, jalapeno peppers and apples — might not be so final. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Sep 2011 00:58

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Biz: After dodging a Supreme Court bullet, Walmart focuses on women

  • june In what would’ve been the largest class-action suit ever, over a million female employees tried to sue Walmart for discrimination. The Supreme Court, however, said it stretched the definition of a class-action suit way too far, blocking the suit from moving forward.
  • september Looking to improve its image after avoiding what could’ve been a hugely damaging lawsuit, the company says it plans to double its investment in businesses run by women, and show in other ways that they’ve changed their ways. Have they? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

20 Jun 2011 10:33

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Biz, U.S.: Supreme Court: Walmart’s massive sex bias lawsuit won’t go forward

  • 9-0 Walmart won’t face a massive class-action lawsuit source
  • » So, what’s next? Well, the 1.3 million women who claimed a role in the discrimination lawsuit can pursue their claims individually, but that probably won’t happen. The stakes are also lower as the scope has been lowered. Walmart also faces less pressure to settle such cases. The decision reverses a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals case that favored the employees in the class-action lawsuit, and would’ve been a huge deal had it been decided the other way.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

09 Jun 2011 17:32

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U.S.: Iowa’s 18-week abortion ban passes state house

  • The most restrictive ban in the country? Well, only if it passes the Iowa Senate, which isn’t certain as it’s firmly in Democratic control. Regardless of the success of this bill, though, we’ve seen a pronounced and aggressive campaign across a number of states to restrict abortion rights lately. Five states other than Iowa have already banned abortion after 20 weeks — a tactic that, in its likely envisioned endgame, could lead to a Supreme Court challenge. That’s the pro-choice movement’s critical weakness in this; challenging any of these bans could lead to a SCOTUS ruling, the outcome of which would be unclear. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

26 May 2011 11:18

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U.S.: Supreme Court sides with Arizona on immigrant worker law

  • 5-3 states can take away business licenses, the SCOTUS says source
  • » Obama and the Chamber of Commerce, together at last: In a decision in a case that put two longtime adversaries on the same side of a losing battle, the Supreme Court backed an Arizona immigration law that encourages employers to verify their workers — or they could lose their business license if they knowingly hire undocumented immigrants. We don’t know if we agree with the Supreme Court’s decision on this case — especially because it could lead to a number of copycat laws as a result of this. (By the way, in case you were wondering: Justice Elena Kagan didn’t vote in the case, as it came up while she was still Solicitor General.)
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

24 May 2011 10:46

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U.S.: The logistics of Supreme Court’s California prison overcrowding case

  • The gates of California prisons aren’t going to be opened, and 30,000 prisoners aren’t going to walk out tomorrow. The court ordered a very slow, conscientious process that gives state prison and law enforcement officials compete discretion on how to accomplish it.
  • Prison Law Office attorney Don Spector • Pointing out that the process of releasing 30,000 prisoners in California might be a bit … complicated. There are some ideas, though, including having short-term non-violent offenders serve at the county level rather than the state level, which might ease the prison system’s burden. Gov. Jerry Brown signed that plan in April. Unfortunately, that plan hasn’t received funding from the state due to disagreements with the legislature on the issue. Other options: Finding a different way to fund the state-to-county thing, coming up with a new plan — or shipping off prisoners to other states. The state has shipped around 10,000 California to nearby states like Arizona, Oklahoma or Mississippi (wait, that’s not nearby!), and they might increase the number, based on the Supreme Court’s decision. Either way, this is a logistics nightmare. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

23 May 2011 15:42

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U.S.: SCOTUS rules CA prisons unconstitutionally overcrowded

  • “Incompatible with the concept of human dignity”: So said Justice Anthony Kennedy, writing for the 5-4 Supreme Court majority that ruled California’s state prison system is so overcrowded that they say it violates constitutional rights (the level of health services available to inmates who sorely need them has been a relevant issue of late). As such, the ruling may force the state to release nearly 40,000 prisoners. “The release of prisoners in large numbers … is a matter of undoubted, grave concern, yet so too is the continuing injury and harm resulting from these serious constitutional violations,” said Kennedy. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

07 Mar 2011 11:22

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U.S.: Supreme Court narrowly favors death row inmate’s DNA fight

  • 6-3 the SCOTUS decision to favor a Texas death-row inmate source
  • » More rights for death row inmates? Inmate Hank Skinner, based on this decision, will be able to file a civil rights lawsuit to get DNA material. It’s a narrowly-scoped decision, however, and one that only allows Skinner to claim that the state didn’t follow its own policies on acquiring DNA evidence. What does that mean, in layman’s terms? It means that inmates don’t have a broad constitutional right to acquire DNA material in court – a decision which would have much larger ramifications and give inmates a quite-large bargaining point in criminal cases (including the ability for their defense to independently test such DNA material). Still, though, it buys Skinner time.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

02 Mar 2011 10:31

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U.S.: Free speech wins: Supreme Court favors Westboro in funeral case

  • 8-1 the vote in favor of Westboro’s free speech rights source
  • » Sad, not surprising, but understandable: The fact of the matter is, while we would’ve loved to see Westboro blocked from picketing funerals as a political message, the First Amendment is pretty set in stone and, as much as we dislike the ramifications of this decision, it certainly was the right one. (By the way, the lone dissenter? Samuel Alito.)
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

22 Feb 2011 14:24

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Politics: Supreme Court Justice’s impressive streak of questionlessness

  • 5 years since Clarence Thomas’ last question of an arguing attorney source
  • » The question is, why? Thomas has offered some indication, saying that he feels the process is overdone and that the other justices ask any questions he might have, but it seems improbable at best that he legitimately hasn’t had a question worth asking in five years. It’s true, though, that this may have no real impact on how the Court conducts business, but it does beg the question: should inquisitiveness be held up as more of a virtue than it is in this day and age? Or do you prefer the strong, silent type?
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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