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Kansas v. Carr, No. 14-449 (U.S. Supreme Court) (577 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 633) (January 20, 2016) (Justice Scalia)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J January, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Severance

Kansas v. Carr, No. 14-449 (U.S. Supreme Court) (577 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 633) (January 20, 2016) (Justice Scalia) by In this consolidated appeal, the Supreme Court addressed whether the Supreme Court of Kansas had erred when it vacated the death sentences of three different defendants in two separate cases. …

Lockhart v. U.S., No. 14-8358 (U.S. Supreme Court) (577 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 958) (March 1, 2016) (Justice Sotomayor)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J March, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists

Lockhart v. U.S., No. 14-8358 (U.S. Supreme Court) (577 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 958) (March 1, 2016) (Justice Sotomayor) by In 2012, Avondale Lockhart was charged with attempting to receive child pornography, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §2252(a)(2), and possessing child pornography in violation of 18 U.S.C. §2252(a)(4)(B). He pled …

Hurst v. Florida, No. 14-7505 (U.S. Supreme Court) (577 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 616) (January 12, 2016) (Justice Sotomayor)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J January, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists

Hurst v. Florida, No. 14-7505 (U.S. Supreme Court) (577 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 616) (January 12, 2016) (Justice Sotomayor) by The facts and sole issue before the Court in this capital punishment case were simple. A Florida jury convicted Timothy Lee Hurst of murdering his co-worker, Cynthia Harrison, in a …

Williams v. Pennsylvania, No. 15-5040 (U.S. Supreme Court) (578 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 1899) (June 9, 2016) (Justice Kennedy)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J June, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists

Williams v. Pennsylvania, No. 15-5040 (U.S. Supreme Court) (578 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 1899) (June 9, 2016) (Justice Kennedy) by Terrence Williams was prosecuted in the Pennsylvania state courts for the 1984 murder of a 56-year old victim. During the ensuing trial, the prosecutor requested permission from her supervisors in …

Birchfield v. U.S., No. 14-1468 (U.S. Supreme Court) (579 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 2160) (June 23, 2016) (Justice Alito)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J June, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists

Birchfield v. U.S., No. 14-1468 (U.S. Supreme Court) (579 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 2160) (June 23, 2016) (Justice Alito) by To combat the serious harms inflicted by drunk drivers all across the country, all States have laws that prohibit motorists from driving with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) exceeding a …

Salman v. U.S., No. 15-628 (U.S. Supreme Court) (580 U.S. ___; 137 S.Ct. 420) (December 6, 2016) (Justice Alito)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J December, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Personal Benefit

Salman v. U.S., No. 15-628 (U.S. Supreme Court) (580 U.S. ___; 137 S.Ct. 420) (December 6, 2016) (Justice Alito) by In this much-anticipated decision, the Supreme Court issued a unanimous, but narrow, ruling regarding criminal tipper/tippee liability for insider trading, a topic which the Supreme Court had not significantly addressed …

McDonnell v. U.S., No. 15-474 (U.S. Supreme Court) (579 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 2355) (June 27, 2016) (Justice (John G.) Roberts)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J June, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Official Acts

McDonnell v. U.S., No. 15-474 (U.S. Supreme Court) (579 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 2355) (June 27, 2016) (Justice (John G.) Roberts) by In this decision, the Supreme Court delivered a virtual knock-out blow to the Federal Government’s ability to prosecute politicians for bribery. Here a unanimous Court decided to vacate …

Bruce v. Samuels, No. 14-844 (U.S. Supreme Court) (577 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 627) (January 12, 2016) (Justice Ginsburg)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J January, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists

Bruce v. Samuels, No. 14-844 (U.S. Supreme Court) (577 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 627) (January 12, 2016) (Justice Ginsburg) by This case involves a provision of the Prison Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (“PLRA”) which Congress enacted in 1996 to place strict limits on prisoner litigation in the Federal Courts. …

Luis v. U.S., No. 14-419 (U.S. Supreme Court) (578 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 1083) (March 30, 2016) (Justice Breyer)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J March, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists

Luis v. U.S., No. 14-419 (U.S. Supreme Court) (578 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 1083) (March 30, 2016) (Justice Breyer) by “Asset forfeiture laws entrust to government with inherently dangerous powers, and those laws which authorize pre-conviction seizures are particularly fearsome. This case involves the Government’s misuse of a federal civil …

Ackerman, No. 14-3265 (10th Cir.) (831 F.3d 1292) (August 5, 2016) (Judge Neil M. Gorsuch)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J December, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, CyberTipline

Ackerman, No. 14-3265 (10th Cir.) (831 F.3d 1292) (August 5, 2016) (Judge Neil M. Gorsuch) by Here the Court held that the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) qualified as a "government entity" to which the Fourth Amendment applied, based on its statutory duty to investigate and inspect …

Mathis v. U.S., No. 15-6092 (U.S. Supreme Court) (579 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 2243) (June 23, 2016) (Justice Kagan)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J June, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists

Mathis v. U.S., No. 15-6092 (U.S. Supreme Court) (579 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 2243) (June 23, 2016) (Justice Kagan) by This decision should be read only by the very brave, the very bored, or those who are forced to by their occupations to divine the meaning and significance of this …

Bosse v. Oklahoma, No. 15-9173 (U.S. Supreme Court) (580 U.S. ___; 137 S.Ct. 1) (October 11, 2016) (Per Curiam)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J October, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Victim Impact Statement/Testimony

Bosse v. Oklahoma, No. 15-9173 (U.S. Supreme Court) (580 U.S. ___; 137 S.Ct. 1) (October 11, 2016) (Per Curiam) by The somewhat amusing contretemps in this case arose out of the appeal by Shaun Bosse of the death penalty sentence that was imposed after he was convicted on three counts …

Bravo-Fernandez v. U.S., No. 15-537 (U.S. Supreme Court) (580 U.S. ___; 137 S.Ct. 352) (November 29, 2016) (Justice Ginsburg)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J December, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists

Bravo-Fernandez v. U.S., No. 15-537 (U.S. Supreme Court) (580 U.S. ___; 137 S.Ct. 352) (November 29, 2016) (Justice Ginsburg) by In this case, a unanimous Supreme Court held that “the issue-preclusion component of the Double Jeopardy Clause does not bar the Government from retrying defendants, like petitioners, after a jury …

Taylor v. U.S., No. 14-6166 (U.S. Supreme Court) (579 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 2074) (June 20, 2016) (Justice Alito)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J June, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Drug Dealers

Taylor v. U.S., No. 14-6166 (U.S. Supreme Court) (579 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 2074) (June 20, 2016) (Justice Alito) by Believe it or not, Justice Thomas summarized all you need to know about this decision in the opening paragraph of his memorable dissent. He wrote: “The Hobbs Act makes it …

Utah v. Strieff, No. 14-1373 (U.S. Supreme Court) (579 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 2056) (June 20, 2016) (Justice Thomas)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J June, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Exceptions

Utah v. Strieff, No. 14-1373 (U.S. Supreme Court) (579 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 2056) (June 20, 2016) (Justice Thomas) by This decision will probably most be remembered for two reasons. First and foremost, it sparked a remarkable and explosive dissent from Justice Sotomayor in which she warned: “The Court today …

El-Shaddai v. Zamora, No. 13-56104 (9th Cir.) (833 F.3d 1036) (August 12, 2016) (Judge Milan D. Jr. Smith)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J December, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Standards for Determining

El-Shaddai v. Zamora, No. 13-56104 (9th Cir.) (833 F.3d 1036) (August 12, 2016) (Judge Milan D. Jr. Smith) by This is a case that reminds us of the prophetic words of Justice Brennan who once described the cruel and forgotten world of prisons with these words: “Prisoners are persons whom …

Shaw v. U.S., No. 15-5991 (U.S. Supreme Court) (580 U.S. ___; 137 S.Ct. 462) (December 12, 2016) (Justice Breyer)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J December, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Intent to Defraud

Shaw v. U.S., No. 15-5991 (U.S. Supreme Court) (580 U.S. ___; 137 S.Ct. 462) (December 12, 2016) (Justice Breyer) by Here a unanimous Court rejected the petitioner’s arguments that 18 U.S.C. § 1344, which covers schemes to deprive a bank of money in a customer’s deposit account, did not apply …

Puerto Rico v. Sanchez Valle, No. 15-108 (U.S. Supreme Court) (578 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 1863) (June 9, 2016) (Justice Kagan)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J June, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists

Puerto Rico v. Sanchez Valle, No. 15-108 (U.S. Supreme Court) (578 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 1863) (June 9, 2016) (Justice Kagan) by In one sense, the issue before the Court in this case was a purely legal issue about the Double Jeopardy Clause of the Fifth Amendment which prohibits more …

Musacchio v. U.S., No. 14-1095 (U.S. Supreme Court) (577 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 709) (January 25, 2016) (Justice Thomas)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J February, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Non-Jurisdictional Defense

Musacchio v. U.S., No. 14-1095 (U.S. Supreme Court) (577 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 709) (January 25, 2016) (Justice Thomas) by In this case, the Supreme Court addressed two separate questions arising from the parties’ failure to raise timely challenges. The Government failed to object to a jury instruction that erroneously …

Wearry v. Cain, No. 14-10008 (U.S. Supreme Court) (577 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 1002) (March 7, 2016) (Per Curiam)

Article • December 26, 2016 • from P&J March, 2016

Filed under: Punch And Jurists

Wearry v. Cain, No. 14-10008 (U.S. Supreme Court) (577 U.S. ___; 136 S.Ct. 1002) (March 7, 2016) (Per Curiam) by In this case, the U.S. Supreme Court, by a vote of 6-2, summarily reversed a Louisiana state court's denial of habeas corpus relief to Michael Wearry, an inmate on that …