Category: Supreme Court Decisions

In Murdock v Pennsylvania, 319 U.S. 105 (1943), the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a municipal ordinance that taxed the door-to-door sale of religious merchandise. According to the divided Court, such a tax violated the First Amendment’s Free Exer...

In Stokeling v United States, 586 U.S. ____ (2019), the U.S. Supreme Court held by a vote of 5-4 that the Armed Career Criminal Act’s (ACCA) elements clause encompasses a robbery offense that, like Florida’s law, requires the criminal to overcom...

In United States v Stitt, decided on December 10, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the term “burglary,” as used in the federal Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA), includes the burglary of any “structure or vehicle that has been adapted or ...

In its first published decision of the term, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA) applies to state and local governments, regardless of the size. The Court’s decision in Mount Lemmon Fire District...

While it is still unclear whether the U.S. Supreme Court will be comprised of eight members or nine, the justices will begin holding oral arguments for the October 2018 Term in a few short weeks. Starting on October 1st, the Court will hear a number ...

In Rosales-Mireles v United States, 585 U. S. ____ (2018), the U.S. Supreme Court considered how to remedy a clear error by the district court in calculating a defendant’s United States Sentencing Guidelines range. By a vote of 7-2, the Court held ...

In Jennings v Rodriquez, 583 U. S. ____ (2018), a divided U.S. Supreme Court held that detained immigrants do not have the right to periodic bond hearings during the course of their detention. It further ruled that Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals misa...

The Supreme Court addressed the Constitution’s Contracts Clause for the first time in 25 years in Sveen v Melin, 584 U. S. ____ (2018). By a vote of 8-1, the Court held that the retroactive application of Minnesota’s revocation-on-divorce statute...

In Lozman v City of Riviera Beach, 585 U. S. ____ (2018), Fane Lozman, an outspoken critic of the Riviera Beach City Council, scored a second victory before the U.S. Supreme Court. By a vote of 8-1, the Court held that the existence of probable cause...