The Death Penalty and Religion: On Sentencing Law and Policy, Doug Berman posts a link to Susan Jacobson's Orlando Sentinel report on Jewish groups asking Florida Governor Charlie Crist to spare the life of convicted murderer Martin Grossman. According to the article, Grossman was convicted of shooting Margaret Park, 26, in the head after
she found him and a friend at a nature reserve, where they went to fire
a gun. He asked her not to report them, and when she refused, he shot her with her own gun. Apparently, 200 organizations have asked Crist to grant a 60-day stay of execution to allow a clemency application to be considered. Berman suggests that it is "principally the religion of the offender (and
perhaps also the victim), and not the particulars of the offense, that
is generating much of the special attention in this case."
More Briefing in Kiyemba: Monday, our Blog Scan reported that the Department of Justice had argued in its merits brief for Kiyemba, et. al. v. Obama, et al. that "legal constraints prevent the courts from ordering that petitioners be brought to and released in the United States." Today, Tony Mauro reports on Blog of Legal Times that the Supreme Court has asked for briefing on whether the case involving Uighurs detained at Guantanamo Bay should be dismissed. He writes that now that the Obama administration has successfully found homes outside the United States for the Uighurs, Solicitor General Elena Kagan has argued that these developments "eliminate the factual premise" that "petitioners have no possibility of leaving Guantanamo Bay except by being released in the United States." The Supreme Court has asked both parties for eight-page letter briefs due Feb. 19. SCOTUSblog's Erin Miller reports that the briefs must address "What should be the effect, if any, of the developments discussed in the letters submitted by the parties on February 3 and 5 on the Court's grant of certiorari in this case?"
Notable Cert. Petition: At SCOTUSblog, Erin Miller posts on a notable petition for certiorari from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The case, Cate v. Ali, asks whether the Ninth Circuit failed to comply with 28 U.S.C. ยง 2254's deferential standard of review required when it disregarded the trial court's factual finding that the prosecutor's reasons for exercising peremptory challenges were genuine and conducted its own de novo comparative juror analysis. The opinion, written by Judge Marsha Berzon, agreed with the district court that the record and a comparative juror analysis undermined the prosecutor's claim that he had struck a juror because he was concerned the juror would not be objective. The Ninth Circuit also rejected the district court's finding that the prosecutor had struck the juror because he was legitimately troubled by her involvement in the criminal justice system. California's petition for certiorari is available here.
More Reports on McDonald v. City of Chicago: Yesterday, Jonathan Adler, posted "Gun Nuts vs. Constitution Nuts" on Volokh Conspiracy and linked to Brian Doherty's Reason.com report on the Supreme Court's grant of oral argument time to the NRA in McDonald. Doherty's piece nicely summarizes the Court's decision to grant ten minutes of the Plaintiff's oral argument time to the NRA, and links to several scholarly blog posts weighing in on whether the Court is more likely to accept the plaintiff's argument --that the 14th Amendment's Privileges or Immunities Clause was more clearly intended to incorporate the 2nd Amendment to apply to the states-- or the NRA's argument --that the Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment is the correct way to incorporate the 2nd Amendment.
Sheriff Joe Arpaio Plans to Get Tough on Illegal Immigrants: Yesterday, Ashby Jones posted on Wall Street Journal's Law Blog that Phoenix Sheriff Joe Arpaio has announced he would train all of his 881 deputies to enforce federal immigration law on the streets. This contravenes an order from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement that stripped the Sheriff of his ability to use 100 of his deputies to enforce federal immigration in his jurisdiction.
More Briefing in Kiyemba: Monday, our Blog Scan reported that the Department of Justice had argued in its merits brief for Kiyemba, et. al. v. Obama, et al. that "legal constraints prevent the courts from ordering that petitioners be brought to and released in the United States." Today, Tony Mauro reports on Blog of Legal Times that the Supreme Court has asked for briefing on whether the case involving Uighurs detained at Guantanamo Bay should be dismissed. He writes that now that the Obama administration has successfully found homes outside the United States for the Uighurs, Solicitor General Elena Kagan has argued that these developments "eliminate the factual premise" that "petitioners have no possibility of leaving Guantanamo Bay except by being released in the United States." The Supreme Court has asked both parties for eight-page letter briefs due Feb. 19. SCOTUSblog's Erin Miller reports that the briefs must address "What should be the effect, if any, of the developments discussed in the letters submitted by the parties on February 3 and 5 on the Court's grant of certiorari in this case?"
Notable Cert. Petition: At SCOTUSblog, Erin Miller posts on a notable petition for certiorari from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The case, Cate v. Ali, asks whether the Ninth Circuit failed to comply with 28 U.S.C. ยง 2254's deferential standard of review required when it disregarded the trial court's factual finding that the prosecutor's reasons for exercising peremptory challenges were genuine and conducted its own de novo comparative juror analysis. The opinion, written by Judge Marsha Berzon, agreed with the district court that the record and a comparative juror analysis undermined the prosecutor's claim that he had struck a juror because he was concerned the juror would not be objective. The Ninth Circuit also rejected the district court's finding that the prosecutor had struck the juror because he was legitimately troubled by her involvement in the criminal justice system. California's petition for certiorari is available here.
More Reports on McDonald v. City of Chicago: Yesterday, Jonathan Adler, posted "Gun Nuts vs. Constitution Nuts" on Volokh Conspiracy and linked to Brian Doherty's Reason.com report on the Supreme Court's grant of oral argument time to the NRA in McDonald. Doherty's piece nicely summarizes the Court's decision to grant ten minutes of the Plaintiff's oral argument time to the NRA, and links to several scholarly blog posts weighing in on whether the Court is more likely to accept the plaintiff's argument --that the 14th Amendment's Privileges or Immunities Clause was more clearly intended to incorporate the 2nd Amendment to apply to the states-- or the NRA's argument --that the Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment is the correct way to incorporate the 2nd Amendment.
Sheriff Joe Arpaio Plans to Get Tough on Illegal Immigrants: Yesterday, Ashby Jones posted on Wall Street Journal's Law Blog that Phoenix Sheriff Joe Arpaio has announced he would train all of his 881 deputies to enforce federal immigration law on the streets. This contravenes an order from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement that stripped the Sheriff of his ability to use 100 of his deputies to enforce federal immigration in his jurisdiction.
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