The Notorious Ninth gets another unanimous summary reversal today in Ryburn v. Huff. The case involves police entry into a home under circumstances they believed to be exigent and qualified immunity in a subsequent civil suit.
(My summaries of this morning's cases are necessarily brief. I may expand on them later today. Further discussion in the comments is welcome, as always.)
(My summaries of this morning's cases are necessarily brief. I may expand on them later today. Further discussion in the comments is welcome, as always.)
I would have preferred that this one be set for oral argument. While I don't necessarily disagree with the Supreme Court's decision, I am troubled by some of the implications of the Court's opinion. Citizens have a right to assert their rights, and courts have to be careful to ensure that the assertion of rights is not carte blanche for police officers. We don't live in a country where police can kick down your doors on the basis of rumor, and we do have a Second Amendment in this country.
Like I said, I don't necessarily disagree with the Court, and the "santization" described by Judge Rawlinson is a problem. However, there are serious issues lurking in this case, and summary reversal, IMHO, was not the right way to go.