Interview: Brennan Center's Elizabeth Goitein on Supreme Court Fight Against Government Surveillance
JURIST Deputy Features Editor Anne Bloomberg recently spoke with Elizabeth Goitein, director of the Brennan Center for Justice’s Liberty and National Security Program, about the case FBI v. Fazaga, for which the Supreme Court held oral arguments last week. The following has been edited and condensed for clarity. Anne Bloomberg (JURIST): Could you briefly explain [...]
US Supreme Court reverses stay on Oklahoma executions using controversial drug cocktail
The US Supreme Court, on Thursday in a 5-3 decision, voted to reinstate the execution of John Marion Grant, allowing Oklahoma to commit its first execution in six years. A shortage of the traditionally accepted lethal injection drug cocktail has led states to experiment with new combinations. In 2014 and 2015, the state of Oklahoma [...]
Supreme Court issues unsigned orders in qualified immunity cases
The US Supreme Court issued two unsigned orders Monday regarding qualified immunity for police officers. The first of the unsigned orders involves Rivas-Villegas v. Cortesluna, a case based on an incident in 2016. Daniel Rivas-Villegas is a police officer who responded to a 911 call from a 12-year-old girl reporting that she, her sibling, and [...]
US State Department to add gender marker for nonbinary and intersex persons
The State Department on Wednesday issued a statement that it is working to add a gender marker for nonbinary, intersex and gender non-conforming individuals to U.S. passports. The statement by Secretary Antony Blinken affirmed the department’s commitment “to promoting the freedom, dignity, and equality of all people.” Starting immediately, passport applicants will be able to [...]
The US Supreme Court on Tuesday heard oral arguments in HollyFrontier Cheyenne Refining, LLC v Renewable Fuels Association, a case regarding exemptions for small refineries from the Renewable Fuel Standards Program, and United States v Palomar-Santiago, which involves immigration law and noncitizen re-entry. HollyFrontier concerns the Clean Air Act‘s biofuels mandate to replace crude oil with [...]
Explainer: What is temporary protective status (TPS) and why does it matter?
As the US Supreme Court prepares to hear arguments next week in Sanchez v. Mayorkas, an immigration case involving the impact of temporary protected status (TPS) with respect to lawful-permanent residency, JURIST’s latest explainer takes a deep dive into TPS and its implications under the new presidential administration. What is TPS and how does a [...]
US Supreme Court rules use of police force to restrain constitutes a seizure
The US Supreme Court ruled 5-3 Thursday in Torres v. Madrid that a Fourth Amendment seizure was effectuated when officers applied physical force with the intent to restrain, even if the person of interest did not submit and was not subdued. Torres was approached by two officers whom she believed were carjackers. She ignored their [...]
The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the consolidated cases of Davis v. Saul and Carr v. Saul on Wednesday. Both cases seek to address the issue of whether a claimant seeking disability benefits under the Social Security Act must first raise an issue before the Social Security Administration (SSA) if they wish to [...]
The US Supreme Court ruled unanimously Thursday that Chicago did not violate the US Bankruptcy Code by maintaining possession of cars it had impounded. The ruling came in the case of Chicago v. Fulton. In oral arguments, the city framed the question in the case as “whether the Bankruptcy Code’s automatic stay requires a creditor [...]
The US Supreme Court granted review in 14 new cases on Friday on issues ranging from the eligibility of temporary protected status immigrants to become lawful permanent residents to the application of the CARES Act to Alaska Native Corporations. The first two cases are Americans for Prosperity v. Becerra and Thomas More Law Center v. [...]
