http://www.oyez.org/cases/2004/podcast-decisions U.S. Supreme Court Opinion Announcements, presented by The Oyez Project (www.oyez.org) en The Oyez Project at Chicago-Kent http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1693/opinion Do Ten Commandments displays in public schools and in courthouses violate the First Amendment's establishment clause, which prohibits government from passing laws "respecting an establishment of religion?" 2. Was a determination that the displays' purpose had been to advance religion sufficient for the displays' invalidation? Mon, 27 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56614 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_514/opinion After the U.S. Supreme Court had denied certiorari and a petition for rehearing to a death-row prisoner's case, did the Sixth Circuit abuse its discretion by withholding its mandate in the case for more than five months without entering a formal order? Mon, 27 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56730 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_278/opinion Can the holder of a restraining order bring a procedural due process claim against a local government for its failure to actively enforce the order and protect the holder from violence? Mon, 27 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56610 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1500/opinion Does a Ten Commandments monument on the grounds of a state capitol building violate the First Amendment's establishment clause, which barred the government from passing laws "respecting an establishment of religion?" Mon, 27 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56606 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_480/opinion Were companies that distributed file-sharing software, and encouraged and profited from direct copyright infringement using such software, liable for the infringement? Mon, 27 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56670 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_277/opinion Did the FCC lawfully interpret the Communications Act of 1934 by deciding that broadband cable companies did not provide a "telecommunications service?" Mon, 27 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56628 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1566/opinion Did the Reclamation Reform Act of 1982 waive the United States' sovereign immunity from breach of contract suits? Thu, 23 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56600 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_563/opinion Federal habeas law allowed an amended petition to relate back to the filing date of the original petition if both arose out out of the same "conduct, transaction or occurrence" the original set forth. Did the trial and conviction qualify as a "conduct, transaction or occurrence?" Thu, 23 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56728 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_108/opinion Does a city violate the Fifth Amendment's takings clause if the city takes private property and sells it for private development, with the hopes the development will help the city's bad economy? Thu, 23 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56686 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_10198/opinion Did the due process and equal protection clauses require the appointment of counsel for defendants, convicted on their pleas, who sought access to a Michigan appellate court? Thu, 23 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56658 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_70/opinion In a civil action where one plaintiff's claim satisfies the minimum amount-in- controversy requirement for federal diversity jurisdiction, and another plaintiff's related claim does not, does 28 U.S.C. Section 1367 allow federal courts to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over the claim that is less than the required amount? Thu, 23 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56710 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_6432/opinion Did Gonzalez's Rule 60(b) motion constitute a second or successive habeas petition? Thu, 23 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56656 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1230/opinion Did a Michigan law requiring every truck engaged in intrastate commercial hauling to pay a fee violate burden interstate trade in violation of the dormant commerce clause? Mon, 20 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56586 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_5286/opinion Is the start date for a federal prisoner's one-year limitation period the date on which the Court "initially recongized" the right asserted in an applicant's motion, or the date on which the right is "made retroactive?" Mon, 20 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56652 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1234/opinion Did federal law establishing for trucks the Single State Registration System (SSRS) preempt a separate Michigan registration fee? Mon, 20 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56716 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_169/opinion Does the six-year statute of limitations in the False Claims Act apply to suits brought by individuals who were retaliated against by their employers for assisting an investigation of false or fraudulent claims? Mon, 20 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56618 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_5462/opinion Did the Sixth Amendment right to effective counsel require counsel to try to obtain material counsel had known the prosecution would probably use at the trial's sentencing phase? Mon, 20 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56626 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_340/opinion Should federal courts make an exception to the full faith and credit statute for Fifth Amendment takings clause claims? Mon, 20 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56592 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1237/opinion Did federal law allow the use of patented inventions in preclinical research, the results of which were not ultimately included in a submission to the FDA? Mon, 13 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56724 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_495/opinion Did the placement policies for Ohio's highest security prison violate the 14th Amendment's due process clause? Mon, 13 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56646 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_6964/opinion In order to establish a prima facie case under Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (1986), must the objector show that it is more likely than not that the other party's peremptory challenges were based on impermissible group bias? Mon, 13 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56654 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_9659/opinion Did the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, by rejecting Miller-El's claim the prosecution purposefully excluded blacks from his jury, violate the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Miller-El v. Cockrell (2003)? 2. Did the Texas jury selection manual encourage unconstitutional disparate questioning based on race? Mon, 13 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56648 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_603/opinion Did a case involving the interpretation of federal tax law belong in federal court and not the state court where it was filed? Mon, 13 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56620 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_637/opinion (1) Was Stumpf's guilty plea to aggravated murder knowing, voluntary and intelligent? (2) Was his conviction valid, despite the state's use of a theory in the trial of Stumpf's accomplice that was inconsistent with its argument in Stumpf's trial? Mon, 13 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56692 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_128_orig/opinion Do specific submerged lands underlying the Alexander Archipelago and Glacier Bay belong to Alaska or the federal government? Mon, 06 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56602 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1454/opinion Does the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 801) exceed Congress' power under the commerce clause as applied to the intrastate cultivation and possession of marijuana for medical use? Mon, 06 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56734 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1388/opinion Does Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act apply to foreign-flagged cruise ships in U.S. waters? Mon, 06 Jun 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56706 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1488/opinion Did a judge's order that someone stop making defaming statements about a public figure, even after that figure's death, violate the First Amendment right to free speech? Tue, 31 May 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56650 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_9877/opinion Did a federal law prohibiting government from burdening prisoners' religious exercise violate the First Amendment's establishment clause? Tue, 31 May 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56590 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_368/opinion Did the jury instructions in the Arthur Andersen trial properly convey the elements of a "corrupt persuasion" conviction under federal document-handling law? Tue, 31 May 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56598 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_163/opinion Does a regulation amount to an unconstitutional taking "if it does not substantially advance legitimate state interests?" Mon, 23 May 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56608 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_5928/opinion Is a federal court bound by the International Court of Justice's ruling that U.S. courts must reconsider a Mexican citizen's claim for relief under the Vienna Convention? 2. Should a federal court enforce an ICJ ruling? Mon, 23 May 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56672 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1164/opinion Does the Beef Promotion and Research Act of 1985 (Beef Act) violate the First Amendment by requiring cattle producers to pay to fund advertising with which they disagree? Mon, 23 May 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56736 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_5293/opinion Does shackling a convicted offender during the penalty phase of a capital case violate the due process clauses of the Fifth and 14th Amendment? Mon, 23 May 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56680 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_37/opinion Do state election laws that restrict the voters a party may invite to vote in its primary election violate the First Amendment rights to freedom of expression and association? Mon, 23 May 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56720 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1116/opinion Does a state law that allows in-state wineries to directly ship alcohol to consumers, but restricts the ability of out-of-state wineries to do so, violate the dormant commerce clause in light of the 21st Amendment? Mon, 16 May 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56594 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_388/opinion Does the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) preempt farmers' state tort claims alleging that Dow's herbicide damaged crops? Wed, 27 Apr 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56632 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_9627/opinion If a state court rejected Pace's post-conviction appeal as untimely, could his federal habeas petition still be "properly filed" within the context of the federal law establishing a one-year statute of limitations for such petitions? Wed, 27 Apr 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56676 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_725/opinion Did a plot to defraud a foreign government of tax revenue violate the federal wire fraud statute? Tue, 26 Apr 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56718 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_750/opinion Federal law made gun possession illegal for any person "convicted in any court" for crimes punishable by more than a year in prison. Does "convicted in any court" include convictions in foreign courts? Tue, 26 Apr 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56704 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_932/opinion To prove "loss causation" in a securities fraud case, is it sufficient to show that the price of the security on the date of purchase was inflated because of misrepresentation? Tue, 19 Apr 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56674 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1407/opinion Are individual retirement accounts (IRAs) exempt from bankruptcy estates? Mon, 04 Apr 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56630 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_9685/opinion Is the vacating of a state conviction a "fact" as that term is used in the federal law setting out a statute of limitations on federal sentence modification motions, thus commencing the statute's 1-year limitations period? Mon, 04 Apr 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56688 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1160/opinion Can a disparate impact claim - a claim alleging unintentional discrimination - be made under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA)? Wed, 30 Mar 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56678 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_9046/opinion May a federal court stay a habeas petition that included exhausted and unexhausted claims, when the stay was necessary to allow a petitioner to exhaust claims in state court without having the one-year statute of limitations in the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA) bar the right to a federal petition? Wed, 30 Mar 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56714 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1696/opinion Did the Rooker-Feldman doctrine bar a suit that was filed in federal district court before a state court ruled on the petitioner's related claims? Wed, 30 Mar 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56698 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_855/opinion Were land parcels once owned by the Oneida Nation, sold in 1807 but repurchased in the 1990s by the Nation's descedant tribe, part of an Indian Reservation and thus exempt from local taxes? Tue, 29 Mar 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56732 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_02_1672/opinion Does Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 allow suits for retaliation for complaints about unlawful sex discrimination? Tue, 29 Mar 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56640 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1601/opinion May people whose rights guaranteed by the Telecommunications Act of 1996 are violated seek remedies other than those allowed by the act? Tue, 22 Mar 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56622 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1039/opinion Was the 9th Circuit correct to rule the California Supreme Court objectively unreasonable in holding that California's "catch-all" mitigation instruction in capital cases is constitutional as applied to post-crime evidence in mitigation? Tue, 22 Mar 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56588 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1423/opinion (1) Did police violate the Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable seizure by detaining Mena in handcuffs for 2-3 they executed a search warrant for contraband on the premises she occupied? (2) Did police violate the Fourth Amendment by questioning Mena about her immigration status during the detention? Tue, 22 Mar 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56690 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_184/opinion Could the Tax Court exclude from the record on appeal Rule 183(b) reports submitted by special trial judges? Mon, 07 Mar 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56666 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_9168/opinion May a court sentencing under the Armed Career Criminal Act look to police reports or complaint applications to determine whether an earlier guilty plea necessarily admitted, and supported a conviction for, generic burglary? Mon, 07 Mar 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56702 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_287/opinion (1) May a prisoner bring a claim under 42 U.S.C. 1983 claiming that his parole proceedings violate due process, even though success on the merits of the claim would result only in a new parole hearing and would not necessarily guarantee earlier release from prison? (2) Does a federal court judgment ordering a new parole hearing "necessarily imply the invalidity of" the decision at the previous parole hearing and therefore challenge the sentence itself? Mon, 07 Mar 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56642 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1395/opinion Does Totten v. U.S. prevent a district court from considering Jane and John Does' due process and tort claims that the CIA refused to keep its alleged promise to provide them with life-time financial assistance in exchange for their alleged espionage services to the CIA? Wed, 02 Mar 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56664 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_02_1472/opinion Did the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (ISDA) require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to pay "contract support costs," even if the government contends funds were not available? Tue, 01 Mar 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56636 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_633/opinion Does the execution of minors violate the prohibition of "cruel and unusual punishment" found in the Eighth Amendment and applied to the states through the incorporation doctrine of the 14th Amendment? Tue, 01 Mar 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56668 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_636/opinion Is a state's practice of temporary racial segregation of state prisoners subject to strict scrutiny? Wed, 23 Feb 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56722 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_814/opinion Is a dredge a "vessel" under the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (LHWCA)? Tue, 22 Feb 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56696 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_8661/opinion Is the double jeopardy clause's prohibition against successive prosecutions, found in the Fifth Amendment, violated when a judge rules that the defendant is not guilty because the government's evidence is insufficient but later in the trial reverses her finding of not guilty? Tue, 22 Feb 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56726 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_9560/opinion 1.) In death penalty cases can a state court refuse to give a jury the option of finding a defendant guilty of at least one lesser offense if it is recognized by state law and supported by evidence? 2.) Was Howell's federal constitutional claim properly raised before the Mississippi Supreme Court? Mon, 24 Jan 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56644 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_923/opinion Does the Fourth Amendment's search and seizure clause require a reasonable articulable suspicion to conduct a canine sniff during a routine traffic stop? Mon, 24 Jan 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56638 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_892/opinion Does a taxpayer's gross income from litigation proceeds include contingency fees paid to lawyers? Mon, 24 Jan 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56612 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_674/opinion May immigration officials deport a person to his country of birth under 8 U.S.C. 1231(b)(2)(E)(iv), if that country lacks a functioning central government that is able to accept the person's return? Wed, 12 Jan 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56700 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_04_104/opinion 1.) Does an enhanced sentence under U.S. Sentencing Guidelines based on the judge's determination of a fact violate the Sixth Amendment? 2.) If so, are the Sentencing Guidelines altogether unconstitutional? Wed, 12 Jan 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56660 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_878/opinion In Zadvydas v. Davis (2001), the U.S. Supreme Court said admitted immigrants could be detained for deportation for more than 90 days, but no longer than reasonably necessary. Did this ruling apply to inadmissible aliens, such as Benitez and Martinez? Wed, 12 Jan 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56604 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_1293/opinion Did a conviction for conspiracy to commit money laundering, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1956(h), require proof of an overt act furthering the conspiracy? Tue, 11 Jan 2005 13:00:00 +0000 56662 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_931/opinion 1.) Is a defense lawyer's use of a strategy that concedes the defendant's guilt ineffective assistance of counsel if the strategy was pursued without the explicit approval of the defendant? 2.) Should counsel be held to a standard that considers whether counsel's statements were deficient and prejudicial to the defendant, or should counsel be considered ineffective per se? Mon, 13 Dec 2004 13:00:00 +0000 56616 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_407/opinion (1) Does the 14th Amendment guarantee an indigent criminal defendant convicted by a guilty plea the right to an appointed appellate attorney in a discretionary first appeal? (2) Do attorneys have third-party standing on behalf of potential indigent defendants to make a constitutional challenge to a state statute prohibiting appointment of appellate counsel in discretionary first appeals following convictions by guilty pleas? Mon, 13 Dec 2004 13:00:00 +0000 56596 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_02_1192/opinion Does the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) require that a party liable for pollution be sued under CERCLA before seeking clean up funds from other liable parties? Mon, 13 Dec 2004 13:00:00 +0000 56712 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_710/opinion (1) Does an arrest violate the Fourth Amendment when a police officer has probable cause to make an arrest for one offense, if that offense is not closely related to the offense articulated by the officer at the time of the arrest? (2) For the purposes of qualified immunity, was "closely related offense doctrine" clearly established given that different circuit courts disagreed on its application? Mon, 13 Dec 2004 13:00:00 +0000 56634 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_409/opinion Did the classic fair use defense to trademark infringement require the party asserting the defense to demonstrate an absence or likelihood of confusion? Wed, 08 Dec 2004 13:00:00 +0000 56708 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_105_orig/opinion 1.) Should the U.S. Supreme Court appoint a "river master" to resolve disputes over computer modeling of the Arkansas River? 2.) Is Kansas entitled to interest, from 1985 forward, for damages resulting from Compact violations from 1950 to 1985? Tue, 07 Dec 2004 13:00:00 +0000 56684 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_377/opinion Could parties who suffered no actual damages recover more than the Truth in Lending Act's original $1,000 cap because of subsequent amendments to the act? Tue, 30 Nov 2004 13:00:00 +0000 56694 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_03_583/opinion Is a conviction of driving under the influence and causing serious bodily injury a "crime of violence" under federal immigration law that allows the person to be deported as an aggravated felon? Tue, 09 Nov 2004 13:00:00 +0000 56624 at http://www.oyez.org http://www.oyez.org/cases/2000-2009/2004/2004_02_1028/opinion Did federal law govern the interpretation of the ICC and Hamburg Sud bills of lading (contracts)? 2. Was Norfolk entitled to the protection of the liability limitations in both bills? Tue, 09 Nov 2004 13:00:00 +0000 56682 at http://www.oyez.org