The Supreme Court weighed on Nov. 27 how sentences under a federal three-strikes gun law should be imposed on defendants previously convicted of violent felonies or major drug offenses. Federal law prohibits convicted felons from possessing firearms. The often-litigated Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA) was enacted in 1984 in response to concerns that a small number of repeat offenders were committing a disproportionate number of crimes. The law requires that a 15-year minimum sentence be imposed on people found guilty of illegally possessing a firearm who have three or more prior convictions for “a serious drug offense” or violent felonies … Continue reading Supreme Court looks at federal 3-strikes gun law

The Supreme Court will consider whether a judge or a jury gets to decide whether criminal defendants’ prior convictions justify enhanced sentencing under a federal three-strikes law. The case, Erlinger v. United States (court file 23-370), is the second Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA) case the court has agreed to hear in its current term, which began in October. The court is expected to decide whether the Constitution requires juries to go through fact-based inquiries to figure out whether a defendant has committed multiple prior offenses on separate occasions and therefore qualifies for an enhanced sentence under the ACCA. The … Continue reading Supreme Court to decide reach of 3-strikes law

The Supreme Court agreed on Nov. 20 to take a look at whether Indian tribes should be allowed to sue the federal government over reimbursements related to administrative expenses generated by insurers. The federal Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (ISDA) empowers Native American tribes to administer their own health care programs. Tribes receive funding from the Indian Health Service (IHS), an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The statute requires IHS to reimburse tribes for some administrative expenses, which are called contract support costs. Contract support costs are defined as “any overhead expense incurred … Continue reading Supreme Court agrees to hear tribal health care reimbursement disputes

The Supreme Court will soon hear a California case challenging the power of governments to use the permitting process to force property owners to pay large development fees. The court announced last week that it will hear oral argument in the case, Sheetz v. County of El Dorado (court file 22-1074), on Jan. 9. The homeowner is suing El Dorado County, California, which is near the state’s border with Nevada, claiming the county violated his rights under the Fifth Amendment’s takings clause and the Fourteenth Amendment. The Fifth Amendment states that “private property [shall not] be taken for public use, … Continue reading Supreme Court to hear challenge to development impact fees

The Supreme Court has scheduled several high-profile cases for oral argument in January 2024, including an important challenge to the power of the so-called administrative state. Conservative and Republican critics have long derided the administrative state as an unelected fourth branch of government that allows bureaucrats to make regulations that exceed the wishes of Congress. The court’s ultimate ruling could alter the current balance of power among Congress, executive agencies, and the nation’s judiciary by curbing the legal underpinnings of the modern administrative state. The authority of federal agencies has been increasingly questioned in recent years as the conservative majority … Continue reading Supreme Court schedules oral argument in challenge to bureaucrats’ power

The Supreme Court has accepted the appeal of an accused drug trafficker stopped at the border who claims she didn’t know that 28 kilograms of methamphetamine were hidden in the door panels of the car she was driving. The case is Diaz v. United States (court file 23-14). The Supreme Court granted the petition for certiorari, or review, without comment in an unsigned order on Nov. 13. No justices dissented. At least four of the nine justices must vote for the petition for it to move forward to the oral argument stage. The case goes back to Aug. 17, 2020, … Continue reading Supreme Court takes case of convicted meth smuggler challenging expert testimony

The Supreme Court refused to halt this month’s trial in Louisiana against BP America and other oil companies for upward of $7 billion in compensation for coastal erosion that local authorities allege has been exacerbated by the corporations’ actions. Several parishes in the Pelican State are suing oil companies over coastal damage. They claim, among other things, that the companies dug channels through wetlands during their energy production efforts, which they argue have accelerated coastal land loss. The companies deny any wrongdoing. BP America Production Co., Shell Oil Co., and Hilcorp Energy Co. had asked the nation’s highest court to … Continue reading Supreme Court won’t block local government lawsuit against BP America