Recent Supreme Court Decisions
White v. Wheeler (December 14, 2015)
A juror's inconsistent replies to voir dire questioning regarding his view of the death penalty may be an appropriate basis for excluding that juror from a capital trial under the Sixth Amendment.
DIRECTV, Inc. v. Imburgia (December 14, 2015)
The Federal Arbitration Act requires courts to place arbitration contracts on an equal footing with all other forms of contracts, rather than interpreting them differently.
Shapiro v. McManus (December 8, 2015)
Under 28 U.S.C. Section 2284, a three-judge panel may hear a claim by petitioners challenging the apportionment of congressional districts on constitutional grounds, such as the First Amendment right of political association, and the district court judge shall oversee the appointment of this panel.
OBB Personenverkehr AG v. Sachs (December 1, 2015)
Under the exception in the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act for claims "based upon" a commercial activity carried out in the U.S. by a foreign state, the "based upon" inquiry requires examining the conduct at the core of the plaintiff's complaint in its entirety rather than determining whether it supports one element of each of the plaintiff's claims.
Mullenix v. Luna (November 9, 2015)
Qualified immunity applies to the actions of a law enforcement officer who uses lethal force against an intoxicated fugitive who had threatened to shoot other officers and was in the vicinity of an officer, since the use of lethal force in this context cannot be shown to be unreasonable beyond debate.
Most Read Opinions
Tennessee v. Garner, 471 U.S. 1 (1985)
Under the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, a police officer may use deadly force to prevent the escape of a fleeing suspect only if the officer has probable cause to believe that the suspect poses a significant threat of death or serious physical injury to the officer or others.
Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (1968)
Under the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, a police officer may stop a suspect on the street and frisk him or her without probable cause to arrest, if the police officer has a reasonable suspicion that the person has committed, is committing, or is about to commit a crime and has a reasonable belief that the person "may be armed and presently dangerous."
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 347 U.S. 483 (1954)
The Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits states from segregating public school students on the basis of race. This marked a reversal of the "separate but equal" doctrine from Plessy v. Ferguson that had permitted separate schools for white and colored children provided that the facilities were equal.
Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966)
Under the Fourth Amendment, any statements that a defendant in custody makes during an interrogation are admissible as evidence at a criminal trial only if law enforcement told the defendant of the right to remain silent and the right to speak with an attorney before the interrogation started. The prosecution also must be able to prove that any waiver of these rights was both knowing and voluntary.
Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963)
The government's withholding of evidence that is material to the determination of either guilt or punishment of a criminal defendant violates the defendant's constitutional right to due process.
Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973)
A person may choose to have an abortion until a fetus becomes viable, based on the right to privacy contained in the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Viability means the ability to live outside the womb, which usually happens between 24 and 28 weeks after conception.
Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643 (1961)
The prosecution is not allowed to present evidence that law enforcement secured during a search that was unconstitutional under the Fourth Amendment.
Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003)
A Texas law criminalizing consensual, adult homosexual intercourse violates the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
Plessy v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537 (1896)
Later overruled by Brown v. Board of Education, this decision embraced the now-discredited idea that “separate but equal” treatment for whites and African-Americans is permissible under the Fourteenth Amendment.
Tinker v. Des Moines School District, 393 U.S. 503 (1969)
Since First Amendment protections extend to students in public schools, educational authorities who want to censor speech will need to show that permitting the speech would significantly interfere with the discipline needed for the school to function.
