Supreme Court

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Military Families Fight for Right to Sue

High court ruling forbids suits against military hospitals

(Newser) - Many grieving families are outraged that they cannot sue over medical malpractice in military hospitals, the Los Angeles Times reports. Some have seen sons and husbands—all active duty service members—die in hospitals where resources are stretched thin. But a 1950 Supreme Court ruling created the Feres doctrine, which...

Media-Shy Scalia Hits Road With 18th-Century Views

Conservative justice will plug stance as he pitches new book

(Newser) - After years of courting controversy but shunning publicity, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia is about to go on a media offensive, reports USA Today. The conservative Scalia, who has notoriously kept the press away from his public appearances, allowed C-SPAN recently to broadcast a question-and-answer session with students. He'll also...

Lethal Injection Ruling Will Spur Executions, Lawsuits

Pro-death states will waste no time; lawsuits likely in others

(Newser) - Executions will resume in the United States, thanks to the Supreme Court’s ruling on lethal injection yesterday, but so will lawsuits, the New York Times reports. By condoning methods “substantially similar” to Kentucky’s, the court has invited more challenges. “We have left the states with nothing...

Justice Calls Death Penalty Unconstitutional

Punishment 'pointless,' Stevens says, though he'll keep to precedent

(Newser) - Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens says he now believes the death penalty is unconstitutional, as it constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. Stevens was a key vote in upholding the legality of the death penalty 30 years ago, and says he will continue to respect the precedent of the court...

Supreme Court Upholds Kentucky Lethal Injection

Ruling clears way for other states to resume capital punishment

(Newser) - By a vote of 7-2, the Supreme Court upheld today the use of lethal injection by a three-drug cocktail. Two death row inmates in Kentucky had charged that the method violated their Eighth Amendment right to be spared cruel and unusual punishment. The mix of drugs has been used in...

Supreme Court Rejects Boy Killer's Appeal

He claims drugs made him shoot grandparents

(Newser) - The Supreme Court refused today to let a teenage boy appeal his 30-year sentence for double-murder, CNN reports. Christopher Pittman, who was tried as an adult in South Carolina 3 years ago, is serving the longest sentence ever for someone his age—and blames antidepressants for inspiring him to kill...

Justices to Weigh Death Penalty for Child Rape

Louisiana case seeks harsher punishment for crimes against children

(Newser) - The Supreme Court could forbid the death penalty for child rapists in a major upcoming decision, the Washington Post reports. On Wednesday, the court will hear the case of a Louisiana man who raped his 8-year-old stepdaughter so violently she needed surgery—a case that follows a series of landmark...

After 20 Years, Feds Crack Hate Mail Case

Clarence Thomas among targets of racist threats

(Newser) - An Ohio man who authorities believe sent threatening communications to black and mixed-race recipients over the course of 20 years was indicted this week, the Plain Dealer reports. David Tuason, 46, threatened to blow up the US Supreme Court and kill Clarence Thomas in 2003 but eluded capture from the...

States Sue EPA for 'Foot Dragging' on Warming

Coalition aims to force agency to take action on global warming

(Newser) - States, cities and environmental groups have teamed up to take on the federal government over global warming, the New York Times reports. The 18-state coalition is aiming to force the EPA to take action in the wake of last year's Supreme Court ruling that the agency should limit vehicle emissions...

Supreme Court Stands Pat on FBI Raid of Rep's Office

Separation of powers violated, appeals ruled

(Newser) - The Supreme Court declined today to hear an appeal of a ruling that the FBI violated separation-of-powers law in a 2006 raid on the office of Rep. William Jefferson, the New York Times reports. Though the raid itself was not unconstitutional, an appeals court found, the FBI went too far...

Bush Can't Force US Courts to Obey World Body: Justices

Ruling by international court not binding, nor was president's order for US to follow

(Newser) - The Supreme Court ruled today for states, and against President Bush in a quarrel over international law, finding that a foreign death-row inmate did not have a right to further review—though the world's top court said he did. Ernesto Medellin was not provided counsel from his native Mexico, violating...

Supreme Court Overturns La. Death Sentence

Blacks wrongly blocked from jury in case compared to OJ

(Newser) - The Supreme Court has ordered a new trial for a former Marine awaiting execution on Louisiana's death row. Allen Snyder, an African-American, was convicted of fatally stabbing his estranged wife and her boyfriend, but the court ruled 7-2 that prosecutors acted improperly by using its challenges to seat an all-white...

Supremes Appear Set to KO DC's Handgun Ban

In key 2nd Amendment case, Kennedy notes 'general right to bear arms'

(Newser) - The Supreme Court looks ready to declare Washington, DC’s handgun ban unconstitutional, the LA Times report. The justices heard oral arguments in the landmark Second Amendment case today, and swing voter Anthony Kennedy said, “In my view, there is a general right to bear arms.” At issue...

Court Hears Gun Case Today
 Court Hears Gun Case Today 
Mar 18, 2008 9:08 AM CDT

Court Hears Gun Case Today

Nation's firearms laws in the balance as Supremes hear arguments

(Newser) - One of the oldest and most hotly debated constitutional amendments—the right to bear arms—comes under scrutiny by the Supreme Court today. The court will hear arguments on the constitutionality of Washington DC's stringent ban on handguns. The ruling, which will arrive in June, is sure to have a...

Supremes to Weigh On-Air Swearing

Fox battles the FCC in next big court case

(Newser) - The Supreme Court might take up a gavel in one hand and a bar of soap in the other next term, when it considers a case challenging the FCC’s “fleeting utterances” standards, it announced today. The FCC is appealing a lower-court ruling—which arose when Cher dropped an...

DC's Handgun Ban Heads to Supreme Court

Justices get unprecedented crack at Second Amendment

(Newser) - John Roberts' Supreme Court will get a rare crack at an undefined piece of the Bill of Rights this week when it examines whether Washington, DC's handgun ban violates the Second Amendment. Though Americans' right to bear arms has been debated for 200 years, reports the Washington Post, the court...

Justices' Stock Portfolios Cripple Cases

Supreme Court left deadlocked by recusals amid calls to divest

(Newser) - The stock portfolios of Supreme Court justices have become a flash point this term, in which six cases could be affected by justices recusing themselves because they own financial stakes in companies involved. Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice Samuel Alito, and Justice Stephen Bryer have bowed out of cases involving...

EBay Finally Settles Patent Suit
EBay Finally Settles Patent Suit
Feb 29, 2008 12:17 PM CST

EBay Finally Settles Patent Suit

Will buy three patents as part of agreement with MercExchange

(Newser) - After years of legal battling that escalated to the Supreme Court, eBay has settled a patent-infringement lawsuit by e-commerce technology company MercExchange. The companies aren’t revealing the financial terms, but eBay will buy the three patents that led to the suit. The auction giant said the agreement won’t...

Exxon Asks Court to Toss $2.5B Payout

Supreme's justices appear to be split in Valdez case

(Newser) - Nearly 20 years after the Exxon Valdez spilled 11 million gallons of crude oil in Prince William Sound, the company asked the Supreme Court to reject a ruling that it pay $2.5 billion in punitive damages. Judges appeared split in today's arguments, USA Today reports, making a tie possible...

Supreme Court Declines to Rule in Ageism Case

District court to hear ex-Sprint employee's 'me too' evidence

(Newser) - The Supreme Court bounced an age-discrimination case back to district court for clarification today without making a ruling, the New York Times reports. The district court had ruled that other Sprint employees could not testify in the case of Ellen Mendelsohn, who alleges Sprint fired her because of her age....

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