My op-ed in today’s Wall Street Journal compares Obama’s suspension of the ObamaCare employer mandate with Lincoln’s suspension of the writ of habeas corpus. Both Presidents were constitutional lawyers; both Presidents unilaterally suspended the law; and both suspensions were constitutionally dubious. But what they did next could not have been more different. The op-ed is […]
Archive | Habeas
Boyce Martin’s Final Death Penalty Opinion
Judge Boyce Martin of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit is retiring. Martin, a former chief judge, has long been the Circuit’s liberal lion. He was a central player in some of the Circuit’s internecine squabbles and, over time, became a forceful critic of capital punishment. Today in Nichols v. Heidle, a […]
The Sixth Circuit Wins One
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has had quite a losing streak in the Supreme Court. For the past few years, on over twenty straight cases, the Supreme court has reversed the Sixth Circuit decision in every case in which the Court accepted cert. The lion’s share of these cases concerned grants […]
Sixth Circuit Reversed in Another Habeas Case
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has been on quite a losing streak in the High Court, particularly when it comes to habeas cases. This morning, the Sixth Circuit was reversed again by a unanimous court in Metrish v. Lancaster, vindicating Judge Batchelder who had dissented from the original panel opinion. As has […]
Does the Supremacy Clause mean that the federal government always wins?
By David Kopel on October 2, 2012 6:05 pm in Constitutional Law, Criminal Procedure, Federalism, Habeas, Supreme Court
Last week, I filed an amicus brief on behalf of petitions for certiorari in Chafee v. United States and Pleau v. United States. These related cases could be among the most important federalism cases before the Court this term. The amici are the Cato Institute and the Independence Institute. The State of Rhode Island and […]
Sixth Circuit Smackdown Watch
Today the Supreme Court issued a unanimous per curiam opinion summarily reversing a divided panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Parker v. Matthews. The opinion begins: In this habeas case, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit set aside two 29-year-old murder convictions based on the […]
Sixth Circuit Splinters on Michigan Rape-Shield Statute
Yesterday, in Gagne v. Booker, the full U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit splintered along unusual lines over the application of Michigan’s rape-shield statute to exclude evidence relating to the complaining witness’ prior sexual conduct with the defendant. Lewis Rodney Gagne was accused of gang raping his ex-girlfriend and sought to introduce evidence […]
President Obama versus the Constitution
By David Kopel on April 2, 2012 11:54 pm in Congress, Constitutional History, Constitutional Law, Constitutional Theory, Counter-Terrorism Policy, Executive Branch, Federalism, Growth of Government, Habeas, Health Care, History, Individual Mandate, Jefferson, Judicial Power, Obama, Presidency, Public Opinion, Supreme Court, Uncategorized, War on Terror
President Obama today fired his opening salvo in an unprecedented attack on the Constitution of the United States. Regarding the impending Supreme Court ruling on the health control law, the President said, “Ultimately, I’m confident that the Supreme Court will not take what would be an unprecedented, extraordinary step of overturning a law that was […]
The Fourth Time Is Not the Charm for Van Hook
This morning a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit issued an opinion in Van Hook v. Bobby for the fourth time. On three previous occasions the panel had granted habeas relief to death row inmate Robert Van Hook , and all three times the panel was overturned — twice […]
Supreme Court Stays Texas Execution
Given all the attention paid to Rick Perry’s “record tally” of executions as Texas Governor, I am surprised the Supreme Court’s decision last week to stay the execution of Duane Edward Buck has not received more attention. From the Houston Chronicle: Buck was sentenced to die for the July 1995 shooting deaths of his former girlfriend, […]
Sixth Circuit Splits on Juror’s Ex Parte Communication
Today, a divided panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit rejected death row inmate Bobby Shepherd’s appeal of the district court’s denial of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus in Shepherd v. Bagley. Among Shepherd’s claims was that his trial was constitutionally defective because one of the jurors had […]
The Stumpf Sequel
Today the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit granted death row inmate John David Stumpf’s petition for a writ of habeas corpus for a second time – seven years after its first habeas grant, six years after the Supreme Court’s reversal of that decision, and four years after the subsequent oral argument. As […]
How Long a Nap Is Ineffective Assistance of Counsel?
If your defense attorney falls asleep during your trial, and you are convicted, do you have an ineffective assistance of counsel claim? That may depend on how long your attorney was asleep, and whether you can demonstrate prejudice. Yesterday, in Muniz v. Smith, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit denied a habeas […]
CVSG on Whether Incompetency Should Stay Habeas Proceedings
This morning the Supreme Court called for the views of the Solicitor General in Ryan v. Gonzales, a habeas case arising out of the Ninth Circuit posing the question whether a habeas petitioner is entitled to a stay of the proceedings if the petitioner is not competent to assist counsel. This question is similar to […]
Should Habeas Proceedings Be Stayed If the Petitioner Is Incompetent?
Last week, in Carter v. Bradshaw, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit held that habeas proceedings challenging a capital sentence should be stayed until the petitioner is competent to proceed. The opinion by Judge Martin, joined by Judge Cole, acknowledged that “federal habeas petitioners facing the death penalty for state criminal convictions […]