2014 in Review: The SCOTUS Stories You Loved Most This Year
We're nearing the end of the year: a time for reflection, a time for planning and resolutions.
Part of our process is to look back and see what you liked, measured by blog traffic. And for 2014, that included juicy justice gossip, a Scalia screw-up, and a few posts about cases that were working their way through the docket.
Here's the big list:
10. SCOTUS End of Term: 5 Most Interesting Cases Left on the Docket
With only a few weeks left in the term, we previewed the five most interesting cases that had yet to be decided. Spoiler alert: they've all been decided by now.
9. Studies Show: Ginsburg Was Correct in Voting Rights Act Dissent
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's dissent in the Voting Rights Act case was passionate, it was compelling, it warned of the dangers of the majority's holding, and sadly, it was correct.
8. Cell Phone 'Search Incident to Lawful Arrest' Cases Get Cert.
Police can search your pockets when they arrest you. But can they search through the contents of the phone in your pocket? We previewed a pair of cases that became a landmark ruling.
7. Is It Already 'Too Late' for Justice Ginsburg to Retire?
Folks -- even the liberal folks -- have been calling for Justice Ginsburg's retirement for some time. We asked over the summer if it was too late, as there was no way that conservatives in Congress would approve an Obama nominee.
Election season happened. And Ginsburg is still on the court, despite a recent health scare.
6. Justice Thomas Talks in Court After Impeachment for Nonfeasance
He was impeached by Congress for not fulfilling his responsibilities as a Supreme Court justice. Clarence Thomas grilled an attorney during oral arguments about the Commerce Clause before being shushed by Ginsburg.
When did all of this happen? April 1.
5. Ginsburg's Interview With Marcia Coyle: 5 Interesting Points
We can never get enough Ginsburg. In this interview, she told a long-time reporter about her views on gay rights, the death penalty, and most interestingly, some insight on fellow Justice Sonia Sotomayor's desire to prove liberal credentials to the public.
4. Is Sotomayor 'Finding Her Voice' or Alienating Her Colleagues?
Though the nine justices are generally friendly on and off the bench, there was a pattern forming of justices criticizing Justice Sotomayor's opinions in footnotes and their own opinions.
3. SCOTUS Refers Death Penalty Lawyer to Pa. Disciplinary Board
This was one of the weirdest orders we've seen in years: After his client claimed that he didn't want to appeal, and that his attorney had proceeded without him, the Court referred attorney Marc Bookman to the local disciplinary board.
2. DNA Sets Man Free After Scalia Mocked His Death Penalty Appeal
Scalia's famous bluster came back to bite him when, in 1994, he responded to Justice Blackmun's famous "tinkering with the machinery of death" disavowal of capital punishment by citing another case on the docket, that of a man convicted of gang-raping and murdering an 11-year old girl.
That man, who by the way had an IQ of less than 70, was set free thanks to DNA evidence earlier this year.
1. Who Are the Worst Supreme Court Justices of All Time?
This was by far -- and we mean far -- our most popular post: a list of the worst justices of all time. We dug up four very worthy candidates, then turned readers loose with a poll.
Like we did with the poll, we want to hear what you think. Tweet us @FindLawLP with your favorite SCOTUS stories of the year.
Related Resources:
- Reasonable Mistake of Law Isn't Ground for Suppressing Search: SCOTUS (FindLaw's U.S. Supreme Court Blog)
- 4 Grants: Bankruptcy, Patent Royalties, Life Sentences for Minors (FindLaw's U.S. Supreme Court Blog)
- SCOTUS Maintains Veil of Secrecy Over Juror Deliberations (FindLaw's U.S. Supreme Court Blog)
- #RealAnimalsFakePaws: Our Favorite SCOTUS Dog Re-Enactment Videos (FindLaw's U.S. Supreme Court Blog)
