Breaking News

The Week Ahead

On Monday, the Court is scheduled to hear argument in Baze v. Rees (07-5439), asking whether the combination of drugs used in Kentucky’s lethal injection protocol amounts to cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment, and in Dada v. Mukasey (06-1181), asking whether an alien’s timely filing of a motion to reopen removal proceedings should automatically toll a previously granted order of voluntary departure.

In advance of the arguments, the Court is expected to release the remaining orders from its private conference last Friday. Following the argument in Baze, the Court is expected to release audio from the oral argument.

NOTE TO READERS: We will post the Orders List on Monday as soon as it becomes available.  A post elaborating on the orders will appear following the oral argument in Baze v. Rees.  No new grants are expected.

On Tuesday, the Court is scheduled to hear argument in Gonzalez v. United States (06-11612), asking whether a criminal defendant must himself waive the right to appear before an Article III judge, and in Boulware v. United States (06-1509), asking whether intent to make a return of capital is required for funds diverted and distributed to a shareholder of a corporation without earnings and profits to qualify as non-taxable return of capital in the context of a criminal trial for tax evasion.

Because the Court is returning from a lengthy recess, there may be opinions on the merits in pending cases one or two days this week, but not on Monday.

On Wednesday, the Court is scheduled to hear argument in the consolidated cases of Crawford v. Marion County Election Board (07-21) and Indiana Democratic Party v. Rokita (07-25), asking whether Indiana’s law requiring voters to show ID at polling places violates the First and Fourteenth Amendments, and in Kentucky Retirement Systems v. EEOC (06-1037), asking whether the use of age as a factor in a retirement plan violates the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.

On Friday, the Justices are scheduled to hold a private conference, orders from which could be released as soon as that afternoon. To view our list of petitions to watch at the conference, click here.