Thursday round-up

Yesterday the Court stayed the executionof a Texas death row inmate convicted of the murders of three teenagers in 1991. As Lyle Denniston explains forthis blog, the stay will allow the Court to consider howlast Terms decision in Martinez v. Ryan, in which it held that a federal court could hear an ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claim that was otherwise procedurally defaulted when state law only permits ineffective-assistance-of-trial-counsel claims on collateral rather than direct review, and counsel was absent or ineffective for that state collateral review, applies to capital cases in Texas. TheAssociated Press(via the Houston Chronicle) andReutersalso have coverage of the stay.

The most recent petition for certiorari in a case challenging the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) continues to draw coverage. Justin Snow ofMetro Weeklyand theAssociated Press(via the Boston Globe) report on the cert. petition (which Conor also covered in yesterdays round-up) inPedersen v. Office of Personnel Management. Forthis blog, Lyle has a summary of the seven cert. petitions now pending before the Court in cases involving same-sex marriage.

Other coverage focuses onFisher v. University of Texas, in which the Justices will consider the constitutionality of the universitys undergraduate admissions policy. The editorial board ofBloomberg Viewweighs in on the case with an editorial in which they argue that affirmative action is still necessary. At theVolokh Conspiracy, David Bernstein discusses a recentamicus briefby the Constitutional Accountability Center and six law professors which argues that affirmative action is constitutional under the original meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment. AtDorf on Law, Michael Dorf discusses anamicus briefthat he helped to write on behalf of the Association of American Law Schools in support of the respondents. [Disclosure: Goldstein & Russell, P.C., whose attorneys work for or contribute to this blog in various capacities, also represented the AALS in this case.]

Eugene Fidell and a group of Yale students have produced apronunciation guidefor Supreme Court cases. Amy Howe has coverage forthis blog, and Nina Totenberg has a story on the guide forNPR.

Briefly:

• At the Opinionatorblog of The New York Times, Linda Greenhouse discusses the constitutionality of graphic warning labels on cigarette packaging in light of the Court’s recent First Amendment cases.
• The governor of Rhode Island has asked the Court to review the First Circuits ruling that the federal government could take custody of a prisoner so that it can prosecute him in federal court, where the death penalty will be available. TheAssociated Presshas coverage (via the Boston Globe).
• Over at theCrime and Consequencesblog, Kent Scheidegger reports that California is seeking a modification of the prisoner release order upheld inBrown v. Plata, which ordered the state to release prisoners to reduce overcrowding in its prisons. Bob Egelko has further coverage for theSan Francisco Chronicle.