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Kansas v. Gleason

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Docket No. Op. Below Argument Opinion Vote Author Term
14-452 Kan. Oct 7, 2015 Jan 20, 2016 8-1 Scalia OT 2015

Holding: 1) The Eighth Amendment does not require capital-sentencing courts to instruct a jury that mitigating circumstances need not be proved beyond a reasonable doubt. 2) The Constitution did not require severance of joint sentencing proceedings because the contention that the admission of mitigating evidence by one defendant could have "so infected" the jury's consideration of the other defendant's sentence as to amount to a denial of due process does not stand in light of all the evidence presented at the guilty and penalty phases relevant to the jury's sentencing determination.

Judgment: Reversed and remanded, 8-1, in an opinion by Justice Scalia on January 20, 2016. Justice Sotomayor filed a dissenting opinion.

SCOTUSblog Coverage

DateProceedings and Orders (key to color coding)
Oct 16 2014Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due November 19, 2014)
Dec 2 2014Order extending time to file response to petition to and including December 19, 2014.
Dec 19 2014Brief of respondent Sidney J. Gleason in opposition filed.
Dec 19 2014Motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis filed by respondent Sidney J. Gleason.
Dec 30 2014Reply of petitioner Kansas filed.
Jan 7 2015DISTRIBUTED for Conference of January 23, 2015.
Feb 9 2015DISTRIBUTED for Conference of February 20, 2015.
Feb 23 2015DISTRIBUTED for Conference of February 27, 2015.
Mar 2 2015DISTRIBUTED for Conference of March 6, 2015.
Mar 9 2015DISTRIBUTED for Conference of March 20, 2015.
Mar 23 2015DISTRIBUTED for Conference of March 27, 2015.
Mar 30 2015Motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis filed by respondent GRANTED.
Mar 30 2015Petition GRANTED.
Apr 13 2015Consent to the filing of amicus curiae briefs in support of either party or of neither party recieved from counsel for the petitioner.
Apr 21 2015The time to file the joint appendix and petitioner's brief on the merits is extended to and including June 8, 2015.
Apr 21 2015The time to file respondent's brief on the merits is extended to and including August 3, 2015.
Jun 8 2015Joint appendix filed. (Statement of costs filed)
Jun 8 2015Brief of petitioner Kansas filed.
Jun 11 2015Consent to the filing of amicus curiae briefs, in support of either party or of neither party, received from counsel for the respondent.
Jun 12 2015Brief amici curiae of Criminal Justice Legal Foundation, et al. VIDED (See 14-449 & 14-450) filed.
Jun 19 2015Motion for scheduling of argument and for divided argument filed by respondents in Nos. 14-449, 14-450 & 14-452. VIDED.
Jun 29 2015Motion for scheduling of argument and for divided argument filed by respondents in Nos. 14-449, 14-450 & 14-452 GRANTED. VIDED
Jun 29 2015Upon consideration of the joint motion of respondents for scheduling of argument and for divided argument, and of the motion of the Solicitor General for leave to participate in oral argument as amicus curiae and for divided argument in Nos. 14- 449 and 14-450, the following allocation of oral argument time is adopted. A total of one hour is allocated for oral argument in No. 14-452, and on Question 1 in Nos. 14-449 and 14-450, to be divided as follows: 30 minutes for petitioner, 20 minutes for respondents Jonathan D. Carr and Sidney J. Gleason, and 10 minutes for respondent Reginald D. Carr. A total of one hour is allocated for oral argument on Question 2 in Nos. 14-449 and 14-450, to be divided as follows: 20 minutes for petitioner, 10 minutes for the Solicitor General, 20 minutes for respondent Reginald D. Carr, and 10 minutes for respondent Jonathan D. Carr. VIDED
Jul 29 2015SET FOR ARGUMENT on Wednesday, October 7, 2015.
Aug 3 2015Brief of respondent Sidney J. Gleason filed.
Aug 7 2015CIRCULATED.
Aug 12 2015Record requested from the Supreme Court of Kansas.
Sep 2 2015Reply of petitioner Kansas (on mitigation instruction question arguments of respondent Gleason, and respondents in 14-449 & 14-450) filed. (Distributed)
Sep 17 2015Record received from the Supreme Court of Kansas. (1 Box). part of the record is electronic.
Oct 1 2015Letter from counsel for petitioner filed. (Distributed)
Oct 7 2015Argued (Burden Question). For petitioner: Derek L. Schmidt, Attorney General, Topeka, Kan. For respondent in 14-452 & 14-449: Jeffrey T. Green, Washington, D. C. For respondent in 14-450: Neal K. Katyal, Washington, D. C. VIDED
Jan 20 2016Judgment REVERSED and case REMANDED. Scalia, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Roberts, C. J., and Kennedy, Thomas, Ginsburg, Breyer, Alito, and Kagan, JJ., joined. Sotomayor, J., filed a dissenting opinion. (Opinion also for Nos. 14-449 & 14-450)
Feb 23 2016Judgment Issued
Feb 23 2016Mandate Issued