Puerto Rico v. Sanchez Valle

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Puerto Rico v. Sanchez Valle

Opinion analysis: Divided court throws out additional jail time for sex offender – Amy Howe

Challengers urge justices not to decide racial-discrimination claim in census case – Amy Howe

Relist Watch – John Elwood

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Conference of June 27, 2019

Docket No.	Op. Below	Argument	Opinion	Vote	Author	Term
15-108	P.R.	Jan 13, 2016 Tr.Aud.	Jun 9, 2016	6-2	Kagan	OT 2015

Holding: The Double Jeopardy Clause bars Puerto Rico and the United States from successively prosecuting a single person for the same conduct under equivalent criminal laws.

Judgment: Affirmed, 6-2, in an opinion by Justice Kagan on June 9, 2016. Justice Ginsburg filed a concurring opinion, in which Justice Thomas joined. Justice Thomas filed an opinion concurring in part and concurring in the judgment. Justice Breyer filed a dissenting opinion, in which Justice Sotomayor joined.

Opinion analysis: Setback for Puerto Rico's independent powers (UPDATED) (Lyle Denniston)
Argument analysis: Puerto Rico -- special no more? (Lyle Denniston)
Court will question its power to decide Puerto Rico case (Lyle Denniston)
Argument preview: A lofty issue for Puerto Rico (Lyle Denniston)
U.S. opposes new role for Puerto Rico (Lyle Denniston)

Date	Proceedings and Orders (key to color coding)
Jun 5 2015	Application (14A1236) to extend the time to file a petition for a writ of certiorari from June 18, 2015 to July 20, 2015, submitted to Justice Breyer.
Jun 5 2015	Application (14A1236) granted by Justice Breyer extending the time to file until July 20, 2015.
Jul 17 2015	Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due August 24, 2015)
Aug 24 2015	Brief of respondents Luis M. Sanchez Valle, et al. in opposition filed.
Sep 8 2015	Reply of petitioner Commonwealth of Puerto Rico filed.
Sep 9 2015	DISTRIBUTED for Conference of September 28, 2015.
Oct 1 2015	Petition GRANTED.
Oct 19 2015	Consent to the filing of amicus curiae briefs in support of either party or of neither party received from counsel for the petitioner.
Oct 20 2015	Consent to the filing of amicus curiae briefs in support of either party or of neither party received from counsel for the respondents.
Nov 16 2015	Joint appendix filed. (Corrected Joint Appendix filed and distributed on 1/31/16.) (Statement of costs filed)
Nov 16 2015	Brief of petitioner Commonwealth of Puerto Rico filed.
Nov 24 2015	SET FOR ARGUMENT on Wednesday, January 13, 2016
Dec 4 2015	Record requested from the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico.
Dec 15 2015	CIRCULATED.
Dec 15 2015	Record received from the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico. 1 Box.
Dec 16 2015	Brief of respondents Luis M. Sanchez Valle, and James Gomez Vazquez filed. (Distributed)
Dec 22 2015	Brief amici curiae of Professors Christina Duffy Ponsa and Sam Erman filed. (Distributed)
Dec 22 2015	Brief amicus curiae of Virgin Islands Bar Association filed.
Dec 23 2015	Brief amici curiae of Current and Former Senior Puerto Rico Officials filed. (Distributed)
Dec 23 2015	Brief amicus curiae of United States filed. (Distributed)
Dec 23 2015	Brief amici curiae of Colegio de Abogados y Abogadas de Puerto Rico, and The Puerto Rican Bar Association filed. (Distributed)
Dec 23 2015	Motion of the Solicitor General for leave to participate in oral argument as amicus curiae and for divided argument filed.
Dec 23 2015	Brief amicus curiae of Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers - Miami Chapter filed. (Distributed)
Jan 5 2016	Reply of petitioner Commonwealth of Puerto Rico filed. (Distributed)
Jan 8 2016	Motion of the Solicitor General for leave to participate in oral argument as amicus curiae and for divided argument GRANTED.
Jan 8 2016	Letter from Clerk of Court advising that counsel should be prepared to discuss at oral argument whether this Court has jurisdiction to review the ruling of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico under 28 U.S.C. Sec.1258.
Jan 11 2016	Supplemental brief of petitioner Commonwealth of Puerto Rico filed. (Distributed)
Jan 12 2016	Letter from counsel for the respondent received.
Jan 13 2016	Argued. For petitioner: Christopher Landau, Washington, D. C. For respondents: Adam G. Unikowsky, Washington, D. C.; and Nicole A. Saharsky, Assistant to the Solicitor General, Department of Justice, Washington, D. C. (for United States, as amicus curiae).
Jun 9 2016	Adjudged to be AFFIRMED. Kagan, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Roberts, C. J., and Kennedy, Ginsburg, and Alito, JJ., joined. Ginsburg, J., filed a concurring opinion, in which Thomas, J., joined. Thomas, J., filed an opinion concurring in part and concurring in the judgment. Breyer, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which Sotomayor, J., joined.
Jul 12 2016	MANDATE ISSUED
Jul 12 2016	JUDGMENT ISSUED
Jul 28 2016	Record from the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico has been returned.

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Opinion analysis: Divided court throws out additional jail time for sex offender – Amy Howe

Challengers urge justices not to decide racial-discrimination claim in census case – Amy Howe

Relist Watch – John Elwood
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This Week at the Court
On Monday, the Supreme Court released orders from the June 20 conference; the justices granted eight new cases, for a total of five hours of oral argument next term: Guerrero-Lasprilla v. Barr, Ovalles v. Barr, Dex Media Inc. v. Click-To-Call Technologies, LP, Maine Community Health Options v. United States, Moda Health Plan Inc. v. United States, Land of Lincoln Mutual Health Insurance Co. v. United States, Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org Inc. and Banister v. Davis.
Also on Monday, the justices released their opinions in four argued cases: United States v. Davis, Food Marketing Institute v. Argus Leader Media, Iancu v. Brunetti and The Dutra Group v. Batterton.
On Wednesday, the justices released their opinions in three argued cases: United States v. Haymond, Kisor v. Wilkie, and Tennessee Wine & Spirits Retailers Association v. Thomas.
On Thursday, the Supreme Court will release its final opinions for the term.
Major Cases
- Department of Commerce v. New York
  (1) Whether the district court erred in enjoining the secretary of the Department of Commerce from reinstating a question about citizenship to the 2020 decennial census on the ground that the secretary’s decision violated the Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. 701 et seq; (2) whether, in an action seeking to set aside agency action under the APA, a district court may order discovery outside the administrative record to probe the mental processes of the agency decisionmaker -- including by compelling the testimony of high-ranking executive branch officials -- without a strong showing that the decisionmaker disbelieved the objective reasons in the administrative record, irreversibly prejudged the issue, or acted on a legally forbidden basis; and (3) whether the secretary’s decision to add a citizenship question to the decennial census violated the enumeration clause of the U.S. Constitution.
- Lamone v. Benisek
  In case in which the plaintiffs allege that a Maryland congressional district was gerrymandered to retaliate against them for their political views: (1) whether the various legal claims articulated by the three-judge district court are unmanageable; (2) whether the three-judge district court erred when, in granting plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment, it resolved disputes of material fact as to multiple elements of plaintiffs’ claims, failed to view the evidence in the light most favorable to the non-moving party, and treated as “undisputed” evidence that is the subject of still-unresolved hearsay and other evidentiary objections; and (3) whether the three-judge district court abused its discretion in entering an injunction despite the plaintiffs’ years-long delay in seeking injunctive relief, rendering the remedy applicable to at most one election before the next decennial census necessitates another redistricting.
- Kisor v. Wilkie
  Auer v. Robbins and Bowles v. Seminole Rock & Sand Co – under which deference is given to an agency’s reasonable reading of its own genuinely ambiguous regulations – are not overruled.
- Rucho v. Common Cause
  (1) Whether plaintiffs have standing to press their partisan gerrymandering claims; (2) whether plaintiffs’ partisan gerrymandering claims are justiciable; and (3) whether North Carolina’s 2016 congressional map is, in fact, an unconstitutional partisan gerrymander.
- The American Legion v. American Humanist Association
  The Bladensburg Cross does not violate the establishment clause of the First Amendment.
- Gamble v. United States
  The dual-sovereignty doctrine – under which two offenses are not the “same offence” for double jeopardy purposes if prosecuted by separate sovereigns – is upheld.
see all this term’s cases »
Recent Decisions
- Kisor v. Wilkie Auer v. Robbins and Bowles v. Seminole Rock & Sand Co – under which deference is given to an agency’s reasonable reading of its own genuinely ambiguous regulations – are not overruled.
- Tennessee Wine & Spirits Retailers Association v. Thomas Tennessee’s 2-year durational-residency requirement applicable to retail liquor store license applicants violates the commerce clause and is not saved by the 21st Amendment.
- United States v. Haymond The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit’s judgment – that 18 U. S. C. §3583(k)’s last two sentences are unconstitutional and unenforceable – is vacated, and the case is remanded.
- Food Marketing Institute v. Argus Leader Media Where commercial or financial information is both customarily and actually treated as private by its owner and provided to the government under an assurance of privacy, the information is “confidential” within the meaning of 5 U. S. C. §552(b)(4), the Freedom of Information Act’s Exemption 4.
- Iancu v. Brunetti The Lanham Act prohibition on the registration of “immoral” or “scandalous” trademarks infringes the First Amendment.
- The Dutra Group v. Batterton A plaintiff may not recover punitive damages on a maritime claim of unseaworthiness.
- United States v. Davis Title 18 U. S. C. §924(c)(3)(B), which provides enhanced penalties for using a firearm during a “crime of violence,” is unconstitutionally vague.
see all this term’s cases »
Current Relists
- Atlanta Gas Light Co. v. Bennett Regulator Guards Inc. (1) Whether the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit erred in concluding that it had jurisdiction to review the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s decision to institute inter partes review of respondent’s patent over respondent’s objection that it was time-barred; and (2) whether the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit erred when it rejected the longstanding principle that a dismissal without prejudice leaves the parties as if a suit had never been brought, splitting the circuits.
- Department of Homeland Security v. Regents of the University of California (1) Whether the Department of Homeland Security’s decision to wind down the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy is judicially reviewable; and (2) whether DHS’s decision to wind down the DACA policy is lawful.
- Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue Whether it violates the religion clauses or the equal protection clause of the United States Constitution to invalidate a generally available and religiously neutral student-aid program simply because the program affords students the choice of attending religious schools.
More Petitions »
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Statistical Snapshot

Cases argued 69

Cases decided 66

Summary reversals 5

Merits cases granted to date 74

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Justice Thomas at the Supreme Court Historical Society

On June 3, Justice Clarence Thomas spoke with David Rubenstein for the Supreme Court Historical Society’s annual lecture at the Supreme Court.

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Cases argued	69
Cases decided	66
Summary reversals	5
Merits cases granted to date	74

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