Supreme Court

AG Merrick Garland Must Support Death Penalty for Boston Marathon Bomber

Posted on by NLPC Staff

The Supreme Court of the United States announced Monday that it decided to hear whether Boston Marathon Bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, who was found guilty of the terrorist attack in 2013 that killed three people and injured approximately 280 others, is entitled to a new death penalty phase trial because of pretrial publicity and other concerns as ordered by a lower court of appeals.

The National Legal and Policy Center (NLPC) called upon Attorney General Merrick Garland to reject those baseless arguments and to support former Attorney General Bill Barr’s position opposing a “new and more onerous penalty trial where [Tsarnaev’s] victims would relive their trauma.” See above interview with NLPC Counsel Paul Kamenar on One America News Network.

During his confirmation hearing last month, Garland was praised by his supporters for his prosecution of Timothy McVeigh who bombed the federal building in Oklahoma City in 1995, and who received the … Read More ➡

NY Times Letter: ‘Sturm und Drang’ on Barrett Nomination

Posted on by Peter Flaherty

To the Editor:

The Democrats’ strategy opposing Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation is clear: raise the boogeyman that she will overturn the Affordable Care Act and millions will immediately lose their health insurance coverage. Nonsense.

First, the case before the court next month raises a different issue than the one Chief Justice John Roberts decided and she criticized. Second, she hasn’t read the briefs or heard oral arguments, and thus no one can predict her vote. Third, the court can strike the offending provision at issue and keep intact the provisions that the Democrats are wailing about, such as coverage for pre-existing conditions.

Finally, in the unlikely event the law were to be struck down in its entirety, the court can, and likely will, stay its decision to allow Congress time to remedy the statutory defect as it has done in other cases.

In short, the Sturm und Drang prediction … Read More ➡

Supreme Court Considers Second Mark Janus Suit to Recover Dues

Posted on by Carl Horowitz

Mark Janus is seeking to complete his mission. And the U.S. Supreme Court soon will let him and other dissenting public-sector union members know where they stand. Two weeks from now, on June 18, the High Court will decide whether to grant legal standing to a petition by Janus, a former Illinois state employee, to recover dues payments dating back several years collected by an affiliate of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME). Two years earlier the Court concluded that a government employee union cannot deduct partial dues (“agency fees”) from a nonmember paycheck without the affirmative consent of the employee. A grant of certiorari could open the door to similar nonmember actions, including a class action suit in Minnesota seeking a $19 million refund on behalf of about 8,000 employees.  

Until the Supreme Court’s 2018 decision in Janus v. AFSCME Council 31, state and … Read More ➡

Ethics & Bar Complaints Filed Against Sen. Schumer on Supreme Court Threats

Posted on by NLPC Staff

National Legal and Policy Center today filed an ethics complaint against U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer with both the U.S. Senate Ethics Committee as well as with the New York Bar Disciplinary Committee.

The Complaints detail the threatening comments that Senator Schumer made earlier this week on the Supreme Court steps targeting Associate Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh.

During the Supreme Court’s hearing on a controversial abortion case Schumer stated in part:

“…I want to tell you, Gorsuch… I want to tell you, Kavanaugh… you have released the whirlwind, and you will pay the price. You won’t know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions.”

Senator Schumer’s remarks drew a public rebuke from Chief Justice John Roberts, the legal community including the American Bar Association, the public, and many Members of Congress, led by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

“These outrageous threats from Senator Schumer must … Read More ➡