United States Supreme Court - June 2004 Opinion Summaries

SOSA v. ALVAREZ-MACHAIN

Injury & Tort Law, International Law
The Federal Tort Claims Act's exception to waiver of sovereign immunity for claims arising in a foreign country bars claims based on any injury...

ASHCROFT v. ACLU

Constitutional Law, Cyberspace Law
The Court upheld a preliminary injunction barring the enforcement of the Child Online Pornography Act, because the statute likely violates the First...

RUMSFELD v. PADILLA

Criminal Law & Procedure, Habeas Corpus
The Court lacked jurisdiction over plaintiff's habeas petition, because the U. S. Secretary of State, against whom the petition was brought, was not...

RASUL v. BUSH

Civil Procedure, International Law, Military Law
United States courts have jurisdiction to consider challenges to the legality of the detention of foreign nationals captured abroad in connection with...

HAMDI v. RUMSFELD

Constitutional Law, Habeas Corpus, Military Law
Where a U.S. citizen was detained for allegedly fighting against the U.S. in Afghanistan as an enemy combatant, due process demands that he be given a...

MISSOURI v. SEIBERT

Criminal Law & Procedure, Evidence
Where an officer intentionally withheld Miranda warnings, obtained a confession, then issued Miranda warnings and elicited a second confession, the...

US v. PATANE

Constitutional Law, Criminal Law & Procedure, Evidence
Failure to give as suspect full Miranda warnings does not require the suppression of the physical fruits of the suspect's unwarned, voluntary...

HOLLAND v. JACKSON

Criminal Law & Procedure, Habeas Corpus
Concerning a habeas petition, the Sixth Circuit erred in holding that the state court's application of Strickland was unreasonable on evidence not...

TENNARD v. DRETKE

Constitutional Law, Criminal Law & Procedure, Evidence
In a capital murder case involving a defendant with an IQ of 67, a COA should have issued, because a reasonable jurist could have found the district...

BLAKELY v. WASHINGTON

Constitutional Law, Criminal Law & Procedure, Sentencing
Because the facts supporting the defendant's exceptionally harsh sentence were neither admitted by the defendant, nor found by a jury, the sentence...