Today in Supreme Court History: June 25, 1997

6/25/1997: City of Boerne v. Flores is decided.

Comments

[Dan Schiavetta]

Shelby County v. Holder, 570 U.S. 529 (decided June 25, 2013): preclearance provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 can no longer be enforced until Congress comes up with new racial discrimination data (current data was 40 years old) (immediately after this decision came down states formerly under preclearance began enacting voting restrictions)

Engel v. Vitale, 370 U.S. 421 (decided June 25, 1962): prohibited school-led prayer in public schools as violating First Amendment Establishment Clause

Chevron v. NRDC, Inc., 467 U.S. 837 (decided June 25, 1984): the origin of "Chevron deference", often posted on here; courts will defer to an agency's "permissible construction" of a statute if Congress has not directly spoken on the issue (here, whether pollutants from different parts of a steelmaking plant are from one "stationary source")

City of Boerne v. Flores, 521 U.S. 507 (decided June 25, 1997): upholding San Antonio's refusal on zoning grounds to approve church expansion and declaring Religious Freedom Restoration Act unconstitutional because its requirement of "strict scrutiny" of restrictions on religious practice was for the courts, not Congress, to decide; holding was superseded by the thus-far-unabrogated Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act which is based on Congress's Spending Clause power

Riley v. California, 573 U.S. 373 (decided June 25, 2014): need warrant to search an arrested person's cell phone; it's not a permissible "search incident to arrest"

Georgia v. South Carolina, 497 U.S. 376 (decided June 25, 1990): an original jurisdiction case as to ownership of new islands in the Savannah River created by natural avulsion/accretion; the Court ruled for South Carolina as to some matters, and for Georgia in others, based on 1787 treaty, acquiescence in use, and other factors. Interesting opinion to read, seeing the Court get into minute fact-finding as to a few square yards of shoals and islets. I imagine the issue will have to be revisited as nature continues to sculpt the area.

United States v. Alford, 274 U.S. 264 (decided June 25, 1927): upholding conviction for failing to extinguish fire created "near" federal land though not on it; the word "near" in the statute was not too indefinite, given the danger of forest fires spreading to public land

Robinson v. California, 370 U.S. 660 (decided June 25, 1962): striking down on "cruel and unusual punishment" grounds California statute penalizing "being addicted to the use of narcotics" even when one hasn't used them or possessed them within the state

[DaivdBehar]

Shelby County v. Holder, 570 U.S. 529 (decided June 25, 2013): preclearance provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 can no longer be enforced until Congress comes up with new racial discrimination data (current data was 40 years old) (immediately after this decision came down states formerly under preclearance began enacting voting restrictions)

This case resulted in a natural experiment. Black voter participation was at how much? And how much is it now? Who made that happen?

Trump was the President who busted records not just in prosperity, not just in lowering crime victimization of the diverse, but also in voter participation.

[Frank Drackman]

And June 25, 1876, Chief Sitting Bull pulled out a "W" for the Nobel Red Man.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0O1_X1t_dw

Frank "Sorry Colonel Custer, you don't have a "Reservation" (get it?)

[DaivdBehar]

Obama may have been a paid agent of the gun industry. Gun sales to blacks are also bustin' records. We have to crush the scumbag lawyer profession prosecuting victim who shoot back. This pro-criminal scumbag profession is the cause of 100% of crime. The deceased have a very low recidivism rate. The scumbags are keeping the criminals alive to generate worthless, make work, rent seeking jobs for themselves.

[DaivdBehar]

Hi, Rhoid. Trump, of course, stopped the illegales from taking the jobs of the diverses. Trump stopped the illegales from conducting the ultra-violent, ethnic cleansing of traditional long held diverse neighborhoods. Trump is the best friend of the diverses.