Policy Area

In United States v. Cooley the U.S. Supreme Court held unanimously that an Indian tribe police officer may temporarily detain and search a non-Indian on a public right-of-way that runs through an Indian reservation, based on a suspected violation of state or federal law.

A tribal officer approached a vehicle stopped on a public right-of-way within the Crow Reservation to offer assistance. The officer ordered Joshua James Cooley, who appeared...

In City of San Antonio, Texas v. Hotels.com the U.S. Supreme Court held unanimously that federal district courts may not alter a court of appeals’ allocation of appellate costs. The State and Local Legal Center (SLLC) filed an amicus brief in this case arguing for district court discretion.  

The City of...

In Edwards v. Vonnoy the U.S. Supreme Court held 6-3 that no new rules of criminal procedure apply retroactively on federal collateral review. For this reason the Supreme Court’s holding in Ramos v. Louisiana (2020), that state court jury verdicts for convictions of serious crimes must be unanimous, does not apply retroactively to cases on federal collateral review....

In B.P. v. Mayor and City Council of Baltimore the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 7-1 that a federal court of appeals may review any grounds the district court considered for trying to remove a case to federal court where one of the grounds was federal officer or civil rights removal.

The State and Local Legal Center (SLLC) filed an...

In a four-page opinion the U.S. Supreme Court held unanimously in Caniglia v. Strom that police community caretaking duties don’t justify warrantless searches and seizures in the home.

During an argument with his wife, Edward Caniglia put a handgun on their dining room table and asked his wife to “shoot [him] now and get it over with.” After spending the night at a hotel Caniglia’s wife couldn’t reach him by phone and asked police to do a...

In Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization the Supreme Court will decide whether “all pre-viability prohibitions on elective abortions are unconstitutional.”

Mississippi prohibits abortions, except in a medical emergency or in the case of a severe fetal abnormality, after 15 weeks gestational age. The Fifth Circuit affirmed the lower court’s decision to invalidate Mississippi’s law.

Mississippi concedes...

In an amicus brief, the State and Local Legal Center (SLLC) asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review the Ninth Circuit decision in City of Portland v. FCC. The lower court held that the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) Small Cell Order, which limits fees local governments can charge for use of public land...

In Houston Community College System v. Wilson the U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether the First Amendment restricts the authority of an elected body to issue a censure resolution in response to a member’s speech.

David Wilson was an elected trustee of the Houston Community College System (HCC). In response to the board’s decision to fund a campus in Qatar, which he disagreed with, he arranged robocalls and was...