SCOTUS Watch: Order List, Torture-Enabling, and Two Executions

The June rush continues. Some notable stuff happened before they even started to hand down their final scheduled opinions for the term. 

Order List

The Monday Order List had a few interesting odds and ends. 

Alito and Roberts did not take part in a case. Roberts did not take part in a frivolous petition in which he was involved. Either way, only the liberals explain why they recuse.

SCOTUS reinstated briefing for a previously granted case involving a dispute over a Biden-era student loan forgiveness program. The case was originally put on pause on request by the Trump administration. 

They took a case to decide whether government officials can be held personally liable for violating an inmate’s religious liberty. The case involves blatant facts where a prisoner showed someone a court order protecting him, and they ignored it. 

In fact, they threw away the copy of the order when he showed it. Appealing facts help determine the legal result. And, since it involves religious liberty, even Alito will likely be sympathetic. 

Trump Enabling 

The most significant action on Monday separately took place on the shadow/emergency docket. 

A lower court judge, after the Administration repeatedly did not follow (or violated the spirit of) court orders, held that non-citizens had a right to contest being sent to a country where they face a credible threat to be mistreatment. As noted in the opinion, even the Trump S.G. seemed to agree. 

Sotomayor, for the liberals, had a strong dissent accusing the Court of a (non-explained) decision that "obstructs those proceedings, exposing thousands to the risk of torture or death." Their action "rewards lawlessness." 

She ends with "Respectfully, but regretfully, I dissent." At some point, you have to leave off the "respectfully." 

Steve Vladeck has more, calling it "disastrous." 

Executions

Florida executed Thomas Lee Gudinas for a heinous rape/murder that he committed in 1994. 

The defense argued that Gudinas was incapacitated at the time of the homicide, had an IQ of 85, suffered from personality disorders, was developmentally impaired and was abused and diagnosed as "sexually disturbed" as a child. 

The appeals dealt with various matters. SCOTUS rejected his final appeal without comment. 

Mississippi, which last executed someone in 2022, prosecuted Richard Gerald Jordan in 1976. Kidnapping and murder. You can hear from the victim's son here. 

There were various procedural problems. During the appeals, he became liable for the death penalty, which factors into a final appeal. 

A judge also rejected an appeal based on the danger that the midazolam drug won't work appropriately. The Supreme Court has not shown concern about that, even though, as Prof. Lain shows in her book, they should. 

I continuously argue that executing people long after their sentencing has special problems (Breyer). I think fifty years is rather blatant. This would be a good time for Sotomayor or Jackson to flag the problem. 

They had multiple chances (which they did not take) since not only was a cert grant tossed in among the list of cert denials in the Order List, but three final orders were handed down today. 

No comment as his five-decade delay of death ended.