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SCOTUS’s Declining State Criminal Appeals
The disappearance of state criminal appeals from the high court’s docket is profoundly problematic for the rights of criminal defendants and civil rights plaintiffs.
Caulkins v. Pritzker
Ruled that state ban on assault weapons with exemptions did not deny equal protection or amount to unconstitutional special legislation
State v. Benton
Ruled that a possible confidential informant was a state agent when questioning defendant, thus violating defendant's right to counsel
State v. Johnson
Overruled precedent that permitted defendants in camera review of victim’s medical records, in part because of new victim’s rights constitutional provision
State v. Rivers
Declined to hold that there is greater protection of the right to a jury drawn from fair cross section of the community under the state constitution than the federal constitution
Chevron U.S.A. v. Monterey County
Struck down local ordinance prohibiting coastal oil drilling and fracking activities as preempted by state law
State v. Watson
Held that first-time in-court identifications can be conducted only if there is “good reason”
People v. Posey
Held that law requiring appellate courts to affirm all criminal sentences fitting within the legislature's sentencing guidelines violated the right to appeal
Draper v. Gentry
Held that defendants are permitted discovery from victims if defendant seeks evidence of “constitutional dimension” and the requested discovery is “very likely” to contain such evidence
We Need to Know More About State Supreme Court Cases
State high courts interpret laws that impact some of the most intimate parts of our lives. Communities have a right to know what’s on the docket.
