Topic: Ruth Bader Ginsburg

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Judge strikes down 'suspicionless' drug testing of Florida state workers

A federal judge's ruling strikes down Florida's first-in-the-nation drug testing law – and could give pause to other states considering suspicionless drug testing of state workers or others receiving state funds.
Orrin Hatch close call in Utah: Tea party rising?

Sen. Orrin Hatch is favored to win reelection, but first he faces a primary election against tea party favorite Dan Liljenquist. Can Hatch avoid the fate of former Utah Sen. Bob Bennett, ousted in 2010 by the tea party?
Supreme Court approves strip searches for minor offenses

Jail officials are justified in performing strip searches as a reasonable precaution to maintain safety and order at their facilities, the Supreme Court said Monday.
Supreme Court justices appear poised to sweep aside entire health-care law

Conservative Supreme Court justices argued Wednesday morning that without the individual mandate, the entire 2,700-page health-care law must be invalidated in full.
Obama health reform law: clues to how the justices might behave

The four justices who make up the US Supreme Court's liberal wing are expected to uphold the constitutionality of the Obama health reform law. How the other five will see it is less certain.
Does Secret Service protection trump speech rights? Supreme Court hears case.

A Colorado man arrested in 2006 after telling Vice President Cheney what he thought of the Iraq war alleges that Secret Service agents retaliated against him for his opinions.
Do 14-year-old killers deserve life without parole? Supreme Court hears cases.

Supreme Court Justice Kennedy is seen as the potential swing vote in two cases questioning whether life without parole for 14-year-old killers is cruel and unusual punishment.
Does Supreme Court decision on sick leave hint at health-care law ruling?

The sick leave provision and health-care law rely on different sections of the Constitution, but Supreme Court-watchers noted with interest that the justices found Congress had overstepped its authority.
Drug testing: Florida aims to be first to test public workers

New Florida drug-testing law allows agency heads to randomly test public workers for illegal drugs, prescription drugs, and alcohol. But it exempts the governor and state legislators.
Unanimous Supreme Court: Get a warrant before installing GPS tracking device

The ruling upholds a broad right to be free from unreasonable searches. But it also highlights a struggle within the Supreme Court to balance law enforcement objectives with privacy concerns.
Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony

The lawyer for a convicted New Hampshire man had asked the Supreme Court to establish an expanded rule to help prevent unreliable eyewitness testimony at criminal trials.
Is new Supreme Court ruling a retreat from Citizens United?

The Supreme Court upheld Monday a long-established provision of campaign finance law that seeks to prevent foreign interests from influencing domestic politics.
Supreme Court rebukes Ninth Circuit, again, in 'shaken baby' case

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals erred by substituting its own judgment for the jury's in the 'shaken baby' conviction of a California grandmother, the Supreme Court said. The reversal will send Shirley Ree Smith back to prison.
Supreme Court: Matching funds in Arizona election law violate free speech

The Supreme Court rejected by 5 to 4 a portion of Arizona's campaign finance law that provides state matching funds to candidates who are outspent by privately funded opponents.
Supreme Court strikes down ban on selling violent video games to minors

California’s video-game ban violated the protections of the First Amendment, the Supreme Court said in a 7-to-2 decision.
Drug labels: Generics don't need warning updates

Drug labels and prescription records decisions by the Supreme Court Thursday favor the pharmaceutical industry. The court ruled that drug labels for generics don't need the same updated warnings that the brand-name makers do.
CSI meets Law & Order: Supreme Court rules lab techs must testify in court

The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the practice of permitting substitutes to testify about forensic evidence violates defendants’ constitutional rights to confront their accusers.
Supreme Court strikes down law restricting sale of prescription drug info

In a closely-watched case affecting data mining and physicians' privacy, the Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Vermont cannot stop prescription drug companies from accessing doctors' prescription histories in order to market newer, more expensive drugs.
Wal-Mart v. Dukes ruling is out of sync with 21st-century sex discrimination

In Wal-Mart v. Dukes, the Supreme Court set a dangerous precedent when it ruled that the women in the class action suit could not prove a common culture of sex discrimination. But sexism is no longer written in official policy. It's engrained in culture.
In Wal-Mart case and health care law, a presumption of guilt

The dissenting opinion in the Wal-Mart sex-discrimination ruling presumes male managers are guilty of bias. And in the health care law, an assumption of guilt about people not paying medical bills lies behind the mandate to buy insurance.
Supreme Court rules in Wal-Mart's favor: How the sides are reacting

A split Supreme Court ruled against 1.5 million women employees who brought a massive class-action lawsuit against Wal-Mart. After the ruling, both sides weighed in.
Supreme Court throws out back-door bid to curb global warming

A coalition of states and conservation groups sought to use public-nuisance law to compel five energy companies to curb greenhouse gases linked to global warming. The Supreme Court unanimously dismissed the case.
Supreme Court dismisses women's class action lawsuit against Wal-Mart

The Supreme Court decision, seen as a victory for Wal-Mart and corporate America, makes it more difficult for employees to join together in a common lawsuit unless they are able to identify a common injury.
Supreme Court: When police question children, their age matters

In the case of a 7th-grader who confessed to break-ins, the Supreme Court ruled that police need to consider a child's age when deciding when to issue Miranda warnings.
Supreme Court: US Muslim cannot sue Ashcroft for 2003 detention ordeal

Former Attorney General John Ashcroft is entitled to qualified immunity and cannot be sued by an American Muslim detained under harsh conditions in 2003, the US Supreme Court ruled Tuesday.