Paul Erlinger, Petitioner v. United States

  1. June 21, 2024

    Justices Strengthen Jury Trial Rights For Stiffer Sentences

    The constitutional rights to due process and trial by jury extend to a pivotal prong of a prominent sentencing enhancement for recidivism, the U.S. Supreme Court held in a Friday decision that casts doubt on many incarcerations and promises to reshape future trials.

  2. April 26, 2024

    Thomas' Long Quest To Undo A 'Grave Constitutional Error'

    A quarter-century after Justice Clarence Thomas cast a pivotal vote against jury trial rights and rapidly regretted it, his relentless campaign to undo the controversial precedent is suddenly center stage with a serious shot at succeeding, as judges and lawyers increasingly deem the decision dubious and the U.S. Supreme Court chips away at its edges.

  3. March 27, 2024

    Justices Poised To Expand Repeat Offenders' Jury Trial Rights

    The U.S. Supreme Court appeared likely Wednesday to agree with the Biden administration and the criminal defense bar that repeat offenders have a constitutional right to let a jury decide if past offenses were sufficiently distinct to trigger lengthy prison terms under a prominent sentencing enhancement.

  4. March 27, 2024

    Sotomayor 'Annoyed' By Supreme Court's Focus On History

    U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor seemed to release some pent-up frustration Wednesday over the court's increasing focus on history and tradition when reviewing constitutional disputes, suggesting the method frequently used by the court's more conservative members isn't foolproof.

  5. March 25, 2024

    In High Court Sentencing Case, It's Everyone V. Gibson Dunn

    As the U.S. Supreme Court scrutinizes severe sentencing of repeat offenders, one view is backed by the Biden administration, defense bar groups, incarceration reformers and a household name among appellate advocates. And then there's the view backed by a few lawyers at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP.

  6. March 22, 2024

    Up Next At High Court: Abortion, Jury Trials And Estate Tax

    The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments this week over the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's decision expanding access to popular abortion pill mifepristone as well as whether juries should determine a defendants' eligibility for repeat offender enhanced sentencing under the Armed Career Criminal Act and how long federal employees have to appeal adverse employment decisions.

  7. January 04, 2024

    High Court Urged To Toss Armed Career Criminal Conviction

    A man who received an enhanced 15-year prison sentence under the Armed Career Criminal Act after illegally possessing firearms asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse his conviction and clarify what counts as a predicate offense under the act, an issue the justices have agreed to address.

  8. November 22, 2023

    Triple Trouble: Justices Set To Scrutinize 3-Strikes Circuit Split

    One of the most heavily litigated laws at the U.S. Supreme Court — three-strikes sentencing instituted under a Reagan-era clampdown on street violence and drugs — returns to the high court Monday, but this visit will be anything but ordinary, occurring amid an eruption of circuit court conflicts and presenting the prospect of a jolt to the nation's criminal defense docket.

  9. November 20, 2023

    Justices To Decide Jury's Role In Career Criminal Sentences

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to weigh in on whether a judge or jury should determine if a criminal defendant's prior convictions qualify them for enhanced sentencing under the Armed Career Criminal Act, a ruling an Indiana defendant and the U.S. Department of Justice agree belongs in the hands of jurors.