Supreme Court "Cert. Alert"

"Cert. Alerts"

An added benefit of our new blog is the ability to instantly inform you of important cases that will be decided by the Supreme Court. Our first "Cert. Alert" involves the Supreme Court's decision to grant certiorari review in two Armed Career Criminal Act Cases (ACCA). If you have an ACCA case, you should generally raise and preserve arguments similar to those argued below:

From the Office of Defender Services, Legal Policy and Training Division:

The Supreme Court has granted certiorari review in two ACCA cases. In Begay v. United States, No. 06-11543, the Court will decide whether driving while intoxicated is a crime that “otherwise involves conduct that presents a serious potential risk of injury to another,” and hence is a “violent felony” under 18 U.S.C. §924(e)(2)(B)(ii). Because this case involves the interpretation of the “otherwise” clause of §924(e)(2)(B)(ii), the Court’s decision may have broad implications and extend to prior offenses other than DWI. Practitioners currently handling ACCA cases may wish to raise and preserve claims similar to those argued in the briefs of petitioner and amici. The cert. petition may be accessed here. The decision below may be accessed here. The briefs of petitioner and amici in support of petitioner may be accessed here.

In United States v. Rodriquez, No. 06-1646, the Court will decide whether a state controlled substance offense (punishable by five years imprisonment) is a “serious drug offense” under 18 U.S.C. §924(e)(2)(A)(ii) because the defendant was subject to a recidivist enhancement statute (establishing a ten-year statutory maximum). The cert petition may be accessed here. The decision below may be accessed here.