Schenck v. United States, 249 U.S. 47 (decided March 3, 1919): upholding Espionage Act conviction for mailing young men leaflets encouraging them to protest the draft (during World War I)
The Ku-Klux Cases, 110 U.S. 651 (decided March 3, 1884): upholding conviction of men who beat up black man to keep him from voting; 18 U.S.C. §51 (“Enforcement Act”) validly creates liability of private persons for obstructing federal rights
Cohens v. Virginia, 19 U.S. 264 (decided March 3, 1821): Court can review state criminal proceedings (here, conviction for illegally selling D.C. lottery tickets in Virginia; Court then holds that it was a local matter and no jurisdiction!)
Negusie v. Holder, 555 U.S. 511 (decided March 3, 2009): Was Eritrean/Ethiopian applying for asylum (a former prison guard) persecuted in his home country (forced to beat prisoners) or in fact one of the persecutors? If a persecutor, barred by regulations from asylum, but Court finds the rule developed by the Board of Immigration Appeals to be ambiguous and not based on relevant statute (case then bounced back and forth between the BIA and the Attorney General, with the change of administrations playing a part; still undecided, as far as I can tell)
Federal Republic of Germany v. United States, 526 U.S. 111 (decided March 3, 1999): Court says it has no jurisdiction to rule on International Court of Justice’s order, upon motion of Germany, not to execute German citizen convicted in Arizona of murder (Germany, being part of the civilized world, abolished the death penalty long ago) (the next day the German, Walter LeGrand, was executed via gas chamber at the prison in Florence, Arizona)
Kawaauhau v. Geiger, 523 U.S. 57 (decided March 3, 1998): medical malpractice award for “reckless” conduct dischargeable in bankruptcy; injury not intentional and not within exception for “willful and malicious injury”, 11 U.S.C. §523(a)(6) (no one ever taught me this, but in law school I thought of it this way: if you’re approaching an intersection and don’t check to see if the light’s green, you’re negligent; if you see the light’s red and you still proceed, you’re reckless; if you see someone crossing and drive right into him, you’re intentional)
Adams v. Robertson, 520 U.S. 83 (decided March 3, 1997): Court can’t review state court proceedings if federal issue wasn’t presented to state court of last resort (here, claim that class members in action against health insurer for fraud were not given chance to opt out)
Reves v. Ernst & Young, 507 U.S. 170 (decided March 3, 1993): accountants not liable under RICO because did not participate in operation or management of farmers’ cooperative (18 U.S.C. §1962(c)), even though they did not inform Board of Directors of possible insolvency
School Board of Nassau Co., Florida v. Arline, 480 U.S. 273 (decided March 3, 1987): teacher susceptible to tuberculosis (1957 hospitalization, relapses in 1977 and 1978; fired in 1979) was “handicapped individual” under Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and protected from discrimination (the school argued that she was placing her students at risk; the Court says, “It would be unfair to allow an employer to seize upon the distinction between the effects of a disease on others and the effects of a disease on a patient and use that distinction to justify discriminatory treatment,” which seems strange to me, especially when children in close contact are involved)
Arizona v. Hicks, 480 U.S. 321 (decided March 3, 1987): Police entering apartment searching for shooter. Suspecting stolen stereo, they could record serial numbers in plain view (that’s not a “seizure”) but needed warrant to move things around to see the numbers (that would be a “search”) (but what if the police officer had a sneezing fit and “accidentally” butted into things?).
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