Today in Supreme Court History: January 23

United States v. Jones, 565 U.S. 400 (decided January 23, 2012): attaching a GPS device to suspected drug dealer’s vehicle (actually his wife’s) is a “search” of “effects” and therefore warrant needed

Ryburn v. Huff, 565 U.S. 469 (decided January 23, 2012): police entitled to qualified immunity for warrantless search when they went to house of student who had threatened to “shoot up” the school and when mother answered door and was asked if they had any guns she ran back inside

National Meat Ass’n v. Harris, 565 U.S. 452 (decided January 23, 2012): Federal Meat Inspection Act preempted California Penal Code as to slaughter and sale of “nonambulatory” animals (federal regulations allow sale of suitable parts after post-mortem inspection) (I am the son of a butcher and this nauseated even me)

Reynolds v. United States, 565 U.S. 432 (decided January 23, 2012): requirements of Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act do not apply to those convicted before the Act became law (July 27, 2006) unless (under the terms of the Act) the Attorney General so specifies (which he did on February 28, 2007); A.G. had been given discretion because of all the pre-Act offenders to whom 50 different state registration laws applied

Unitherm Food Systems, Inc. v. Swift-Eckrich, Inc., 546 U.S. 394 (decided January 23, 2006): Fed. R. Civ. Pro. 50 ties not just the trial court’s hands but also the appellate court’s: if, after motion for directed verdict (50(a)) no motion is made postverdict for judgment NOV and new trial (50(b)), then appellate court can’t enter judgment NOV nor order a new trial (issue at trial was allegedly fraudulently obtained patent, and the Tenth Circuit, whose procedural law applied, had previously ruled that a 50(b) motion did not have to be made)