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Supreme Court hunkers down for big decisions at end of term
By Catholic Online (NEWS CONSORTIUM)
June 21st, 2012
Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)
June 21st, 2012
Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)
The Supreme Court is winding down its term this year - but there's no shortage of highly important of cases that remain to be heard. The cases in which the justices will render decisions range everywhere from Obama's health care plan - to stolen valor - to Arizona's hotly contested immigration law.
The FCC declared indecent in a 2002 outburst by Cher on a Fox awards show and several other incidents. Fox Television Stations sued, saying the new limit on "fleeting expletives" was arbitrary and violated the First Amendment. A lower court ruled the FCC lacked sufficient grounds to target one-time expletives yet did not rule on the First Amendment question.
The case also traced a 2003 Golden Globes show in which U2 lead singer Bono used an expletive in his televised acceptance speech. The Federal Communications Commission reversed long-standing policy targeting only repeated expletives and said any one-time use of vulgarities associated with sexual or excretory functions could be sanctioned.
The court has since ruled against the FCC in the indecency case, as it didn't give fair notice to broadcasters.
The justices will also decide on life sentences without parole for juveniles convicted of homicide, the latest case in which the court is considering whether harsh sentences for people under 18 violate the Eight Amendment prohibition of cruel and unusual punishments.
Also going before the justices is the Stolen Valor Act, enacted in 2006, which makes it a federal crime for a person to claim falsely to have received a U.S. military medal. A California man admits he lied when he said he won the Medal of Honor -- but argued that his statements were protected by the First Amendment.
The court's final argument of the term, on April 25, involved Arizona's tough anti-immigration law. At first, the justices suggested they were ready to uphold at least one part of the law - a provision directing police to check the immigration status of people they stop -but the fate of other provisions was less clear.
And - as if on top of all the other cases, the fate of President Barack Obama's health-care law, also known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is expected to be decided in the last week of June.
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