Legal Commentary

The Supreme Court?s Reinhardt-Watch Continues

By Orin Kerr

I don?t know which is more newsworthy: A day that the Supreme Court hands down new opinions that includes a unanimous reversal of a Ninth Circuit decision by Judge Reinhardt, or a day that the Supreme Court hands down new opinions that does not include a unanimous reversal of a Ninth Circuit decision by Judge Reinhardt.

In any event, today is one of the former days, as the Court has summarily reversed Judge Reinhardt?s decision in Cooke v. Solis with a per curiam opinion in Swarthout v. Cooke. The key line from today?s Reinhardt-reversal:

The short of the matter is that the responsibility for assuring that the constitutionally adequate procedures governing California?s parole system are properly applied rests with California courts, and is no part of the Ninth Circuit?s business.

Full post as published by The Volokh Conspiracy on January 24, 2011 (boomark / email).