Supreme Court Decision Syllabus (SCOTUS Podcast)
Following what the Supreme Court is actually doing can be daunting. Reporting on the subject is often only done within the context of political narratives of the day -- and following the Court's decisions and reading every new case can be a non-starter. The purpose of this Podcast is to make it as easy as possible for members of the public to source information about what is happening at the Supreme Court. For that reason, we read every Opinion Syllabus without any commentary whatsoever. Further, there are no advertisements or sponsors. We call it "information sourcing," and we hope that the podcast is a useful resource for members of the public who want to understand the legal issues of the day, prospective law students who want to get to know legal language and understand good legal writing, and attorneys who can use the podcast to be better advocates for their clients.
*Note this podcast is for informational and educational purposes only.
Supreme Court Decision Syllabus (SCOTUS Podcast)
Gonzalez v. Trevino (Section 1983)
Gonzalez v. Trevino
The decision of the 5th Circuit is vacated and remanded for further proceedings. Gonzalez was 72 years old, when in 2019, she was elected to a seat on her local City Council in Texas. She collected signatures for a petition trying to get the City Manager removed. There was a long debate at the meeting about this topic. The Mayor asked for the petition at the meeting, she denied having it. She was searched and they found the petition. She said she didn't know it was there, the Mayor told the police and hired a private attorney to investigate the situation. she was arrested under a statute which purports to criminalize "intentionally removing a government record." She filed an action under Section 1983. The district court determined that she could proceed and that even though there was probable cause, it was enough to show that this type of crime was not typically prosecuted. The Appellate Court reversed, determining that she needed to show a closer analog. The Court determined that the Circuit Court's decision was too narrow and that it should be remanded for further determination. Per Curiam decision. Read by Jeff Barnum.
