Justice Souter Stepping Down
In recent news it has been confirmed that Justice Souter, a United States Supreme Court Judge, will be retiring in the next few weeks. The media is already speculating about President Obama's potential nominees. Although the U.S. Supreme Court hears only a select number of cases each year, these cases often have a profound effect on the legal system across the country.
For example, when the Court ruled in Booker v. United States that the United States Sentencing Guidelines were no longer mandatory, th sentencing methods in Federal Court were drastically changed. District Court Judges were no longer bound by the guidelines and were free to give a "reasonable" sentence after considering the sentencing factors in 18 U.S.C. section 3553(a). In United States v. Kimbrough, the court addressed the crack cocaine ratio and the disparity it created in sentencing.
In South Carolina, a federal case begins in the District of South Carolina. South Carolina has one district with several divisions, including Florence, Aiken, Spartanburg, Columbia, Charleston, and Greenville. If a defendant wishes to appeal a conviction and sentence in the District Court of South Carolina, it must be filed in the Fourth Circuit. The Fourth Circuit hears cases from all of the district courts in Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Maryland.
Once an opinion is issued in the Fourth Circuit, a defendant has the option to file a writ of certiorari in the United States Supreme Court.
Appellate attorneys in South Carolina and across the country will be paying close attention to Obama's Supreme Court nomination.
