
Tonight we have dissents from both Sotomayor and Breyer in the last instance of the Supreme Court waving the matador's cape for Trump's machinery of death without so much as a word of reasoned justification









This is my story about the case. Higgs was not the triggerman in the murder of Tamika Black, Tanji Jackson and Mishann Chinn\u2014the government concedes this. The man who was the shooter later said the prosecution\u2019s theory was \u201cbullshit.\u201d https://t.co/Za8lcSB3zN
— Liliana Segura (@LilianaSegura) January 16, 2021
Dustin Higgs was pronounced dead at 1:23 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 16 at FCC-TH. His final words, \u201cFirst, I\u2019d like to state I am an innocent man.\u201d He named the three victims, then said, \u201cI am not responsible for their deaths and I did not order the murders.\u201d
— TribStarLisa (@TribStarLisa) January 16, 2021
More from Law
Honest Q: Some people argue in good faith that an impeachment trial after POTUS leaves office is unconstitutional. I think they\u2019re wrong. But let\u2019s say they\u2019re right, yet senate does it anyway. Does anyone seriously think SCOTUS reverses verdict (or even can)?
— Jonah Goldberg (@JonahDispatch) January 17, 2021
Suppose Senate convicts and disqualifies Trump from ever holding federal office. Trump files paperwork to run anyway, but state officials deny his application, citing his Senate impeachment judgment. Trump sues, arguing that the judgment is void.
Normally a legal dispute about a prospective candidates eligibility to run would certainly present a justiciable case or controversy. But are courts bound to accept the Senate impeachment judgment as valid? Maybe not. Here’s why:
According to Article I, “The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments.” This is a small amount of judicial power vested in Congress. When trying impeachments, the Senate sits as a court.
The Senate’s judicial power includes the power to decide relevant legal questions that arise, such as what procedures are sufficient to constitute a “trial” w/in the Constitution’s meaning. Such legal determinations are conclusive, as SCOTUS held in Nixon v. United States (1993).