The Supreme Court’s blockbuster term

Hour 1

By all accounts, the Supreme Court’s current term has been filled with decisions on important and historic cases, influencing criminal procedure, privacy, and decency on the airwaves, with decisions still to come that will influence politics and policy. The Court has already decided on cases including redistricting in Texas, whether religious schools have to abide by anti-discrimination laws, the use of eyewitness testimony and how privacy rights will be protected in the digital age.  Later this spring, the justices will hear a challenge to the 2010 Affordable Care Act and will rule on the constitutionality of the individual mandate. They have also agreed to hear a case surrounding Arizona’s controversial immigration law, which requires police to check the immigration status of anyone they detain and suspect of being in the nation illegally.  We’ve invited Drexel University law professor LISA McELROY to help us understand the significance of the Supreme Court’s current docket and how the decisions will clarify and influence the relationships between federal and state governments and the power of the executive, legislative and judicial branches.

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[audio: 020212_100630.mp3]