Supreme Court to Hear Cases on Ghost Guns, Death Penalty, and Facebook
The Supreme Court’s fall term begins on Monday, October 7, 2024, and the calendar for the first two months suggests that the justices will have a busy start to the 2024-2025 term. They will hear a total of nine arguments over five days in October, followed by seven arguments in five days in November.
Notable Cases
- **Garland, Att’y Gen. v. VanDerStok (23-852)**: This case will determine whether a rule issued by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) regulating “ghost guns” is consistent with federal firearms laws. The ATF’s rule, which departs from nearly 45 years of precedent, classifies partially-manufactured firearm parts and parts kits as “firearms” under the law.
- **Glossip v. Oklahoma (22-7466)**: This is a death penalty case involving Richard Glossip, who was convicted and sentenced to death for the 1997 murder of Barry Van Treese. The Supreme Court will decide whether Oklahoma violated Glossip’s constitutional rights when prosecutors suppressed evidence that their key witness was under a psychiatrist’s care.
- **Facebook Inc. v. Amalgamated Bank (23-980)**: This shareholder’s case stems from the political intrigue surrounding the 2016 election and Cambridge Analytica’s collection and use of Facebook users’ data without their knowledge and consent. The court will determine whether risk disclosures are false or misleading when they do not disclose that a risk has materialized in the past, even if that post does not present any known risk of ongoing or future business harm.
These are just a few of the noteworthy cases that the Supreme Court will hear this term. The court’s decisions will have a significant impact on a wide range of issues, including gun control, the death penalty, and privacy.
