What Else Might Senate Republicans Have Done, Given That They’re Too Scared to Do the Right Thing?

NEIL H. BUCHANAN

UF law professor and economist Neil H. Buchanan considers whether there is anything Senate Republicans might have done, instead of outright acquitting President Trump, to maintain the role of Congress as a coequal branch with the Executive. Buchanan proposes that under the text of the impeachment clauses, those Republican senators could have voted for removal—the necessary result of finding wrongdoing—but permitted Trump to run again in the election later this year.

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Bergman v. Caulk

Docket: A18-1784

Opinion Date: February 5, 2020

Judge: Chutich

Areas of Law: Criminal Law, Government & Administrative Law

The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the court of appeals ruling that James Bergman was not disqualified from receiving a permit to carry a firearm, holding that the sealing of judicial records under a court's inherent authority does not satisfy the federal requirement of expungement. In 2007, a Minnesota district court issued an expungement order under its inherent authority sealing the judicial records of Bergman's prior conviction of domestic assault. Thereafter, Bergman applied for a permit to carry a firearm. Bergman was granted the permit. In 2017, the Isanti County Sheriff denied Bergman's permit-to-carry application because of his prior domestic assault conviction. The district court denied Bergman's petition for a writ of mandamus. The court of appeals reversed. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that the sealing of judicial records under a district court's inherent authority is not sufficient under federal law to expunge a previous conviction and thereby reinstate an applicant's right to carry a firearm in Minnesota.

Fox v. State

Docket: A19-1140

Opinion Date: February 5, 2020

Judge: David L. Lillehaug

Areas of Law: Criminal Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the district court denying Appellant's second petition for postconviction relief, holding that the district court did not abuse its discretion when it denied Appellant's petition. Appellant was found guilty of first-degree premeditated murder and first-degree felony murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. This appeal concerned Appellant's second petition for postconviction relief, in which Appellant requested a new trial based on four theories of ineffective assistance of appellate counsel. The district court denied the petition, concluding, among other things, that Appellant's claims were time barred under Minn. Stat. 590.01, subd. 4(a). The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that Appellant's petition was time-barred and Appellant did not meet the interests of justice exception to the time bar.

State v. Barthman

Docket: A17-1191

Opinion Date: February 5, 2020

Judge: Hudson

Areas of Law: Criminal Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the court of appeals reversing Defendant's sentence on count two, first-degree criminal sexual conduct, holding that the district court abused its discretion by imposing a greater than double durational departure on count two. The district court imposed 360-month, consecutive sentences for Defendant's two convictions of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, imposing these greater-than-double durational departures on the sentences based on the aggravating factors of particular cruelty and the particular vulnerability of the victim. In reversing the sentence on count two, the court of appeals determined that imposing a greater-than-double durational departure on a consecutive sentence when both counts involved a single victim unduly exaggerated the criminality of Defendant's conduct. The Supreme Court affirmed, albeit on different grounds, holding that this was not an extremely rare case involving severe aggravating circumstances, and therefore, the district court erred in imposing a greater-than-double durational departure on count two.