NPR’s Nina Totenberg & Scotus Blog’s Tom Goldstein live on Periscope outside the Supreme Court, recapping today’s same-sex marriage arguments.
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Same-sex marriage is at the Supreme Court today. And along with the plaintiffs and defendants, a record number of groups, individuals and governments filed amicus (”friend of the court”) briefs (seen above in green). Here they are by the numbers:
- 148 briefs filed, a record number
- 136 previous amicus brief record, made in the 2013 Obamacare case
- $25,000-$50,000 average cost to file one
- 370 large & small businesses filed one brief
- 76 briefs contending same-sex marriage bans are unconstitutional (as of 2 weeks ago)
- 58 briefs defending the bans
- 5 briefs supporting neither party
Read more about the briefs here. And the cases here.
You can follow npr news on Periscope, nprnews & nprpolitics on Twitter + npr.org for updates from the court throughout the day.
Photos: Emily Jan/NPR
Have You Seen The Sign?
It’s the Good News Community Church versus the town of Gilbert, Ariz. For seven years, Pastor Clyde Reed and his tiny congregation of 25 to 30 people have been battling town fathers over the signs the pastor posts directing people to weekly services. The town says that type of sign can only be 6 square feet, unlike political and other types of signs which can be bigger and stay up longer.
NPR Legal Affairs Correspondent Nina Totenberg has more on this battle of the billboards.
What Makes A Threat A Threat?
The Supreme Court today is hearing a case about what constitutes a threat on Facebook.
Anthony Elonis was convicted of making threats against his estranged wife, and an FBI agent. After his wife left him, taking the couple’s two children with her, Elonis began posting about her on his Facebook page. Here’s one example:
There’s one way to love ya, but a thousand ways to kill ya,
And I’m not going to rest until your body is a mess,
Soaked in blood and dying from all the little cuts.
Hurry up and die bitch.
Elonis was convicted, but argues he’s protected by the First Amendment & free speech. Read more from NPR legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg.
(Photos: iStockPhoto, Courtesy Stephanie Madden)
NOW: Reddit Chat with NPR’s Nina Totenberg
NPR’s Legal Affairs Correspondent Nina Totenberg is hosting her first ever Reddit “Ask Me Anything” chat. Join her here and bring your questions!
“Justice Alito, exasperated: then why can’t the prison just give the inmate a comb … and if there’s a ‘tiny revolver’ hidden in his half-inch beard, 'it will fall out.’”
— Nina Totenberg, recounting today’s Supreme Court arguments on whether prisoners should be allowed to wear short beards. Nina has more on All Things Considered today.