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Happy, the elephant, died last week at the Bronx Zoo. In 2022, NY's high court rejected a habeas petition on her behalf, explaining that allowing nonhuman animals to seek habeas relief would “have an enormous destabilizing impact on modern society."
A Bronx Zoo elephant that died last week was made famous in litigation over whether habeas corpus can be used to challenge the confinement of nonhuman animals.
Maine's constitution is innovative and progressive, from expanding the franchise to adopting a first-of-its-kind right to food, writes @umaine.bsky.social's Kaitlin Caruso.
This is a really nice piece, as is the underlying law review article. I highly recommend it. I agree that state constitutions can play an important role in protecting the public interest from private capture. There remain hard questions about the role of the courts here, even at the state level.
Major news out of Virginia: The state supreme court blocked a constitutional amendment that would have allowed Democrats in the legislature to redraw the state’s congressional map. Stay informed by subscribing to State Court Report’s free newsletter: bit.ly/45IXZ0M
The pragmatic 1820 document is one of the oldest still in use.
SCOTUS's Purcell jurisprudence, which discourages courts from changing election rules too close to an election, could magnify the impact of the Callais ruling, writes @wuc3.bsky.social. But state courts can help stave off democratic erosion by resisting the urge to invoke Purcell.
A new article by @msmith750.bsky.social lays out the various ways that courts incorporate federal constitutional doctrine into state constitutional law.
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Montanans are using local politics to resist aggressive deportation policies, exposing a tension between Montana’s small-government tradition and the increasingly top-down politics of immigration enforcement, writes U of Montana law prof Constance Van Kley.
In a heated cite-state battle over gun regulation, the OH Supreme Court said municipalities could immediately appeal a preliminary injunction, treating city ordinances with the same democratic legitimacy enjoyed by state legislation, @slswan.bsky.social writes.
State supreme courts this month will take up whether Ohio cities can regulate vapes, Wyoming can freeze primary voters’ ability to switch parties, Delawareans under 21 can possess guns, and more, writes @skess108.bsky.social.
State Court Report
Sam Bagenstos
State Court Report
State courts need not import a federal doctrine directing judges to avoid issuing rulings that could change election rules in the runup to an election.
The practice of interpreting state constitutions identically to their federal counterpart is often criticized in blanket terms. But the ways state courts lockstep vary widely.
Municipalities in Montana are testing the bounds of the state’s anti-sanctuary law, leading to a remarkable conflict between local government and the state attorney general.
well now im sad for Happy the Elephant, but still, fascinating piece in @statecourtreport.org about attempts to secure habeas relief for confined intelligent animals
statecourtreport.org/our-work/ana...
A short piece I wrote for @statecourtreport.org on the problems "state capture" poses for state and local government, and how state constitutions might be used to prevent them.
statecourtreport.org/our-work/ana...
Based on an article first published with @cardozolaw.bsky.social (link below).
A Bronx Zoo elephant that died last week was made famous in litigation over whether habeas corpus can be used to challenge the confinement of nonhuman animals.
