Hearing Arguments

Yesterday morning, I woke up extra early and walked to the Supreme Court to wait in line to hear oral arguments in two cases. When I got there (around 6:15 or so) there was already a small line of about 10 people. By the time the deputies handed out tickets around 7:15, there were substantially more than that. Needless to say, I'm glad I arrived when I did.

I was seated on the left side of the Court towards the front, which provided a good view of the entire bench. The justices entered a little after 10, and John Roberts immediatly got things going. One thing that surprised me right away was the demeanor of some of the justices. For example, Clarence Thomas was talking with Stephen Breyer for a few minutes at the start of the first argument, as if the two were sharing a joke. I suppose I shouldn't have been too surprised, though; they're people, just like the rest of us.

The first case I witnessed was pretty technical, involving tax levies, and since I hadn't done my research on that case (for shame, I know) I didn't really know what was going on or even who was arguing for what. But there was a light moment towards the end of the case, when one of the counsels answered a question by Antonin Scalia by referencing a footnote he had made in a previous case, which made Scalia snap his fingers and say, "Dang it! I forgot about that footnote."

Cue laughter.

The next case was more interesting. In fact, it has gotten quite a bit of media coverage over the past few days. This case, Scott v. Harris, was about a police officer who tried to stop a fleeing, speeding car by hitting the vehicle, and whose driver, a 19 year old who was running away because of a suspended license, is now a quadriplegic because of the contact.

I tried to take note of how many times each of the justices spoke independently or asked new questions:

John Roberts - 8
John P. Stevens - 9
Antonin Scalia - 11
Anthony Kennedy - 10
David Souter - 3
Clarence Thomas - 0 (of course, he never does)
Ruth Bader-Ginsburg - 7
Stephen Breyer - 6
Samuel Alito - 3

Hopefully that gives you an idea of the variety and frequency of the justices that spoke and questioned during this argument.

My favorite quote of the day came from Stephen Breyer, responding to the lawyer for the respondant's argument that although his client was speeding, he was using his turn signal to pass people on the two-lane road on which the chase occurred:

"He used his turn signal. That's like saying the strangler observed the 'No Smoking' sign."

Again, cue laughter.