John Paul Stevens
Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court
Incumbent
Assumed office  December 19, 1975
Nominated by	Gerald Ford
Preceded by	William O. Douglas
Born	April 20, 1920 (1920-04-20) (age 88) Chicago, Illinois
Spouse	Elizabeth Jane Sheeren (div. Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States are the members of the Supreme Court of the United States other than the Chief Justice of the United States Events 324 - Licinius abdicates his position as Roman Emperor. Year 1975 ( MCMLXXV) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr (July 14 1913 December 26 2006 was the thirty-eighth President of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977 and the fortieth Vice President William Orville Douglas ( October 16, 1898 – January 19, 1980) was a United States Supreme Court Associate Justice. Events 1303 - The University of Rome La Sapienza is instituted by Pope Boniface VIII. Year 1920 ( MCMXX) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display 1920 of the Gregorian calendar Chicago (ʃɪˈkɑːgoʊ is the largest City by population in the state of Illinois and the American Midwest of the United States. The State of Illinois ( roughly ill-i-NOY is a state of the United States of America, the 21st to be admitted to the Union. ) Maryan Mulholland Simon
Alma mater	University of Chicago Northwestern University School of Law
Religion	Protestant

John Paul Stevens (born April 20, 1920) is currently the most senior Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Alma mater is Latin for "nourishing mother" It was used in Ancient Rome as a title for the mother Goddess, and in Medieval The University of Chicago is a Private university located principally in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago. The Northwestern University School of Law is a private American Law school in Chicago Illinois. Protestantism refers to the forms of Christian faith and practice that originated in the 16th century Protestant Reformation. Events 1303 - The University of Rome La Sapienza is instituted by Pope Boniface VIII. Year 1920 ( MCMXX) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display 1920 of the Gregorian calendar Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States are the members of the Supreme Court of the United States other than the Chief Justice of the United States He joined the Court in 1975 and is the oldest and longest serving incumbent member of the Court. He was appointed to the court by Republican President Gerald R. Ford and is widely considered to be on the liberal side of the court. Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr (July 14 1913 December 26 2006 was the thirty-eighth President of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977 and the fortieth Vice President ^[1][2] He is also the only current Justice to have served on the Burger Court. The following is a history of the Supreme Court of the United States, organized by Chief Justice.

Biography

Early life, 1920-1947

Stevens was born on April 20, 1920, in Chicago, Illinois, to a wealthy family. Events 1303 - The University of Rome La Sapienza is instituted by Pope Boniface VIII. Year 1920 ( MCMXX) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display 1920 of the Gregorian calendar Chicago (ʃɪˈkɑːgoʊ is the largest City by population in the state of Illinois and the American Midwest of the United States. The State of Illinois ( roughly ill-i-NOY is a state of the United States of America, the 21st to be admitted to the Union. ^[1] His paternal grandfather had formed an insurance company and held real estate in Chicago, while his great-uncle owned the Chas. A. Stevens department store. Chas A Stevens was a Chicago Department store. It started in 1886 as a catalog business and eventually grew to 29 locations His father, Ernest James Stevens, was a lawyer who later became a hotelier, owning two hotels, the La Salle and the Stevens Hotel. A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law as an attorney, Counsel or Solicitor; a person He lost ownership of the hotels during the Great Depression and was convicted of embezzelment (the conviction was later overturned). ^[1] (The Stevens Hotel was subsequently bought by Hilton Hotels and is today the Chicago Hilton and Towers. UH Hilton Hoteljpg|thumbnail|right|The Hilton University of Houston in Houston Texas, located on the campus of the University of Houston, contains the Hilton College of ) His mother, Elizabeth Maude Street Stevens, a native of Michigan City, Indiana, was a high school English teacher. Michigan City is a city in LaPorte County, Indiana, USA It is one of two principal cities of and is included in the Michigan City- La Porte Indiana Two of his three older brothers also became lawyers.

The family lived in Hyde Park, and John Paul Stevens attended the University of Chicago Laboratory School. History (Hyde Park Paul Cornell a successful businessman real-estate speculator and Abolitionist, purchased of land between 51st and 55th Streets along the Lake The University of Chicago Laboratory Schools (also Lab School and abbreviated UCLS; the upper classes are nicknamed U-High) is a private co-educational He subsequently obtained an A.B. in English from the University of Chicago in 1941; while in college, Stevens also became a member of the Omega chapter of Psi Upsilon. English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of Literatures written in the English language (including literatures from the U The University of Chicago is a Private university located principally in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago. Fraternity Origin In the 18th and 19th centuries college extracurricular activities were primarily intellectual exercises in the form of literary debates readings and oratorical

He began work on his master's degree in English at the university in 1941, but soon decided to join the United States Navy, serving as an intelligence officer in the Pacific Theater from 1942 to 1945. The Pacific Theater of Operations (PTO was the World War II military activity in the Pacific Ocean and the countries bordering it a geographic scope Stevens was awarded a Bronze Star for his service in the codebreaking team whose work led to the downing of Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto's plane in 1943. The Bronze Star Medal is a United States Armed Forces individual military decoration which may be awarded for bravery acts of merit or meritorious service The Empire of Japan ( {{unicode|Kyūjitai}}: ja 大日本帝國 Shinjitai: ja 大日本帝国 pronounced Dai Nippon Teikoku Fleet Admiral ( 4 April 1884 – 18 April 1943) was the Commander-in-chief of the Combined Fleet during World War II a ^[1]

Stevens married Elizabeth Jane Sheeren in June 1942. Divorcing her in 1979, he married Maryan Mulholland Simon that December. He has four children: John Joseph (who died of cancer in 1996), Kathryn, Elizabeth and Susan. Cancer (medical term Malignant Neoplasm) is a class of Diseases in which a group of cells display uncontrolled

With the end of World War II, Stevens returned to Illinois intending to return to his studies in English, but was persuaded by his brother Richard, who was a lawyer, to attend law school. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The State of Illinois ( roughly ill-i-NOY is a state of the United States of America, the 21st to be admitted to the Union. English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of Literatures written in the English language (including literatures from the U A law school (also known as a school of law or college of law) is an institution specializing in Legal education. Stevens enrolled in the Northwestern University School of Law in 1945 (the G.I. Bill mostly paying his way). The Northwestern University School of Law is a private American Law school in Chicago Illinois. The GI Bill (officially titled Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944 PL346 58 Statutes at Large 284 provided for college or vocational education for returning He was a brilliant student, with the highest GPA in the history of the law school. In Education, a grade (or mark is a teacher's standardized Evaluation of a Student 's work ^[1] He received his J.D. in 1947. Juris Doctor (abbreviated JD or JD, from the Latin, Teacher of Law) is a first professional graduate degree and Professional

Legal career, 1947-1970

Given his stellar academic performance in law school, several prominent Northwestern faculty members recommended Stevens for a Supreme Court clerkship: he served as a clerk to Justice Wiley Rutledge during the 1947-48 Term. The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States and leads the federal judiciary. Law clerks have assisted Supreme Court Justices in various capacities since the first one was hired by Justice Horace Gray in the 1880s Wiley Blount Rutledge Jr ( July 20, 1894 - September 10, 1949) was a U ^[1] (This service, Stevens has said, deeply inspired him, as evident from his Rutledgean focus on the careful interpretation of the facts in a case present in his opinions. )

Following his clerkship, Stevens returned to Chicago and joined the law firm of Poppenhusen, Johnston, Thompson & Raymond (which, in the 1960s, would become Jenner & Block). A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more Lawyers to engage in the practice of law Jenner & Block is a US law firm with offices in Chicago, New York, and Washington DC. Stevens was admitted to the bar in 1949. In the United States, admission to the bar is permission granted by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in that system He determined that he would not stay long at the Poppenhusen firm after he was docked a day's pay for taking the day off to travel to Springfield to swear his oath of admission. Springfield is the capital of the US state of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County with a population of 116482 (U During his time at the Poppenhusen firm, Stevens began his practice in antitrust law. United States antitrust law is the body of Laws that prohibits anti-competitive behavior (monopoly and Unfair business practices.

In 1951, he returned to Washington, D.C. to serve as Associate Counsel to the Subcommittee on the Study of Monopoly Power of the Judiciary Committee of the U. Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary US House Committee on the Judiciary, or (more commonly the House Judiciary Committee, is a Standing committee of S. House of Representatives. The United States House of Representatives is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress; the other is the Senate. During this time, the subcommittee worked on several highly publicized investigation concerns in many industries, most notably Major League Baseball.

In 1952, at age 32, Stevens returned to Chicago and, together with two other young lawyers he had worked with at the Poppenhusen firm, formed his own law firm, Rothschild, Stevens, Barry & Myers. They soon developed a successful practice, with Stevens continuing to focus on antitrust cases. His growing expertise in antitrust law led to an invitation to teach the "Competition and Monopoly" course at the University of Chicago Law School, and from 1953 to 1955, he was a member of the Attorney General's National Committee to Study Antitrust Law. The University of Chicago Law School, having recently celebrated its centennial in the 2002-2003 school year has established itself as a high profile part of the University of The United States Attorney General is the head of the United States Department of Justice (see) concerned with legal affairs and is the chief law enforcement At the same time, Stevens was making a name for himself as a first-rate antitrust litigator and was involved in a number of trials. He was widely regarded by colleagues as an extraordinarily capable and impressive lawyer with a fantastic memory and analytical ability, and authored a number of influential works on antitrust law.

In 1969, the Greenberg Commission, appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court to investigate Sherman Skolnick's corruption allegations levelled at former Chief Justice Ray Klingbiel and current Chief Justice Roy J. Solfisburg, Jr., named Stevens as their counsel, meaning that he essentially served as the commission's special prosecutor. The Supreme Court of Illinois is the highest judicial court of the state of Illinois. Sherman Skolnick ( July 13, 1930 – May 21 2006) was a Chicago -based activist and " conspiracy theorist " Ray I Klingbiel (1901-1973 was the Chief Justice of Illinois in 1956-57 and again from 1964 to 1967 Roy J Solfisburg Jr (1912–1991 was the Chief Justice of Illinois for the 1962-63 term and again from 1967 to 1969 when he was forced to resign following Sherman A special prosecutor generally is a Lawyer from outside the Government appointed by an Attorney general or Congress to investigate a government ^[1] As a result of the prominence he gained during the Greenberg Commission, Stevens became Second Vice President of the Chicago Bar Association in 1970. Founded in 1874, the Chicago Bar Association is a voluntary bar association with over 20000 members

Judicial career, 1970-present

Stevens' role in the Greenberg Commission catapulted him to prominence and was largely responsible for President Richard Nixon's decision to appoint Stevens as a Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit on November 20, 1970. The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit is a federal court with Appellate jurisdiction over the courts in the following districts Events 284 - Diocletian was chosen as Roman Emperor. 762 - Bögü Khan of the Uyghurs, Year 1970 ( MCMLXX) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link shows full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

President Gerald Ford then nominated him as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court in 1975 to replace Justice William O. Douglas, who had recently retired, and he took his seat December 19, 1975, after being confirmed 98-0 by the Senate. Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr (July 14 1913 December 26 2006 was the thirty-eighth President of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977 and the fortieth Vice President William Orville Douglas ( October 16, 1898 – January 19, 1980) was a United States Supreme Court Associate Justice. Events 324 - Licinius abdicates his position as Roman Emperor. Year 1975 ( MCMLXXV) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The United States Senate is the Upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the Lower house being the House of Representatives

As the senior Associate Justice, Stevens assumes the administrative duties of the court whenever the post of Chief Justice of the United States is vacant or the Chief Justice is unable to perform his duties. The Chief Justice of the United States is the head of the judicial branch of the government of the United States, and presides over the U Justice Stevens performed the duties of Chief Justice in September 2005, between the death of Chief Justice William Rehnquist and the swearing-in of new Chief Justice John Roberts, and has presided over oral arguments on a number of occasions when the Chief Justice was ill or recused. William Hubbs Rehnquist (October 1 1924 – September 3 2005 was an American lawyer, jurist, and a political figure who served as an Associate Justice John Glover Roberts Jr (born January 27 1955) is the seventeenth and current Chief Justice of the United States.

Stevens has given lectures on the importance of “learning on the job” and treating the law with flexibility, citing as one example his former disapproval and current support of some affirmative action policies. Affirmative action in the United States|Employment equity (Canada|Reservation in India|Numerus clausus The term affirmative action describes many policies aimed at a historically ^[3]

As his seniority grew in the closing decade of the Rehnquist court, Stevens was often the senior justice on one side of a split decision and thereby entitled to assign the writing of the opinion. William Hubbs Rehnquist (October 1 1924 – September 3 2005 was an American lawyer, jurist, and a political figure who served as an Associate Justice He almost always writes a dissenting opinion when in dissent and writes concurring opinions more often than most other justices historically.

Stevens, right, swears in Chief Justice John Roberts. The Chief Justice of the United States is the head of the judicial branch of the government of the United States, and presides over the U John Glover Roberts Jr (born January 27 1955) is the seventeenth and current Chief Justice of the United States.

Although his possible retirement is a highly debated topic in legal and political circles in Washington, Stevens has not shown any hints of taking that option before President Bush leaves office in January 2009. Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D George Walker Bush ( born July 6 1946 is the forty-third and current President of the United States. He has hired law clerks to work for him through 2008. Additionally, he participates actively in questioning during oral arguments and plays tennis regularly. Tennis is a sport played between two players ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles) ^[2]

Judicial philosophy

On the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, John Paul Stevens had a moderately conservative record. The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit is a federal court with Appellate jurisdiction over the courts in the following districts Early in his tenure on the Supreme Court Stevens had a moderate voting record. He voted to reinstate capital punishment in the United States and opposed the affirmative action program at issue in Regents of the University of California v. Bakke. Capital punishment of a Felon in the United States, in modern times is employed and in practice only in cases involving murder Affirmative action in the United States|Employment equity (Canada|Reservation in India|Numerus clausus The term affirmative action describes many policies aimed at a historically Regents of the University of California v Bakke, 438 US 265 (1978 was a landmark decision of the Supreme Court of the United States on Affirmative But on the more conservative Rehnquist Court, Stevens tended to side with the more liberal-leaning Justices on issues such as abortion rights, gay rights and federalism. William Hubbs Rehnquist (October 1 1924 – September 3 2005 was an American lawyer, jurist, and a political figure who served as an Associate Justice An Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender social movements share related goals of social acceptance of Homosexuality, Bisexuality and Transgenderism Lesbian Political federalism is a Political philosophy in which a group of members are bound together (Latin foedus, covenant) with a governing His Segal-Cover score, a measure of the perceived liberalism/conservatism of Court members when they joined the Court, places him squarely in the ideological center of the Court. Segal-Cover scores attempt to measure the relative liberalism or conservatism of United States Supreme Court justices A 2003 statistical analysis of Supreme Court voting patterns, however, found Stevens the most liberal member of the Court. ^[4][5]

Stevens' jurisprudence has usually been characterized as idiosyncratic. Idiosyncrasy, from Greek ιδιοσυγκρασία idiosunkrasia, "a peculiar temperament" "habit of body" ( idios "one's own" Stevens, unlike most justices, usually writes the first drafts of his opinions himself and reviews petitions for certiorari within his chambers instead of having his law clerks participate as part of the cert pool. Certiorari (ˌsɚʃioʊ('rɛri 'rɑri is a legal term in Roman, English, Philippine and American law referring to a type of Writ A law clerk or a judicial clerk is a person who provides assistance to a Judge in researching issues before the Court and in writing opinions The Cert pool is a mechanism by which the Supreme Court of the United States manages the influx of petitions for Certiorari to the Court He is not an originalist (such as fellow Justice Antonin Scalia) nor a pragmatist (such as Judge Richard Posner), nor does he pronounce himself a cautious liberal (such as Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg). (born March 11, 1936) is an American Jurist and the second most senior Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States Richard Allen Posner (born January 11 1939 in New York City) is currently a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago Ruth Joan Bader Ginsburg (born March 15 1933 Brooklyn New York) is an Associate Justice on the U He has been considered part of the liberal bloc of the court since the mid-1980s, though he publicly called himself a judicial conservative in 2007. ^[6][7]

In 1985's Cleburne v. Cleburne Living Center, Stevens argued against the Supreme Court's famous "strict scrutiny" doctrine for laws involving "suspect classifications", putting forth the view that all classifications should be evaluated on the basis of the "rational basis" test as to whether they could have been enacted by an "impartial legislature". City of Cleburne v Cleburne Living Center Inc, 473 US 432 (1985 was a U In Burnham v. Superior Court (1990), Stevens demonstrated his independence in characteristically pithy fashion. As opposing factions led by Justice Scalia and Justice Brennan transformed a minor jurisdictional question into a philosophical battle over Originalism, Stevens concurred separately, explaining that "common sense" persuaded him not to enter the jurisprudential fray. William Joseph Brennan Jr ( April 25, 1906 &ndash July 24, 1997) was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the

Stevens was once an impassioned critic of affirmative action, voting in 1978 to invalidate the affirmative action program at issue in Regents of the University of California v. Bakke. Affirmative action in the United States|Employment equity (Canada|Reservation in India|Numerus clausus The term affirmative action describes many policies aimed at a historically Affirmative action in the United States|Employment equity (Canada|Reservation in India|Numerus clausus The term affirmative action describes many policies aimed at a historically Regents of the University of California v Bakke, 438 US 265 (1978 was a landmark decision of the Supreme Court of the United States on Affirmative He also dissented in 1980's Fullilove v. Klutznick, which upheld a minority set-aside program. Fullilove v Klutznick, 448 US 448 ( 1980) was a case in which the United States Supreme Court held that the U He gradually shifted his position over the years and voted to uphold the somewhat different affirmative action program at the University of Michigan Law School challenged in 2003's Grutter v. Bollinger. The University of Michigan Law School ( Michigan Law) is the Law school of the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor. Grutter v Bollinger, 539 US 306 (2003 is a case in which the United States Supreme Court upheld the Affirmative action

Stevens wrote the majority opinion in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld in 2006, in which he held that certain military commissions had been improperly constituted. Hamdan v Rumsfeld, 548 US 557 (2006 is a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that military commissions set up by the

Freedom of speech

Stevens' views on obscenity under the First Amendment have changed over the years. The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the United States Bill of Rights that expressly prohibits the United States Congress Initially quite critical of constitutional protection for obscenity, rejecting a challenge to Detroit zoning ordinances that barred adult theatres in designated areas in 1976's Young v. American Mini Theatres ("[E]ven though we recognize that the First Amendment will not tolerate the total suppression of erotic materials that have some arguably artistic value, it is manifest that society's interest in protecting this type of expression is of a wholly different, and lesser, magnitude than the interest in untrammeled political debate"), Stevens now adheres firmly to a libertarian free speech approach on obscenity issues, voting to strike down a federal law regulating online obscene content considered "harmful to minors" in 2002's ACLU v. Ashcroft, where in a concurring opinion Stevens argued that while "[a]s a parent, grandparent, and great-grandparent", he endorsed the legislative goal of protecting children from pornography "without reservation": "As a judge, I must confess to a growing sense of unease when the interest in protecting children from prurient materials is invoked as a justification for using criminal regulation of speech as a substitute for, or a simple backup to, adult oversight of children's viewing. Young v American Mini Theatres, 427 US 50 ( 1976) is a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States upheld a City ordinance American Civil Liberties Union v Ashcroft, 535 US 564 ( 2002) (also called Ashcroft v "^[8]

Perhaps the most personal and unusual feature of his jurisprudence is his continual referencing of World War II in his opinions, which Stevens often cites in an attempt to appeal to shared patriotic, American values. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The development of the culture of the United States of America — music, cinema, dance, architecture, literature, poetry For example, Stevens, though a World War II veteran, was visibly angered by liberal attorney William Kunstler's flippant defense of flag-burning in oral argument in 1989's Texas v. Johnson and voted to uphold a prohibition on flag-burning against a First Amendment argument. William Moses Kunstler ( July 7, 1919 - September 4, 1995) was an American self-described "radical lawyer" and Civil rights Texas v Johnson,, was a decision by the Supreme Court of the United States that invalidated prohibitions on desecrating the American flag in Wrote Stevens, "The ideas of liberty and equality have been an irresistible force in motivating leaders like Patrick Henry, Susan B. Anthony, and Abraham Lincoln, schoolteachers like Nathan Hale and Booker T. Washington, the Philippine Scouts who fought at Bataan, and the soldiers who scaled the bluff at Omaha Beach. Patrick Henry ( May 29, 1736 June 6, 1799) was a prominent figure in the American Revolution, known and remembered for his " Susan Brownell Anthony ( February 15, 1820 &ndash March 13, 1906) was a prominent American Civil rights leader who played Abraham Lincoln (February 12 1809 &ndash April 15 1865 the sixteenth President of the United States, successfully led his country through its greatest internal Nathan Hale ( June 6, 1755 &ndash September 22, 1776) was an officer for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary Booker Taliaferro Washington (April 5 1856 &ndash November 14 1915 was an American educator orator author and leader of the African-American community This page is about the military unit For the article on the youth movement please see Boy Scouts of the Philippines. Bataan is a province of the Philippines occupying the whole of Bataan Peninsula on Luzon. Omaha Beach was the Code name for one of the principal landing points of the Allied invasion of German-occupied France in the Normandy landings If those ideas are worth fighting for — and our history demonstrates that they are — it cannot be true that the flag that uniquely symbolizes their power is not itself worthy of protection from unnecessary desecration. "

Stevens generally supports students' right to free speech in public schools. He wrote sharply worded dissents in Bethel v. Fraser and Morse v. Frederick, two decisions that restricted students' freedom of speech. Bethel School District v Fraser, 478 US 675 ( 1986) was a United States Supreme Court decision involving free speech and public schools Morse v Frederick, 127 S Ct 2618 ( 2007) was a First Amendment student free speech case in which the Supreme Court of the However, he joined the court's ruling on Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier that upheld a principal's censorship of a student newspaper. Hazelwood School District et al v Kuhlmeier et al, was a United States Supreme Court decision which held that Public school curricular student A student newspaper is a Newspaper run by Students of a University, High school, Middle school, or other school

Establishment Clause

In Wallace v. Jaffree (1985), striking down an Alabama statute mandating a minute of silence in public schools "for meditation or silent prayer", Stevens wrote the Opinion for a majority that included Justices Brennan, Thurgood Marshall, Blackmun, and Powell. Wallace v Jaffree,, was a United States Supreme Court case deciding on the issue of silent School prayer. He affirmed that the Establishment Clause is binding on the States via the Fourteenth Amendment, and that: "Just as the right to speak and the right to refrain from speaking are complementary components of a broader concept of individual freedom of mind, so also the individual's freedom to choose his own creed is the counterpart of his right to refrain from accepting the creed of the majority. The Fourteenth Amendment ( Amendment XIV) to the United States Constitution is one of the post- Civil War Reconstruction Amendments, first At one time, it was thought that this right merely proscribed the preference of one Christian sect over another, but would not require equal respect for the conscience of the infidel, the atheist, or the adherent of a non-Christian faith such as Islam or Judaism. But when the underlying principle has been examined in the crucible of litigation, the Court has unambiguously concluded that the individual freedom of conscience protected by the First Amendment embraces the right to select any religious faith or none at all. "

Stevens wrote a dissent in Van Orden v. Perry (2005), which was joined by Justice Ginsburg; he argued that the ten commandments displayed in the Texas Capitol grounds transmitted the message: "This State endorses the divine code of the 'Judeo-Christian' God. Van Orden v Perry, 545 US 677 ( 2005) was a case decided by the Supreme Court of the United States of America, involving whether a government-sponsored " The Establishment Clause, he wrote, "at the very least [. . . ] has created a strong presumption against the display of religious symbols on public property", and that it "demands religious neutrality - Government may not exercise preference for one religious faith over another. " This includes a prohibition against enacting laws or imposing requirements that aid all religions as against unbelievers, or aid religions that are based on a belief in the existence of God against those founded on different principles.

Commerce clause and states' rights

On the issue of Interstate commerce clause, Stevens consistently sided with the federal government. Article 1 Section 8 Clause 3 of the United States Constitution, known as the Commerce Clause, states that Congress has the power to regulate commerce with foreign He dissented from United States v. Lopez and United States v. Morrison, two prominent cases in which the Rehnquist court broke way by holding that Congress had exceeded its constitutional power under the commerce clause. United States v Lopez, was the first United States Supreme Court case since the Great Depression to set limits to Congress's power under the United States v Morrison, is a United States Supreme Court decision that examined the limits of Congress's power to make laws under the Commerce Clause William Hubbs Rehnquist (October 1 1924 – September 3 2005 was an American lawyer, jurist, and a political figure who served as an Associate Justice Article 1 Section 8 Clause 3 of the United States Constitution, known as the Commerce Clause, states that Congress has the power to regulate commerce with foreign He then authored Gonzales v. Raich, which permits the federal government to arrest, prosecute, and imprison patients who use medical marijuana regardless of whether they are using the medicine legally under state law. Gonzales v Raich (previously Ashcroft v Raich) 545 US 1 (2005 was a case in which the United States Supreme Court ruled on An arrest is the act of depriving a person of his or her liberty usually in relation to the investigation and prevention of crime The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries with either the Common law Adversarial system, or the civil law A prison, penitentiary, or correctional facility is a place in which individuals are physically confined or interned and usually deprived of a range of Medical cannabis refers to the use of the Cannabis plant as a physician-recommended Herbal therapy as well as synthetic THC and Cannabinoids

Fourth Amendment

Stevens has a generally liberal voting record on Fourth Amendment, which deals with search and seizure. The Fourth Amendment' ( Amendment IV) to the United States Constitution is a part of the Bill of Rights. Search and seizure is a legal procedure used in many civil law and Common law legal systems whereby Police or other authorities and their agents who suspect He dissented in New Jersey v. T.L.O. and Vernonia School District 47J v. Acton, both involving searches in schools. New Jersey v T L O, 469 US 325 ( 1985) was a case appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States in 1984, involving Vernonia School District 47J v Acton, was a US Supreme Court decision which upheld the constitutionality of random drug testing regime implemented by He was a dissenter in Oliver v. United States, a case relating to the open fields doctrine. Oliver v United States 466 US 170 (1984 is a US Supreme Court decision relating to the Open fields doctrine limiting the Fourth Amendment The open fields doctrine is a US Legal Doctrine created judicially for purposes of evaluating claims of an unreasonable search by the However, Stevens is more conservative on Fourth Amendment than was William Brennan and Thurgood Marshall. William Joseph Brennan Jr ( April 25, 1906 &ndash July 24, 1997) was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the Thurgood Marshall ( July 2, 1908 – January 24, 1993) was an American Jurist and the first African American In United States v. Montoya De Hernandez he sided with the government, and he was the author of United States v. Ross, which permits the police to search closed containers found in the course of searching a vehicle. United States v Montoya De Hernandez, 473 US 531 ( 1985) was a case appealed from the Ninth Circuit to the Supreme Court of the United United States v Ross, 456 US 798 ( 1982) was a Search and seizure case argued before the Supreme Court of the United States.

Death penalty

Stevens joined the majority in Gregg v. Georgia, which overruled Furman v. Georgia and again allowed the use of the death penalty in the United States. Gregg v Georgia, Proffitt v Florida, Jurek v Texas, Woodson v Furman v Georgia, was a United States Supreme Court decision that ruled on the requirement for a degree of consistency in the application of the death penalty In later cases such as Thompson v. Oklahoma and Atkins v. Virginia, Stevens held that the Constitution forbids the use of the death penalty in certain circumstances. Thompson v Oklahoma, 487 US 815 ( 1988) was the first case since the moratorium on Capital punishment was lifted in the United States Atkins v Virginia,, is a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States ruled 6-3 that executing the Mentally retarded violates the Eighth Stevens opposed using the death penalty on juvenile offenders; he dissented in Stanford v. Kentucky and joined the Court's majority in Roper v. Simmons, overturning Stanford. In law the term minor (also infant or infancy) is used to refer to a person who is under the age in which one legally assumes Adulthood and is legally Stanford v Kentucky,, was a United States Supreme Court case that sanctioned the imposition of the death penalty on offenders who were at least 16 years Roper v Simmons, was a decision in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that it is unconstitutional to impose Capital punishment for crimes Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly known as Stanford University or simply Stanford, is a private Research university located in In Baze v. Rees (2008), Stevens voted with the majority in upholding Kentucky's method of lethal injection because he felt bound by stare decisis, noting in dicta that "state-sanctioned killing is becoming more and more anachronistic. Baze v Rees, 553 US ___ ( 2008) is a United States Supreme Court case Stare decisis is a common law doctrine under which judges are obligated to follow the precedents established in prior decisions "^[9][10] Soon after his vote in Baze, Stevens told a conference of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that one of the drugs (pancuronium bromide) in the three-drug cocktail used by Kentucky to execute death row inmates is prohibited there for euthanizing animals. Baze v Rees, 553 US ___ ( 2008) is a United States Supreme Court case The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit is a federal court with Appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts Pancuronium is a Chemical compound, used in medicine as the Bromide salt pancuronium bromide. He then questioned whether Kentucky Derby second-place finisher Eight Belles died more humanely than those on death row. Eight Belles ( February 23, 2005 – May 3 2008) was a grey Thoroughbred racehorse owned by Rick Porter's Fox Hill Farms ^[11]

Chevron

In 1984, Stevens authored the majority opinion in Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., the most cited opinion in the history of the United States Supreme Court. Chevron USA Inc v Natural Resources Defense Council Inc, 467 U ^[12] The opinion stands for how courts review administrative agencies' interpretations of their organic statutes. If the organic statute is unambiguous, the court goes with that. If the statute is unclear, and the agency interpretation has the force of law, courts defer to an agency's interpretation of the statute unless that interpretation is deemed to be "arbitrary, capricious, or manifestly contrary to the statute. "

Unlike some other members of the court, Stevens has been consistently willing to find organic statutes unambiguous and thus overturn agency interpretations of those statutes. In United States administrative law, an organic statute is a Statute enacted by Congress that creates an Administrative agency, and defines its (See his majority opinion in Immigration and Naturalization Service v. Cardoza-Fonseca, 480 U.S. 421 (1987), and his dissent in Young v. Immigration and Naturalization Service v Cardoza-Fonseca,, decided that the standard for withholding of removal set in INS v Community Nutrition Institute, 476 U. S. 974 (1986). ) Although Chevron has come to stand for the proposition of deference to agency interpretations, Stevens, the author of the opinion, has been less willing to defer to agencies than the rest of his colleagues on the Court.

Scott v. Harris

On April 30, 2007, Stevens was the lone dissenter in an 8-1 ruling holding that high-speed police chases that result in death or serious injury do not violate the Fourth Amendment (Scott v. Harris). Events 313 - Roman emperor Licinius unifies the entire Eastern Roman Empire under his rule Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Scott v Harris, (05-1631 was a case heard before the United States Supreme Court on February 26, 2007. ^[13] Stevens maintained that the videotape evidence was not decisive and that a jury should determine if deadly force is justified, not "a group of elderly appellate judges. "^[14]

Crawford v. Marion County Election Board

Justice Stevens wrote the lead opinion in Crawford v. Marion County Election Board, a case where the Court upheld the right of states to require an official photo identification card to help ensure that only citizens vote. Crawford v Marion County Election Board, 553 US ___ (2008 is a decision in a 6-3 vote by the Supreme Court of the United States holding that an Indiana Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Kennedy joined this opinion, and Justices Scalia, Thomas, and Alito agreed with them on the outcome. Edward B. Foley, an election law expert at Ohio State University, said the Stevens opinion might represent an effort to “depoliticize election law cases. The Ohio State University ( OSU) is a Coeducational public Research university in the state of Ohio. ”^[15] Justice Stevens' vote in Crawford and his agreement with the Court's moderately conservative majority in two other cases during the 2007-2008 term (Medellin v. Texas and Baze v. Rees) has led University of Oklahoma law professor and former Stevens clerk Joseph Thai to wonder if Stevens is "tacking back a little bit toward the center. Medellín v Texas, 552 US ___ (2008 is a United States Supreme Court decision which held that while an international treaty may constitute an international Baze v Rees, 553 US ___ ( 2008) is a United States Supreme Court case University of Oklahoma, abbreviated OU, is a Coeducational public Research university located in the U "^[16]

Criticism and praise

Stevens has drawn criticism from some on the right, who point to him as one of a number of justices (Justice Souter being another) who were appointed by a Republican president yet moved more and more towards the left as the years passed. For the Australian artist see David Henry Souter. David Hackett Souter (ˈsutɚ born September 17, 1939) has been an At the time of Stevens' appointment, Senator James A. McClure questioned President Ford about Stevens and was told that Stevens would “vote like a good Republican”. James Albertus "Jim" McClure (born December 27, 1924 in Payette, Idaho) is an American politician from the state Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr (July 14 1913 December 26 2006 was the thirty-eighth President of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977 and the fortieth Vice President Still no one was sure what that meant — Ford's appointments to other Federal courts ranged from very conservative to moderately liberal. ^[17] Unlike some other Republican Presidents, such as Eisenhower (with Justice Brennan and Chief Justice Warren), Nixon (with Justice Blackmun and to some extent Justice Powell), and George H.W. Bush (with Souter), who were reportedly displeased with the later rulings of some of their appointments, President Ford in 2005 praised Stevens: “He is serving his nation well, with dignity, intellect and without partisan political concerns. Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (October 14 1890 – March 28 1969 was President of the United States from 1953 until 1961 and a five-star general William Joseph Brennan Jr ( April 25, 1906 &ndash July 24, 1997) was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the Earl Warren ( March 19, 1891 July 9, 1974) was the 14th Chief Justice of the United States and the only person ever elected thrice Harry Andrew Blackmun ( November 12, 1908 &ndash March 4, 1999) was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States Lewis Franklin Powell Jr ( September 19, 1907 &ndash August 25, 1998) was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the George Herbert Walker Bush (born June 12 1924 served as the forty-first President of the United States from 1989 to 1993 For the Australian artist see David Henry Souter. David Hackett Souter (ˈsutɚ born September 17, 1939) has been an ”^[18]

Other facts

Justice Stevens wearing his trademark bow tie

• Stevens is the second-oldest Justice in the history of the Court. If he continues on the Court beyond February 24, 2011, he will surpass the current record of 90 years and 310 days old held by former Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr ( March 8, 1841 &ndash March 6, 1935) was an American Jurist who served on the Supreme

• Stevens is the ninth longest-serving Justice in the history of the Court. If he continues on the Court beyond July 15, 2012, he will surpass the current record of 36 years and 209 days held by former Justice William O. Douglas. William Orville Douglas ( October 16, 1898 – January 19, 1980) was a United States Supreme Court Associate Justice.

• For many years, Stevens employed only three law clerks, one fewer than most of his colleagues. However, during the 1994 and 1995 terms, he shared a law clerk hired by retired Justice Lewis F. Powell, and from the 1996 through the 2000 terms, a fourth law clerk served him through a sharing arrangement with retired Justice Byron R. White. Lewis Franklin Powell Jr ( September 19, 1907 &ndash August 25, 1998) was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the Byron Raymond White ( June 8, 1917 &ndash April 15, 2002) won fame both as a football Running back and as an associate justice of Since the 2001 term, he has hired the full complement of four. Law clerks have assisted Supreme Court Justices in various capacities since the first one was hired by Justice Horace Gray in the 1880s

• Justice Stevens is a known fan of the Chicago Cubs. The Chicago Cubs are a Professional Baseball franchise based in Chicago, Illinois. He is said to have been in attendance at the 1932 World Series game at Wrigley Field where Babe Ruth called his shot. The 1932 World Series was played between the New York Yankees ( American League) and the Chicago Cubs ( National League) with the Yankees Wrigley Field is a Baseball Stadium in Chicago, Illinois, United States that has served as the home ballpark of the Chicago George Herman Ruth Jr (February 6 1895 &ndash August 16 1948 also popularly known as " Babe " " The Bambino " and " The Sultan of Babe Ruth's called shot was the Home run hit by Babe Ruth in the fifth Inning of Game 3 of the 1932 World Series, held on 1 October ^[19]

• Justice Stevens does not participate in the cert pool, meaning that his clerks personally review every single petition and he then reviews every petition considered to have possible merit. The Cert pool is a mechanism by which the Supreme Court of the United States manages the influx of petitions for Certiorari to the Court

• Justice Stevens has a high school named after him in San Antonio, Texas, part of the Northside Independent School District. Note this Northside ISD serves the San Antonio area For the Northside ISD near Vernon see Northside Independent School District (Wilbarger County Texas Stevens and his wife, Maryan, attended the dedication in September 2005. (There is a high school in New Jersey also named J. P. Stevens, but it is named for John P. Stevens of textile mill fame. )

• At the suggestion of Justice Stevens, humorist Dave Barry once wrote a column on the antiflatulence product Beano. David "Dave" Barry (born July 3, 1947) is a bestselling American author and Pulitzer Prize -winning columnist who wrote a nationally Flatulence is the production of a mixture of gases in the digestive tract of Mammals that are byproducts of the digestion process ^[20]

Notes

References

• Illinois Justice: The Scandal of 1969 and the Rise of John Paul Stevens by Kenneth A. Manaster (University of Chicago Press, 2001)

External links

• John Paul Stevens, Human Rights Judge, by Professor Diane Marie Amann
• Supreme court official bio (PDF)
• John Paul Stevens, encyclopedia article by Prof. Joseph Thai
• Justice Weighs Desire v. Duty (Duty Prevails) by Linda Greenhouse August 25, 2005 on civilrights. org
• Stevens High School, named after Justice Stevens