Supreme Court rulings will affect minorities

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Supreme Court rulings will affect minorities

By Michaela L. Duckett – October 4, 2011

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Good Morning! The weatherman says today, we will see a picture perfect afternoon. The forecast calls for plentiful sunshine with a high of 77°.

Here’s what’s brewing in the news:

Supreme Court to Rule on Key Cases for Minorities

Should individual states be allowed to set their own rules on immigration? If you are being held for a minor offense, should police be allowed to strip-search you? How reliable is eyewitness testimony during a criminal trial? Those are just some of the questions that will be decided by the Supreme Court during the 2011-2012 term.

As evidenced by the trial of Troy Davis, who was recently executed by the state of Georgia, eyewitness testimony can be unreliable. In Perry v. New Hampshire, the court will consider the extent to which juries can rely on eyewitness testimony in a criminal trial. According to the Innocence Project, many of the 273 people (61% of whom were African American) who have been exonerated by DNA evidence after a wrongful conviction were convicted based on the testimony of an eyewitness.

The court will also decide if police should require a court warrant to attach a GPS device to a suspect’s car in order to track its movements. Prosecutors have argued that there is little to no difference between electronic enhancements and visual stakeouts. Do you agree?

A group of students at Berkeley made the news last month with a “racist” bake sale. They priced items based on race to argue the point that affirmative action in university admissions is discriminatory. This term, the Supreme Court will decide if they are right.

The court is also expected to review Arizona’s controversial immigration law to determine whether states have any authority to enforce immigration matters or whether that falls solely under the jurisdiction of the federal government. (Read more)

QUESTION: Do you think police officers should be allowed to strip search you if you are being held for a minor offense? What are your thoughts on the other cases being decided this term by the Supreme Court?
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The call to launch a Facebook investigation

It seems that Facebook’s new Timeline feature, which maps everything a user has ever done on the social network, has touched a privacy nerve. Ten consumer and privacy groups have joined some members of Congress in calling on the Federal Trade Commission to investigate the new sharing mechanisms. A chief concern is user’s loss of control. In the past, users were able to share information manually, but the new mechanisms automate much of the sharing process while tapping deeper into user data amassed by the company. (Read more)
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Starbucks wants $5 more

Starbucks customers will be asked to shell out another $5 when they stop in for their morning cup of coffee. Starting Nov. 1, the Seattle-based coffee chain will begin collecting donations in an effort to stimulated U.S. Job Growth by launching its “Jobs for USA” program. Starbucks is collaborating with the Opportunity Finance Network, a nonprofit that works with nearly 200 community development financial institutions to provide loans to small businesses and community groups. Starbucks says 100% of the donations will go toward loans for companies and organizations that can add jobs or stem job losses. Customers who donate $5 or more will receive red, white and blue wristband that says “Indivisible.” (Read more)
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Obama: “I’m used to being the underdog”

President Obama may have given Republicans a convenient sound bite for the 2012 election when he George Stephanopoulos of ABC News that Americans are not better off than they were four years ago. Of course, he blamed the economic meltdown that occurred before he entered office as the reason. Adding that the country is making steady progress, but unemployment rates remain too high.

Watch and discuss: