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Wyoming v. Phillip Sam

Paid petition · Supreme Court of Wyoming, No. S-16-0168 · judgment August 24, 2017

Certiorari denied · May 14, 2018
Pre-decision estimate: 1% cert probability

Before the decision, well below the 4.1% base rate, with no standout signals pointing toward a grant.

Question presented

When a juvenile is sentenced for murder and other violent crimes, does the Eighth Amendment limit a judge to an aggregate term of years that allows a meaningful opportunity for release even though none of the separate sentences are cruel and unusual?

Counsel of record

For petitioner
Peter K. Michael

For respondent
Paul Whitfield Hughes
McDermott Will & Emery

Case

Conference history
Distributed for 1 conference

Amicus briefs
1 cert-stage

Proceedings

  1. May 14 2018
    Petition DENIED.
  2. Apr 24 2018
    DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 5/10/2018.
  3. Apr 19 2018
    Reply of petitioner State of Wyoming filed.
  4. Apr 06 2018
    Brief of respondent Phillip Sam in opposition filed.
  5. Mar 05 2018
    Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including April 6, 2018.
  6. Mar 02 2018
    Motion to extend the time to file a response from March 7, 2018 to April 6, 2018, submitted to The Clerk.
  7. Feb 02 2018
    Brief amici curiae of State of Utah et al. filed.
  8. Jan 26 2018
    Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including March 7, 2018.
  9. Jan 25 2018
    Motion to extend the time to file a response from February 5, 2018 to March 7, 2018, submitted to The Clerk.
  10. Dec 21 2017
    Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due February 5, 2018)