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James Joseph Garner v. Colorado

Paid petition · Supreme Court of Colorado, No. 16SC75 · judgment March 18, 2019

Certiorari denied · October 21, 2019
Pre-decision estimate: 10% cert probability (95% interval 6%–17%)

Before the decision, about 2.5× the 4.1% base rate. The model weighted this up for counsel who has won certiorari before, a circuit split argued in the petition, and a petition citing three to ten dissents, and down for a state or local-government respondent and a petition filed soon after the judgment below.

Question presented

Whether the Due Process Clause imposes any check on an eyewitness’s identification of a criminal defendant in the typically suggestive setting of trial where there was no police misconduct but there is nonetheless substantial reason to doubt the witness would identify the defendant in a nonsuggestive setting.

Counsel of record

For petitioner
Jeffrey L. Fisher
Stanford Supreme Court Litigation Clinic

For respondent
L. Andrew Cooper
Office of the Colorado Attorney General

Case

Subject area
Criminal Procedure (estimated from the questions presented, in the Supreme Court Database’s categories)

Conference history
Distributed for 1 conference

Amicus briefs
2 cert-stage

Linked docket
18A1244

Order
Order list, October 21, 2019 · Certiorari denied

Proceedings

  1. Oct 21 2019
    Petition DENIED.
  2. Oct 02 2019
    DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 10/18/2019.
  3. Oct 01 2019
    Reply of petitioner James Garner filed.
  4. Sep 25 2019
    Waiver of the 14-day waiting period under Rule 15.5 filed by petitioner.
  5. Sep 19 2019
    Brief of respondent Colorado in opposition filed.
  6. Aug 14 2019
    Brief amici curiae of Scholars of Law, Psychology, Neuroscience, and other Fields filed.
  7. Aug 14 2019
    Brief amicus curiae of National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers filed.
  8. Jul 29 2019
    Blanket Consent filed by Respondent, Colorado.
  9. Jul 26 2019
    Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including September 19, 2019.
  10. Jul 25 2019
    Motion to extend the time to file a response from August 14, 2019 to September 19, 2019, submitted to The Clerk.
  11. Jul 25 2019
    Blanket Consent filed by Petitioner, James Garner.
  12. Jul 15 2019
    Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due August 14, 2019)
  13. May 31 2019
    Application (18A1244) granted by Justice Sotomayor extending the time to file until July 17, 2019.
  14. May 29 2019
    Application (18A1244) to extend the time to file a petition for a writ of certiorari from June 16, 2019 to July 17, 2019, submitted to Justice Sotomayor.
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