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Terrill A. Rickmon, Sr. v. United States

Paid petition · United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, No. 19-2054 · judgment March 11, 2020

Certiorari denied · April 5, 2021
Pre-decision estimate: 3% cert probability

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

Question presented

The Court has long recognized that without a warrant, police must have an “individualized suspicion” to stop a particular person. This is the familiar standard established in Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 21 (1968). Earlier this year, the District of Columbia Circuit and a divided en banc court of the Fourth Circuit ruled that the sound of gunshots were insufficient grounds to stop anyone nearby. In this case, however, a divided panel of the Seventh Circuit concluded that the sound of gunshots created an “emergency” that justified stopping the first car that the police spotted leaving the area. This question is presented for review: Does the sound of gunshots create an emergency so that the “individualized suspicion” required by Terry attaches to anyone near the shots?

Counsel of record

For petitioner
Luke Verrill Cass
Quarles & Brady LLP

For respondent
Brian H. Fletcher
Acting Solicitor General

Case

Conference history
Distributed for 1 conference

Proceedings

  1. Apr 05 2021
    Petition DENIED. Justice Barrett took no part in the consideration or decision of this petition.
  2. Mar 16 2021
    DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 4/1/2021.
  3. Mar 11 2021
    Reply of petitioner Terrill A. Rickmon, Sr. filed.
  4. Feb 26 2021
    Brief of respondent United States in opposition filed.
  5. Jan 13 2021
    Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including February 26, 2021.
  6. Jan 12 2021
    Motion to extend the time to file a response from January 27, 2021 to February 26, 2021, submitted to The Clerk.
  7. Dec 22 2020
    Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including January 27, 2021.
  8. Dec 20 2020
    Motion to extend the time to file a response from December 28, 2020 to January 27, 2021, submitted to The Clerk.
  9. Nov 20 2020
    Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due December 28, 2020)