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Rodney Reed v. Bryan Goertz
Paid petition · United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, No. 19-70022 · judgment April 22, 2021
Before the decision, well below the 4.1% base rate, with no standout signals pointing toward a grant.
Question presented
In Skinner v. Switzer, 562 U.S. 521, 524-25 (2011), this Court held that state prisoners may pursue post-conviction claims for DNA testing of crime-scene evidence in a civil rights action under 42 U.S.C.§ 1983. The Court made clear that a prisoner bringing such a § 1983 claim may seek "to show that the governing state law denies him procedural due process" after he has unsuccessfully sought DNA testing under available state procedures. Id. at 525, 530. The question presented is whether the statute of limitations for a § 1983 claim seeking DNA testing of crime-scene evidence begins to run at the end of state-court litigation denying DNA testing, including any appeals (as the Eleventh Circuit has held), or whether it begins to run at the moment the state trial court denies DNA testing, despite any subsequent appeal (as the Fifth Circuit, joining the Seventh Circuit, held below).
Counsel of record
For petitioner
Parker Andrew Rider-Longmaid
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
For respondent
Lanora Christine Pettit
Office of the Texas Attorney General
Case
Conference history
Distributed for 8 conferences
Amicus briefs
1 cert-stage · 10 merits
(9 supporting pet./neither, 1 respondent)
Argument & decision
Argued October 11, 2022 — Parker Rider-Longmaid · Judd E. Stone. Audio and transcript
Decided April 19, 2023. Opinion by Kavanaugh.
Proceedings
- May 22 2023Judgment issued.
- Apr 19 2023Judgment REVERSED. Kavanaugh, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Roberts, C. J., and Sotomayor, Kagan, Barrett, and Jackson, JJ., joined. Thomas, J., filed a dissenting opinion. Alito, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which Gorsuch, J., joined.
- Oct 11 2022Argued. For petitioner: Parker Rider-Longmaid, Washington, D. C. For respondent: Judd E. Stone, II, Solicitor General, Austin, Tex.
- Sep 22 2022Reply of petitioner Rodney Reed filed. (Distributed)
- Aug 30 2022Brief amici curiae of Montana, et al. filed. (Distributed)
- Aug 23 2022Brief of respondent Bryan Goertz filed. (Distributed)
- Aug 03 2022USDC, W. Dist., Tex. record on appeal, including sealed filings, has been electronically received by the Clerk.
- Jul 21 2022CIRCULATED
- Jul 08 2022Brief amicus curiae of Professor Fred Smith Jr. filed.
- Jul 08 2022Brief amici curiae of The Law Enforcement Action Partnership and the National Police Accountability Project filed.
- Jul 08 2022Brief amicus curiae of Constitutional Accountability Center filed.
- Jul 08 2022Brief amicus curiae of NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, Inc. filed.
- Jul 08 2022Brief amici curiae of Texas Exonerees Michael Morton and Anthony Graves, et al. filed.
- Jul 08 2022Brief amici curiae of Federal Courts Scholars filed.
- Jul 08 2022Brief amici curiae of National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, et al. filed.
- Jul 08 2022Brief amicus curiae of Chase Baumgartner filed.
- Jul 07 2022Brief amici curiae of Eight Retired Judges filed.
- Jul 01 2022Brief of petitioner Rodney Reed filed.
- Jul 01 2022Joint appendix filed. (Statement of costs filed)
- Jun 24 2022Blanket Consent filed by Respondent, Bryan Goertz, et al.
- Jun 22 2022Blanket Consent filed by Petitioner, Rodney Reed
- Jun 22 2022Record requested from the 5th Circuit.
- Jun 22 2022The record from the U.S.C.A. 5th Circuit is electronic and located on Pacer.
- Jun 14 2022ARGUMENT SET FOR Tuesday, October, 11, 2022.
- May 19 2022Motion to extend the time to file the briefs on the merits granted. The time to file the joint appendix and petitioner's brief on the merits is extended to and including July 1, 2022. The time to file respondents' brief on the merits is extended to and including August 23, 2022.
- May 02 2022Motion for an extension of time to file the briefs on the merits filed.
- Apr 25 2022Motion for leave to file amicus brief filed by Constitutional Accountability Center GRANTED.
- Apr 25 2022Petition GRANTED.
- Apr 18 2022DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 4/22/2022.
- Apr 11 2022DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 4/14/2022.
- Mar 28 2022DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 4/1/2022.
- Mar 21 2022DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 3/25/2022.
- Mar 14 2022DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 3/18/2022.
- Feb 28 2022DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 3/4/2022.
- Feb 22 2022DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 2/25/2022.
- Feb 02 2022DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 2/18/2022.
- Feb 01 2022Reply of petitioner Rodney Reed filed. (Distributed)
- Jan 19 2022Brief of respondents Bryan Goertz, et al. in opposition filed.
- Dec 29 2021Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including January 19, 2022.
- Dec 28 2021Motion to extend the time to file a response from January 5, 2022 to January 19, 2022, submitted to The Clerk.
- Nov 19 2021Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including January 5, 2022.
- Nov 18 2021Motion to extend the time to file a response from November 22, 2021 to January 5, 2022, submitted to The Clerk.
- Oct 22 2021Motion for leave to file amicus brief filed by Constitutional Accountability Center.
- Oct 22 2021Brief amici curiae of Texas Exonerees Michael Morton and Anthony Graves, et al. filed.
- Oct 14 2021Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including November 22, 2021. See Rule 30.1
- Oct 13 2021Motion to extend the time to file a response from October 22, 2021 to November 21, 2021, submitted to The Clerk.
- Sep 20 2021Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due October 22, 2021)