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Goosby v. Osser, 409 U.S. 512 (1973)
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General SummaryThis case is from a collection containing the full text of over 16,000 Supreme Court cases from 1793 to the present. The body of Supreme Court decisions are, effectively, the final interpretation of the Constitution. Only an amendment to the Constitution can permanently overturn an interpretation and this has happened only four times in American history.
Goosby v. Osser, 409 U.S. 512 (1973)
Goosby v. Osser No. 71-6316 Argued December 7, 1972 Decided January 17, 1973 409 U.S. 512
CERTIORARI TO THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT
Syllabus
Philadelphia County prisoners unable to make bail or being held on nonbailable offenses brought this class action, asserting the unconstitutionality of Pennsylvania Election Code provisions denying them the right to vote. When the Commonwealth (but not the municipal) officials who were named as defendants conceded the Code provisions’ unconstitutionality, the District Judge (deeming the Commonwealth officials the principal defendants) ruled the case nonjusticiable as not involving an Art. III case or controversy, and dismissed the complaint. The Court of Appeals, though differing as to justiciability, affirmed on the ground that petitioners’ constitutional claims were wholly insubstantial under McDonald v. Board of Election Comm’rs, 394 U.S. 802, and ruled that a three-judge district court was therefore not required under 28 U.S.C. § 2281.
Held:
1. The Commonwealth officials’ concession did not foreclose the existence of an Art. III case or controversy, since the municipal officials continue to assert the right to enforce the challenged Code provisions. Pp. 516-517.
2. McDonald, supra, unlike the situation alleged here, did not deal with an absolute prohibition against voting by the prisoners there involved, and that decision does not "foreclose the subject" of petitioners’ challenge to the Pennsylvania statutory scheme. The case may, if appropriate, therefore be heard by a three-judge district court. Pp. 518-523.
452 F.2d 39, reversed and remanded.
BRENNAN, J., delivered the opinion for a unanimous Court.
Contents:
Chicago: U.S. Supreme Court, "Syllabus," Goosby v. Osser, 409 U.S. 512 (1973) in 409 U.S. 512 409 U.S. 513. Original Sources, accessed November 24, 2024, http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=RNNCA7NIPDZ6C8C.
MLA: U.S. Supreme Court. "Syllabus." Goosby v. Osser, 409 U.S. 512 (1973), in 409 U.S. 512, page 409 U.S. 513. Original Sources. 24 Nov. 2024. http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=RNNCA7NIPDZ6C8C.
Harvard: U.S. Supreme Court, 'Syllabus' in Goosby v. Osser, 409 U.S. 512 (1973). cited in 1973, 409 U.S. 512, pp.409 U.S. 513. Original Sources, retrieved 24 November 2024, from http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=RNNCA7NIPDZ6C8C.
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