Case at a Glance

Terry Whitman, an air traffic assistant, objected to being repeatedly tested for drugs despite having tested negative each time. After the Federal Labor Relations Authority rejected his complaint, Whitman sued the Department of Transportation in federal court, alleging violations of his constitutional rights and seeking equitable relief. The district court dismissed his complaint and the Ninth Circuit affirmed, holding that under the Civil Service Reform Act his sole remedy was the grievance procedure negotiated in his collective bargaining agreement.

• Previewed by Robert Yates, a former managing editor of the ABA Journal and an Evanston, Ill., free-lance writer and editor specializing in legal affairs.

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Case at a Glance

The Ninth Circuit in this case granted the defendant's petition for habeas corpus relief on the grounds that the California state courts' denial of his Batson claim involved an unreasonable application of clearly established federal law and an unreasonable determination of the facts. The Supreme Court has now agreed to review the circumstances in which a federal habeas court can reject the presumption of correctness for state-court fact-findings and condemn a state-court adjudication as an unreasonable determination of the facts.

• Previewed by Elizabeth B. Wydra, an attorney specializing in appellate litigation at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges, LLP in San Francisco, California.

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Case at a Glance

This case raises the issue of whether the government may, consistent with the constitutional guarantees of free speech and association, deny federal funds to an entire university when a single part of the university bars military recruiters from getting access to its facilities equal to that given to other employers.

• Previewed by Dale Carpenter, an associate professor at the University of Minnesota Law School in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

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Case at a Glance

Two corporations contracted for construction services. One of the corporations was solely owned by a minority entrepreneur who was the president and sole shareholder. During the performance of contracts, the minority entrepreneur allegedly received racially discriminatory statements from officers of the other corporation. The minority entrepreneur seeks individual damages under § 1981, albeit he was not a party to the contract between the corporations. Does he have standing?

• Previewed by Ralph Anzivino, a professor at Marquette University Law School in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

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Case at a Glance

Randy Lee Guzek, convicted of murder in 1988, faces a fourth capital re-sentencing in Oregon. In granting Guzek relief, the Oregon Supreme Court issued directions for the admission and use of trial evidence supporting "residual doubt" arguments at his upcoming re-sentencing. The State of Oregon claims that those directions violate Franklin v. Lynaugh, and Guzek argues that the Court lacks jurisdiction to hear his case.

• Previewed by Kathy Swedlow, an associate professor at the Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Lansing, Michigan.

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Case at a Glance

Michael Lee Marsh was sentenced to death for the 1996 murder of 19-month old M.P. Pusch and received a life sentence for the murder of M.P.'s mother, Marry Ane. On direct appeal, the Kansas Supreme Court granted Marsh a new trial in M.P.'s murder, and also held that the state's sentencing statute could not be construed in a constitutional manner. The State now seeks review of the Kansas Supreme Court's sentencing ruling.

• Previewed by Kathy Swedlow, an associate professor at the Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Lansing, Michigan.

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