Short Circuit 432 | Moth-Eaten Precedent

Short Circuit 432 | Moth-Eaten Precedent

From Short Circuit by Institute for Justice

June 12, 2026 · 44 min

About this episode

The episode discusses a tragic assault case and the implications of federal tort claims, alongside a review of religious liberty precedents.

A wild, and tragic, story from the Fifth Circuit with a bit of good (yet confusing) news at the end. IJ’s Diana Simpson tells us of a woman who feared her ex-boyfriend was going to harm her, so she called his probation officer. The officer assured the woman that they’d arrest him but then didn’t bother to do so. That resulted in a brutal assault. Does she have a claim against the federal government under those facts? Turns out she does, which we learn after bobbing and weaving around the various exceptions to the Federal Tort Claims Act. Then, Tate Cooper of IJ brings us a sighting of “zombie precedent”—or is it “moth-eaten precedent”?—from the Fourth Circuit where a college student who wanted to study to be a preacher couldn’t get a scholarship. The court looks at three recent big religious liberty cases at the Supreme Court, including two IJ cases, and concludes that despite them an older precedent still controls. Morris v. U.S. Hall v. Fleming Bound By Oath episode on the FTCA Locke v. Davey

People in this episode

Guests: Diana Simpson, Tate Cooper

Topics covered

  • legal claims
  • federal tort claims act
  • religious liberty
  • court precedents
  • assault case
  • probation officer

Keywords

  • Fifth Circuit
  • Federal Tort Claims Act
  • assault
  • religious liberty
  • court precedent
  • Diana Simpson
  • Tate Cooper

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Institute for Justice, Fourth Circuit, Fifth Circuit

Books & works: Morris v. U.S., Hall v. Fleming, Locke v. Davey

Places: U.S.

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