Short Circuit 432 | Moth-Eaten Precedent
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
More episodes of Short Circuit
- Short Circuit 431 | Hard but not Impossible
- Short Circuit 430 | Stateless in Seattle
- Short Circuit 429 | A Fifth of Circuit
- Short Circuit 428 | Shopping With Roy Moore
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