Volume 461 — United States Reports

This is a list of all the United States Supreme Court cases from volume 461 of the United States Reports:

Respondent, while an inmate in a Missouri reformatory for youthful first offenders, was harassed, beaten, and sexually assaulted by his cellmates. Held: Punitive damages are available in a proper case under § 1983.

City of Los Angeles v. Lyons, 461 U.S. 95 (1983), was a United States Supreme Court decision holding that the plaintiff, Adolph Lyons, lacked standing to challenge the Los Angeles city police department's use of chokeholds.

Connick v. Myers, 461 U.S. 138 (1983), is a United States Supreme Court decision concerning the First Amendment rights of public employees who speak on matters of possible public concern within the workplace context. It was first brought by Sheila Myers, an Orleans Parish, Louisiana, assistant district attorney (ADA). She had been fired by her superior, District Attorney Harry Connick Sr., when, after receiving a transfer she had fiercely resisted in private conversations with him and his chief assistant district attorney, she distributed a questionnaire to her fellow prosecutors asking about their experience with Connick's management practices.

Title 40 U.S.C. § 13k prohibits the "display [of] any flag, banner, or device designed or adapted to bring into public notice any party, organization, or movement" in the United States… Held: Section 13k, as applied to the public sidewalks surrounding the Court building, is unconstitutional under the First Amendment. Pp. 175-184. (a) The conduct of each appellee falls into the statutory ban, and hence it is proper to reach the constitutional question involved. P. 175-176.

In Pacific Gas & Electric Co. v. State Energy Resources Conservation & Development Commission, 461 U.S. 190 (1983), the United States Supreme Court held that a state statute regulating economic aspects of nuclear generating plants was not preempted by the federal Atomic Energy Act of 1954. The case provides a framework that has guided other cases involving preemption of federal authority.

Olim v. Wakinekona, 461 U.S. 238 (1983), was a United States Supreme Court case in which the court held that incarcerated people do not have a due process right to choose the prison in which they are held, even if they are transferred to a prison across the ocean.

Section 8(f) of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) authorizes construction industry employers and unions to enter into so-called "prehire" agreements setting the terms and… Held: Monetary obligations assumed by an employer under a prehire contract authorized by § 8(f) may be recovered in a § 301 action brought by a union prior to repudiation of the contract by the employer, even though the union has not obtained majority support in the relevant unit. Pp. 265-272.

North Dakota filed suit in Federal District Court against several federal officials to resolve a dispute as to ownership of certain portions of a riverbed within the State. Held: The legislative history establishes that Congress intended the QTA to provide the exclusive means by which adverse claimants can challenge the United States' title to real property.

Commissioner v. Tufts, 461 U.S. 300 (1983), was a unanimous decision by the United States Supreme Court, which held that when a taxpayer sells or disposes of property encumbered by a nonrecourse obligation exceeding the fair market value of the property sold, the Commissioner of Internal Revenue may require him to include in the “amount realized” the outstanding amount of the obligation; the fair market value of the property is irrelevant to this calculation.

Texas Education Code § 21.031(d) permits a school district to deny tuition-free admission to its public schools for a minor who lives apart from a… Held: Section 21.031 is a bona fide residence requirement that satisfies constitutional standards. Pp. 325-333. (a) A bona fide residence requirement, appropriately defined and uniformly applied, furthers the substantial state interest in assuring that services provided for the State's residents are enjoyed only by residents.

Kolender v. Lawson, 461 U.S. 352 (1983), is a United States Supreme Court case concerning the constitutionality of vague laws that allow police to demand that "loiterers" and "wanderers" provide "credible and reliable" identification.

Appellant is a customer-owned rural power cooperative established with loan funds and technical assistance provided by the federal Rural Electrification Administration (REA), but unlike most such… Held: Appellee's assertion of jurisdiction over the wholesale rates charged by appellant to its members does not offend the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution. Pp. 383-389. (a) Neither the Federal Power Act nor administrative actions taken thereunder pre-empt state regulation.

Section 210 of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA) was designed to encourage the development of cogeneration facilities and small power production… Held: FERC did not act arbitrarily or capriciously in promulgating the full-avoided-cost rule, which is the maximum rate permissible under § 210(b). Such rule plainly satisfies the requirement of § 210(b) that the rate not discriminate against qualifying cogeneration and small power production facilities.

Respondents, on behalf of all persons involuntarily confined in the forensic unit of a Missouri state hospital, brought suit in Federal District Court against petitioner hospital officials,… Held: The District Court did not properly consider the relationship between the extent of success and the amount of the attorney's fee award. The extent of a plaintiff's success is a crucial factor in determining the proper amount of an attorney's fee award under § 1988.

Heckler v. Campbell, 461 U.S. 458 (1983), is a United States Supreme Court case concerning whether the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services could rely on published medical-vocational guidelines to determine a claimant’s right to Social Security benefits.

A contract between the Federal Republic of Nigeria and petitioner Dutch corporation for the purchase of cement by Nigeria provided that Nigeria was to establish a confirmed letter of credit… Held: For the most part, the Act codifies, as a matter of federal law, the restrictive theory of foreign sovereign immunity under which immunity is confined to suits involving the foreign sovereign's public acts and does not extend to cases arising out of its strictly commercial acts.

At respondents' trial in Federal District Court on charges of kidnaping, transporting women across state lines for immoral purposes, and conspiracy to commit such offenses, the victims' testimony… Held: The Court of Appeals erred in reversing the convictions apparently on the basis that it had the supervisory power to discipline prosecutors for continuing violations of Griffin, supra, regardless of whether the prosecutor's arguments constituted harmless error. Pp. 504-509.

Under § 33(b) of the Longshoremen's and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (Act), an injured longshoreman who accepts "compensation under an award in a compensation order filed by the deputy… Held: Respondent's acceptance of voluntary compensation payments did not constitute acceptance of compensation "under an award in a compensation order" so as to give rise to the assignment of his claims against third parties under § 33(b). Pp. 532-539.

Regan v. Taxation with Representation of Washington, 461 U.S. 540 (1983), was a case in which the United States Supreme Court upheld lobbying restrictions imposed on tax-exempt non-profit corporations.

United States v. $8,850, 461 U.S. 555, is a United States Supreme Court case regarding civil forfeiture and the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment.

Bob Jones University v. United States, 461 U.S. 574 (1983), was a decision by the United States Supreme Court holding that the religion clauses of the First Amendment did not prohibit the Internal Revenue Service from revoking the tax exempt status of a religious university whose practices are contrary to a compelling government public policy, such as eradicating racial discrimination.

Section 2(13) of the Longshoremen's and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (LHWCA) defines "wages" for the purpose of computing compensation benefits under the Act as meaning "the money rate at which… Held: Employer contributions to union trust funds are not included in the term "wages" as defined in § 2(13). Pp. 629-637.

Prior to 1946 the section of the patent laws governing recovery in patent infringement actions contained no reference to interest. Held: The award of prejudgment interest was proper in this case. Pp. 641-657.

Bearden v. Georgia, 461 U.S. 660 (1983), was a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case holding that a local government can only imprison or jail someone for not paying a fine if it can be shown, by means of a hearing, that the person in question could have paid it but "willfully" chose not to do so.

These cases present the issue whether § 7403 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954—which authorizes a federal district court, in a suit instituted by the Government, to decree a sale of certain… Held: Section 7403 grants power to a federal district court to order the sale of the home itself, not just the delinquent taxpayer's interest in the property.

After one Helton, a waitress at petitioner's restaurant, filed unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) alleging that… Held: The NLRB may not halt the prosecution of a state-court lawsuit, regardless of the plaintiff's motive, unless the suit lacks a reasonable basis in fact or law. Retaliatory motive and lack of reasonable basis are both essential prerequisites to the issuance of a cease-and-desist order against a state suit. Pp. 740-744.

Faced with the prospect of liability for violations of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 in its hiring practices, petitioner employer signed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission… Held: The award in question is properly to be enforced. Pp. 764-772. (a) A federal court may not overrule an arbitrator's decision simply because the court believes its own interpretation of the collective-bargaining agreement would be the better one.

Respondent States received funds as part of the federal grant-in-aid program under Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), a program designed to… Held: The Court of Appeals had jurisdiction of the cases under both § 195 of ESEA—which permits judicial review in the courts of appeals of the Secretary's final action with respect to audits—and § 455 of the General Education Provisions Act (GEPA)—which permits such review of actions of the Board.