From the desk of the Executive Director
Linked to this page is the opinion of the United States Supreme Court in United States v. Morrison. This decision struck down a key provision of the Violence Against Women Act ("VAWA"), 42 U.S.C. § 13981 which provided for a federal civil remedy for victims of gender-based violence. The Court reasoned that the Act was unconstitutional because Congress exceeded its constitutional authority to enact under either § 8 of the Commerce Clause or § 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
In the complaint, Christy Brzonkala, a former student at Virginia Polytechnic Institute was allegedly raped by Antonio Morrison and James Crawford, who were also students at Virginia Polytechnic Institute. After failing to get a proper remedy from the school, Brzonkala sued Morrison, Crawford, and Virginia Polytechnic Institute under VAWA in federal court. Both the Federal District Court and the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed the suit and ruled that the VAWA was unconstitutional. The Supreme Court affirmed this.
The unofficial slip opinion of the ruling is provided at the following links:
Read the entire opinion here
Read the Majority Opinion, authored by Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, and joined by Justices Sandra Day O'Connor, Antonin Scalia, Anthony M. Kennedy, and Clarence Thomas.
Read the Concurring Opinion of Justice Clarence Thomas.
Read the Dissenting Opinion of Justice David H. Souter, joined by Justices John Paul Stevens, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Stephen G. Breyer.
Read the Dissenting Opinion of Justice Stephen G. Breyer, join in full by Justice John Paul Stevens, and in part by Justices David H. Souter and Ruth Bader Ginsberg