Supreme Court hears the D.C. Metro fries case.

December 4, 2000 8:26 PM

Supreme Court hears the D.C. Metro fries case. While all the reporters were out filing misleading dispatches on the decision in the Florida case, Justices Scalia and Souter started bantering with one of the attorneys (in the "Texas seat belt case" being argued today) about the girl arrested for eating fries in the Metro.
posted by grimmelm (5 comments total)

Interesting article.

I don't feel the police had the right to arrest the woman and take her to jail for an hour, especially for a seat-belt violation.

But I would have to agree that this isn't a constitutional topic that the Supreme Court should have to deal with. This should have been taken care of locally, but of course, the defendants in the case (Taxas) manuevered it out of local court and into federal court where it was more likely not to receive as much bad publicity.

Go figure.
posted by da5id at 5:29 AM on December 5, 2000

ack... Texas. Not Taxas.
posted by da5id at 5:30 AM on December 5, 2000

This is what happens when policy and procedure collide with rights. The constitutional issues aren't terribly compelling, but we wouldn't be having this discussion if the lower courts hadn't bobbled the ball.

I have a feeling that neither side is going to be very happy about this one, but it is a question that needs to have some answers. Otherwise, we will continue to have young teens and soccer moms arrested (a terribly rotten experience) for offenses that would be given significantly lower levels of intervention if handled by a different officer.
posted by Dreama at 6:03 AM on December 5, 2000

You also have to remember that the SCt. only takes the cases it wants to. Therefore, there is something in this case that they feel needs to be addressed.
posted by CRS at 6:23 AM on December 5, 2000

That little girl should rot in jail to pay for what she's done.
posted by chartres at 7:58 AM on December 5, 2000