Taylor v. United States (2016)

For other uses, see Taylor v. United States.

Taylor v. United States
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued February 23, 2016 Decided June 20, 2016
Full case name	David Anthony Taylor, Petitioner v. United States
Docket no.	14-6166
Citations	579 U.S. ___ (more) 136 S. Ct. 2074; 195 L. Ed. 2d 456
Opinion announcement	Opinion announcement
Case history
Prior	United States v. Taylor, 754 F.3d 217 (4th Cir. 2014)
Holding
In a federal criminal prosecution under the Hobbs Act, the government is not required to prove an interstate commerce element beyond a reasonable doubt.
Court membership
Chief Justice John Roberts Associate Justices Anthony Kennedy · Clarence Thomas Ruth Bader Ginsburg · Stephen Breyer Samuel Alito · Sonia Sotomayor Elena Kagan
Case opinions
Majority	Alito, joined by Roberts, Kennedy, Ginsburg, Breyer, Sotomayor, Kagan
Dissent	Thomas
Laws applied
Hobbs Act

Taylor v. United States, 579 U.S. ___ (2016), was a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court held that in a federal criminal prosecution under the Hobbs Act, the government is not required to prove an interstate commerce element beyond a reasonable doubt.^{[1][2][not verified in body]} The Court relied on its decision in Gonzales v. Raich (2005) which held that Congress has the authority to regulate the marijuana market given that even local activities can have a "substantial effect" on interstate commerce.^{[not verified in body]}

Background

David Anthony Taylor performed two home-invasion robberies with the intent of stealing from two perceived marijuana dealers in Roanoke, Virginia. When initially tried in federal court, the jury deadlocked because of arguments that the marijuana in question was grown and intended for use within Virginia. Taylor was then retried where the judge precluded that line of argument and convicted. The high court upheld that conviction.

Opinion of the Court

Associate Justice Samuel Alito authored the majority opinion.^{[2][further explanation needed]}

See also

• Cannabis in Virginia

References

1. SCOTUSblog coverage
2. Taylor v. United States, No. 14–6166, 579 U.S. ____ (2016).

External links

• Text of Taylor v. United States, 579 U.S. ___ (2016) is available from: Justia Oyez (oral argument audio) Supreme Court (slip opinion) (archived)
• SCOTUSblog coverage