3 Liberal Supreme Court Justices Dissent in Cruel and Unusual Punishment Case

The Supreme Court’s three liberal justices disagreed with the court’s decision not to hear the case of an Illinois inmate who claims that for three years he was illegally denied the opportunity to exercise while in solitary confinement. In refusing to grant the petition in Johnson v. Prentice (court file 22-693), the justices declined to take up an appeal that would have looked at what rights are possessed by prisoners who have been isolated by authorities. The court, which has a 6–3 conservative-leaning majority, denied the petition for certiorari, or review, in an unsigned order on Nov. 13. The court did not explain its decision. At least four of the nine justices must vote for a petition for it to move forward to the oral argument stage....