This blog predicted that the decision by the Virginia Supreme Court in Tanner v. City of Virginia Beach would likely have significant impacts on local governments and their citizens. Forecast has become fact, as ordinances across the state have been struck down or charges dismissed. In the City of Richmond, a noise ordinance adopted after the Tanner decision was [...]

U.S. Supreme Court Rules for Incorporation in McDonald v. City of Chicago: Litigation Likely Last year, this blog reported that the U.S. Supreme Court would be ruling on a key Second Amendment case arising in Chicago that may have a bigger impact on state and local governments than the D.C. gun ban case previously decided. [...]

Well, it’s over. The “reasonable person” is dead. Or is it? The U.S. Supreme Court denied the request for a writ of certiorari by the City of Virginia Beach to review the Virginia Supreme Court’s decision overturning the City’s noise ordinance in Tanner v. City of Virginia Beach, 277 Va. 432, 674 S.E.2d 848 (2009). [...]

Beyond the direct impacts on local government noise regulation resulting from the Tanner v. City of Virginia Beach case, (see previous blog post below), there are some questions that arise. These questions arise from the Virginia Supreme Court’s reliance on the “Due Process Clause” – all caps, with no citation – to strike down the [...]