ANN ARBOR—The U.S. Supreme Court began its new term, and the University of Michigan has experts available to discuss various issues. The court’s docket includes cases involving police procedure, immigration and First Amendment provisions involving government bans on TV nudity and swearing.

U-M experts include:

Sam Gross, the Thomas and Mabel Long Professor of Law at the Law School, can discuss Maples v. Thomas, which will determine whether a mistake in the mail room of a law firm can prevent a death row inmate from winning his appeal. He can be contacted at (734) 764-1519 or [email protected].

Dave Moran, clinical law professor, has tracked the following cases:

• US v. Jones?Do police need a warrant to attach a GPS tracking device to a suspect’s car?
• Florence v. Board of Freeholders?Can people held on the most minor offenses be strip-searched?
• Maples v. Thomas?Can a mistake in mail delivery at a law firm prevent a death row inmate from winning his appeal?
• Lafler v. Cooper (a Michigan case) and Missouri v. Frye?Can someone who pleaded guilty but received poor legal advice or wasn’t told of a better plea deal pursue a claim of ineffective counsel?
• Perry v. New Hampshire?On the use of eyewitness evidence.
• Smith v. Cain?A case involving allegations of prosecutorial misconduct.

He can be reached at (734) 615-5419 or [email protected].

Len Niehoff, law professor from practice, can discuss FCC v. Fox Television Stations?a First Amendment case involving “fleeting expletives,” as at an awards show, and partial nudity. He can be reached at (734) 763-5145 or [email protected].

L. Monique Ward, a professor of psychology, is an expert on how children interpret and use the messages they receive about male-female relations from their parents, peers and the media. One current line of research investigates the role of the media in the process of sexual socialization, and she can discuss the impact of the issues involving FCC v. Fox Television Stations. She can be reached at (734) 764-0430 or [email protected].

John Garcia, director of the Resource Center for Minority Data and director of community outreach at the U-M Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research, can discuss immigration issues related to SB 1070, which states that law enforcement officers may check the person’s immigration status if there’s reasonable suspicion that the individual is living in the United States illegally. He can be reached at (734) 615-0183 or [email protected].