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Court rules for Navy in sonar use
Supreme Court of the United States Blog ^ | November 12, 2008 | SCOTUSblog

Posted on 11/12/2008 7:29:52 AM PST by NinoFan

The Supreme Court, dividing deeply, upheld the Navy’s power to use sonar in military training exercises, even though the technology threatens marine life in the training zone off the Pacific Coast. Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., wrote for the majority; there were three full dissents and one partial dissent. The decision, the Court’s first ruling of the Term, came in the case of Winter (Navy Secretary) v. National Resources Defense Council, et al. (07-1239).

The Court partially overturned a federal judge’s order against the use of the active sonar at least until the Navy took additional measures to mitigate the threat to whales, dolphines and other marine mammals. Those added measures would have required the Navy to stop its sonar exercises when the threat to mammals was deemed imminent. The ruling set aside the District Court injunction to the extent challenged by the Navy.

Roberts wrote that “the Navy’s need to conduct realistic training with active sonar to respond to the threat posed by enemy submarines plainly outweighs” the environmental concerns raised by advocacy groups.


TOPICS: Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: navy; scotus; sonar; submarine; vieques
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1 posted on 11/12/2008 7:29:53 AM PST by NinoFan
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To: NinoFan

Unbelievable that this even COMES before the USSC.


2 posted on 11/12/2008 7:32:15 AM PST by LS ("Castles made of sand, fall in the sea . . . eventually." (Hendrix))
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To: NinoFan

What real double blind studies exist indicating sonar harms marine mammals.

Studies by GreenPeace or other such are not admissible.


3 posted on 11/12/2008 7:32:58 AM PST by bert (K.E. N.P. +12 . Save America......... put out lots of waferin)
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To: NinoFan
Those added measures would have required the Navy to stop its sonar exercises when the threat to mammals was deemed imminent.

Which is impossible to judge, so this is foolishness.

4 posted on 11/12/2008 7:36:17 AM PST by doodad
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To: NinoFan

The Navy should train while it last, the Supreme Court is about to get a lot more radical in the near future.


5 posted on 11/12/2008 7:36:45 AM PST by NavVet ( If you don't defend Conservatism in the Primaries, you won't have it to defend in November)
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To: LS

Unbelievable that this even COMES before the USSC.

Things like this are why they will not get to hear the birth certificate case(s).


6 posted on 11/12/2008 7:37:16 AM PST by Cyclone59
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To: LS

And it was another 5-4 decision. Even one Obama appointment to the SCOTUS will have devastating results to America.


7 posted on 11/12/2008 7:39:20 AM PST by RightField (A fine is a tax for doing wrong. A tax is a fine for doing well,.)
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To: NinoFan

This calls for a PING ping.


8 posted on 11/12/2008 7:42:01 AM PST by Thrownatbirth (.....Iraq Invasion fan since '91.)
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To: LS; bert; P-Marlowe; enat

Demonstrating how desperate is the situation with Scotus is the vote, 5-4. Someone convinced 4 of our Scotus justices that the security of the nation takes a back seat to Flipper and Free Willie.

Obama will replace 3 of those 4 with 40 year olds within the next 4 years. McCain is already on record despising the filibustering of justices, so you can bet that he and the other Rinos will roll over on the American people even if Bernadette Dohrn, a lawyer, gets the nod from Obamaland.


9 posted on 11/12/2008 7:42:24 AM PST by xzins (Retired Army Chaplain Pro Deo et Patria)
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To: RightField
And it was another 5-4 decision. Even one Obama appointment to the SCOTUS will have devastating results to America.

The third one is the one I worry about. I think Ginsburg and Stevens are going to leave pretty soon. They will probably retire effective at the end of the term, giving Obama enough notice to get replacements through the Senate. I don't know who will be the next to go, but I worry about Scalia making it another four or eight years. Thomas, Alito and Roberts are all relatively young.

10 posted on 11/12/2008 7:44:41 AM PST by KarlInOhio (11/4: The revolutionary socialists beat the Fabian ones. Where can we find a capitalist party?)
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To: NinoFan
even though the technology threatens marine life

Threatens? In what way?

It makes noises they may not like, or they may love the noise. Who knows? Whales can't talk to us, despite goofy hippy wishes.

11 posted on 11/12/2008 7:46:40 AM PST by dead (I've got my eye out for Mullah Omar.)
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To: NinoFan; Doohickey; judicial meanz; submarinerswife; PogySailor; chasio649; gobucks; Bottom_Gun; ...
Ping ) ) ) ) )
12 posted on 11/12/2008 7:48:26 AM PST by SmithL (Drill Dammit!)
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To: bert
What real double blind studies exist indicating sonar harms marine mammals.

Hey, I suggest that you try putting a blindfold on all of those manatees, before you start to complain!

13 posted on 11/12/2008 7:49:11 AM PST by Alex Murphy ( "Every country has the government it deserves" - Joseph Marie de Maistre)
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To: NinoFan
The Navy of the future is here today.
14 posted on 11/12/2008 7:49:28 AM PST by Eye of Unk (Aleutica, the new name of Free Alaska)
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To: NinoFan

What?.....A sense of sanity from the supreme court?


15 posted on 11/12/2008 7:49:34 AM PST by AngelesCrestHighway
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To: xzins

Uh - remember that motor mouthed parrot Hannity back in 05 - “It’s very simple - an up and down vote! An up and down vote! etc etc “
Not such a good idea when the tide has turned is it?


16 posted on 11/12/2008 7:50:04 AM PST by Seajay (Ordem e Progresso)
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To: NinoFan

Good thing they got it in when they did. Four years from now, it wouldn’t surprise me a bit if Obummer saw to it the Navy got welded to the pier.


17 posted on 11/12/2008 7:57:14 AM PST by OCCASparky (Steely-Eyed Killer of the Deep)
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To: RightField

A couple of the judges admit they have been waiting for a democrat president in office to resign, Ginsburg would have had to be taken out feet first and cold to the touch before she would ever let President Bush replace her.


18 posted on 11/12/2008 7:59:11 AM PST by Abathar (Proudly posting without reading the article carefully since 2004)
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To: NinoFan; All

We can look forward to these narrow conservative rulings instead of a clear-cut conservative rulings thanks to Obama.

There is NO WAY Ginsburg or Stevens will not either die or retire in the next 4 years. Just no way.

We were so close to finally getting a conservative court, and that is what I will regret most about Obama winning, at least so far....

Hopefully nobody will retire or die on the conservative side, even Kennedy. If Kennedy leaves, he will be replaced by a die-hard liberal, and the court will switch from narrow conservative/moderate to narrow liberal, but they will win every time, not just sometimes like present....


19 posted on 11/12/2008 8:00:10 AM PST by rwfromkansas ("Carve your name on hearts, not marble." - C.H. Spurgeon)
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To: NinoFan
US SC decision in Winter v. National Resources Defense Council

For the record, the USSC merely overturned the grant of a preliminary injunction against the Navy. Second the dissent was principally Ginsberg and Souter. Breyer's dissent is very different and he does not uphold the original injunction at all.

20 posted on 11/12/2008 8:06:32 AM PST by AndyJackson
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