Orangutan Metaphor Highlights Court's Plea-Bargain Debate

With a slate of blockbuster Supreme Court decisions looming, the Times notes a key ruling on plea bargains and appeal waivers in Munson Hunter, where Justice Elena Kagan’s majority says waivers can be challenged for egregious errors and Justice Gorsuch, in a concurring with Justices Sotomayor and Jackson, critiques the modern ‘conveyor belt’ of plea deals—reminiscent of an orangutan picking a sentence—while the decision sends the case back for further review under a high standard for miscarriages of justice; the piece also previews other major disputes looming this term, including voting by mail, birthright citizenship, agency independence, and refugee protections.