The Latest From The Supreme Court

In Gonzalez v. United States, No. 06-11612, decided today, the United States Supreme Court held that a criminal defendant need not personally consent to have a Magistrate Judge preside over voir dire and jury selection, and that such a waiver can properly be made by counsel.  Justice Scalia concurred with the judgment, but argued that the Supreme Court should abandon its “tactical-vs.-fundamental” test as vague and not well grounded in precedent or the Constitution and hold that nothing in the Constitution prohibits an attorney from waiving any right of a client (other than, necessarily, the right to counsel).  Justice Thomas dissented, arguing that the Supreme Court should overrule its decision in Peretz v. United States, 501 U.S. 923 (1991), and hold that the Federal Magistrates Act does not authorize Magistrate Judges to preside over felony jury selections.