Kansas v. Glover
View Official PDFBelow are plain-language sections to help you understand what the Court decided in Kansas v. Glover and why it matters. Quotes are taken from the syllabus (the Court’s short summary at the start of the opinion).
Summary
A short, plain-English overview of Kansas v. Glover.
In Shular v. United States, the Supreme Court addressed whether the Armed Career Criminal Act's definition of a 'serious drug offense' requires a comparison to generic offenses. The Court concluded that the statute only requires that the state offense involve the conduct specified in the statute, not a match to generic offenses. The decision affirmed the Eleventh Circuit's ruling.
Holding
The single most important “bottom line” of what the Court decided in Kansas v. Glover.
The Court held that Section 924(e)(2)(A)(ii)'s 'serious drug offense' definition requires only that the state offense involve the conduct specified in the statute.
Constitutional Concepts
These are the Constitution-related themes that appear in Kansas v. Glover. Click a concept to see other cases that involve the same idea.
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Why Ex Post Facto is relevant to Kansas v. Glover
The case involves the interpretation of a statute to determine if it applies retroactively to enhance sentences based on prior convictions.
Syllabus excerpt (verbatim)Congress intended consistent application of ACCA to all offenders who engaged—according to the elements of their prior convictions—in certain conduct.
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Why Procedural Due Process is relevant to Kansas v. Glover
The case involves the application of statutory interpretation principles to ensure fair application of sentencing enhancements.
Syllabus excerpt (verbatim)The rule of lenity has no application here, for after consulting traditional canons of interpretation there remains no ambiguity for the rule of lenity to resolve.
Key Quotes
Short excerpts from the syllabus in Kansas v. Glover that support the summary and concepts above.
Section 924(e)(2)(A)(ii)'s 'serious drug offense' definition requires only that the state offense involve the conduct specified in the statute.
The statutory text and context show that § 924(e)(2)(A)(ii) refers to conduct, not offenses.
Congress intended consistent application of ACCA to all offenders who engaged—according to the elements of their prior convictions—in certain conduct.
