More on Shepard v. United States, No. 03-9168

Shepard v. United States, No. 03-9168, is a case which we previously discussed here as one in which the Court could well revisit and overrule Almendarez-Torres.

The NACDL filed an amicus brief in which it argues precisely that, arguing the Court's application of Taylor as error only as a secondary matter (albeit an important one).

The petitioner's merits brief, however, does not even cite Almendarez-Torres., although it cites to Apprendi and Blakely, and it should be noted that cert. was granted just a few days before Blakely was decided. I have not seen the Solicitor General's merits brief and cannot find it at the Office of the Solicitor General's site, so I do not know whether they have or will address the Almendarez-Torres issue raised by NACDL.