Opinion
No. 20-60
01-25-2021
Sheldon SILVER v. UNITED STATES, et al.
The petition for a writ of certiorari is denied.
Justice GORSUCH, with whom Justice THOMAS joins, dissenting from denial of certiorari.
Normally, extortion and bribery are treated as distinct crimes. In Evans v. United States , 504 U.S. 255, 112 S.Ct. 1881, 119 L.Ed.2d 57 (1992), however, this Court conflated them for purposes of the Hobbs Act when a public official is the defendant. Id. , at 260, 112 S.Ct. 1881. Chief Justice Rehnquist and Justices Scalia, THOMAS, and BREYER have all questioned that judgment. See id. , at 278, 112 S.Ct. 1881 (THOMAS, J., joined by Rehnquist, C. J., and Scalia, J., dissenting); Ocasio v. United States , 578 U. S. ––––, ––––, 136 S.Ct. 1423, 1437, 194 L.Ed.2d 520 (2016) (BREYER, J., concurring); id. , at –––– – ––––, 136 S.Ct., at 1437-1438 (THOMAS, J., dissenting). I would have granted this case to reconsider Evans in light of these thoughtful criticisms.