Why does SCOTUS deny Cert in 1st Amendment cases?

Question

As of this time SCOTUS has denied Cert in cases involving 1st Amendment several times. Why - as this a capstone of rights under the Declaration of Independence?

Answer 1

They deny cert on over 90% of cases -- on all topics.

The only cases they take are the ones that are politically top-heavy -- or where there is a significant issue of law that needs to be resolved -- or where there is a split among federal circuits on how an issue should be interpreted.

Those same standards apply to 1st Amendment issues as much as any others -- if the appellate court decision is basically correct, or there isn't a major issue that needs to be clarified or resolved -- the SupCt leaves the underlying appellate decision in place by denying cert.

And none of that has anything to do with the Declaration of Independence -- which is just a thumbs-down to England and a notice of intent to rebel -- the 1st Amendment is part of the Constitution, which is an entirely different document.

Answer 2

Because the Court could not discern any pertinent Constitutional issue within the Writ of Certiorari that was worthy of a full hearing before the Court and issuance of a written finding and opinion. The Court is still guided by the words put down by Chief Justice Marshall in his writing of the majority opinion in Marbury Versus Madison:
"All laws which are repugnant to the Constitution are null and void".
If the issue in the writ does not rise to that level of repugnancy, the Court won't deal with it and sends it down to the last appellate level or trial level which heard the case.
The Supreme Court was created in Article III of the U.S. Constitution. It has no reference or relevance to the Declaration of Independence. Neither does the First through Tenth Amendments. They are part of the U.S. Constitution.

Answer 3

We're not given any rights by the Declaration of Independence. Your question just makes you look ignorant. Good job.

The Supreme Court has what is called original jurisdiction over cases involving questions of Constitutional Law. It is their privledge to either grant or deny a Writ of Certiorari based on their willingness to hear these cases...

I have yet to ever hear of a case they've taken based on the rights granted by the Declaration of Independence.

Answer 4

The Declaration of Independence is a list of grievances against the king of England, not a body of law. Our rights are defined in the Constitution.

Answer 5

Not sure what you mean by "Cert".

But I AM sure that the Declaration did not ESTABLISH rights - the Constitution did that subsequently.

The Declaration was basically a letter to the King saying "Hey King - we have rights and we are going to decide what those rights are on our own."