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The Honorable '''David H. Souter''' is an [[Associate Justice]] of the [[U.S. Supreme Court]].  On May 1, 2009, he sent his official notice of resignation to President [[Barack Hussein Obama]].<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Scribd|url=http://www.scribd.com/doc/14839021/Souters-Letter|format=html/pdf|language=English|date=May 1 2009|accessdate=May 2 2009|author=Justice David Souter|work=The Supreme Court of the United States|title=Souter's Letter}}</ref>  He has reportedly wanted to resign since the 2000 election, but apparently delayed his retirement.<ref>http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-souter-cases2-2009may02,0,5579976.story</ref>

The Honorable '''David H. Souter''' is an [[Associate Justice]] of the [[U.S. Supreme Court]].  On May 1, 2009, he sent his official notice of resignation to President [[Barack Hussein Obama]].<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Scribd|url=http://www.scribd.com/doc/14839021/Souters-Letter|format=html/pdf|language=English|date=May 1 2009|accessdate=May 2 2009|author=Justice David Souter|work=The Supreme Court of the United States|title=Souter's Letter}}</ref>  He has reportedly wanted to resign since the 2000 election, but apparently delayed his retirement.<ref>http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-souter-cases2-2009may02,0,5579976.story</ref>

Souter was nominated for the [[Supreme Court]] in 1990 by President [[George H. W. Bush]] to succeed retiring Associate Justice [[William Brennan|William J. Brennan]], often known as one of the Court's two most liberal members (the other being Associate Justice [[Thurgood Marshall]], who would retire the following year). Thus, this vacancy represented a chance for the President Bush to shift the Court to the right, as his predecessor, [[Ronald Reagan]], had tried to do. In nominating Souter, Bush had adopted what has come to be known as the "stealth strategy." Souter had a very small "paper trail," thus making him difficult to label as a conservative or a liberal.  Some [[conservatives]] advising President Bush failed to realize that a stealth candidate may not withstand the intense pressure of the [[liberal]] media after confirmation, a mistake that may have been repeated in the ill-fated nomination of [[Harriet Miers]] about 15 years later.  

Souter was nominated for the [[Supreme Court]] in 1990 by President [[George H. W. Bush]] to succeed retiring Associate Justice [[William Brennan|William J. Brennan]], often known as one of the Court's two most liberal members (the other being Associate Justice [[Thurgood Marshall]], who would retire the following year). Thus, this vacancy represented a chance for the President Bush to shift the Court to the right, as his predecessor, [[Ronald Reagan]], had tried to do. Being that Bush was a moderate Republican, many thought he may appoint a centrist rather than a true conservative. Still, even if Bush appointed a moderate, this appointment would be moving the court to the right being it would replace staunch liberal WIlliam Brennan. In nominating Souter, Bush had adopted what has come to be known as the "stealth strategy." Souter had a very small "paper trail," thus making him difficult to label as a conservative or a liberal.  Some [[conservatives]] advising President Bush failed to realize that a stealth candidate may not withstand the intense pressure of the [[liberal]] media after confirmation, a mistake that may have been repeated in the ill-fated nomination of [[Harriet Miers]] about 15 years later.  

Bush had received assurances that Souter would be a conservative from his Chief of Staff, [[John Sununu]], who had appointed Souter to the [[New Hampshire]] Supreme Court years earlier. Thus, Bush hoped to disarm liberal Senators who might oppose an obviously [[conservative]] nominee, as they had done just three years earlier with [[Robert Bork]]. But almost immediately it was apparent to some [[conservatives]] that Souter was not pro-life, as he had served as a director on a hospital that performed [[abortions]].  [[Liberals]] seemed to know that they had won.  Even though he was grilled to define his view on abortion, Souter didn't take the bait and he was confirmed by a vote of 90-9 by the [[U.S. Senate]], with several [[conservatives]] voting against him.  

Bush had received assurances that Souter would be a conservative (while not quite as conservative as [[Robert Bork]], he would still be reliably conservative, perhapps an 80 %er, which would be an improvement over Brennan)from his Chief of Staff, [[John Sununu]], who had appointed Souter to the [[New Hampshire]] Supreme Court years earlier. Thus, Bush hoped to disarm liberal Senators who might oppose an obviously [[conservative]] nominee, as they had done just three years earlier with [[Robert Bork]]. [[Ted Kennedy]] and [[John Kerry]] immediately recommended rejection of this nominee. Ted went on to even say, that "We did not keep Bork off the court in order to get someone "Just as Bad"". Almost immediately it was apparent to some [[conservatives]] that Souter was not pro-life, as he had served as a director on a hospital that performed [[abortions]].  Some [[Liberals]] seemed to know that they had won.  Even though he was grilled to define his view on abortion, Souter didn't take the bait and he was confirmed by a vote of 90-9 by the [[U.S. Senate]], with a couple [[conservatives]] and a few [[libreals]] voting against him.  

Souter went on to align himself firmly with the more liberal bloc on the Court, leading to [[conservative]] anger at President Bush for this calculated blunder.  Souter's style is noticeably non-legal, as when he opened one opinion with an unusually non-legal description of "[[mens rea]]":<ref>''Clark v. Arizona'', 126 S. Ct. 2709, 2716 (2006) (emphasis added).</ref>

Souter began as a conservative, alligning himself with [[Anthony Kennedy]] (who also shifted to the left to a lesser extent). For the first several years he voted with [[Antonin Scalia]] about 85 % of the time (Kennedy voted with Scalia about 90 % of the time back then). Souter, while not voting to overturn Roe, did vote to uphold abortion restrictions in 1992 along with Anthony Kennedy (who almost voted to reverse Roe) and Moderately COnservative [[Sandra Day O'Connor]]. After [[Bill Clinton]] became president, Souter steadily went on to align himself firmly with the more liberal bloc on the Court, leading to [[conservative]] anger at President Bush for this calculated blunder.  Souter's style is noticeably non-legal, as when he opened one opinion with an unusually non-legal description of "[[mens rea]]":<ref>''Clark v. Arizona'', 126 S. Ct. 2709, 2716 (2006) (emphasis added).</ref> His later rulings now contradicted his earlier rulings.

:whether Arizona violates due process in restricting consideration of defense evidence of mental illness and incapacity to its bearing on a claim of insanity, thus eliminating its significance directly on the issue of '''the mental element of the crime charged (known in legal shorthand as the mens rea, or guilty mind)'''

:whether Arizona violates due process in restricting consideration of defense evidence of mental illness and incapacity to its bearing on a claim of insanity, thus eliminating its significance directly on the issue of '''the mental element of the crime charged (known in legal shorthand as the mens rea, or guilty mind)'''