The U.S. Supreme Court yesterday halted the execution of a Missouri inmate who had challenged the state's refusal to disclose the source of its lethal injection drug. The justices said a lower federal court needs to take another look at the case of Russell Bucklew, whose execution would have been the nation's first since last month's botched execution in Oklahoma, WJHL reports.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled today that a copyright lawsuit over the 1980 movie "Raging Bull" can go forward, a decision that could open Hollywood studios to more claims from people seeking a share of profits from classic films, TV shows and other creative works, the Associated Press reports. In a 6-3 decision, the justices found that Paula Petrella, daughter of the late screenwriter Frank Petrella, did not wait too long to file her lawsuit against Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The studio had argued that Petrella' decision to wait 18 years to file a lawsuit was an unreasonable delay. The Memphis Daily News has the story.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled today that mostly Christian prayers, delivered by a “chaplain of the month” before town meetings, do not violate the establishment clause, the ABA Journal reports. A 5-4 majority upheld the practice saying it “comports with our tradition and does not coerce participation.” While the suit had sought to limit prayers to those that do not reference a particular faith or belief, the majority found that such a “fixed standard” was “not consistent with the tradition of legislative prayer” and would actually force legislatures and courts to “act as supervisors and censors of religious speech.” Justice Elena Kagan wrote the dissenting opinion in which she argued that town hall meetings do not need to be religion-free zones but that the town of Greece “did nothing to recognize religious diversity” until it was sued.

The Supreme Court yesterday handed the Obama administration an important victory in its effort to reduce power plant pollution in 27 Midwestern and Appalachian states. In a 6-2 decision, the court upheld a rule adopted by the Environmental Protection Agency in 2011 to limit emissions that create smog and soot that drift into the air above states along the East Coast. The decision caps a decades-long effort by the EPA to find a legally acceptable way to ensure that states don't contribute to pollution problems in downwind states, where environmental officials can do nothing to control it. Opponents argued the rule violated the intent of the Clean Air Act, which envisioned states and the EPA working cooperatively to rein in air pollution. The Chattanooga Times Free Press has more.

The Supreme Court seemed wary Tuesday of allowing police unbridled freedom to search through cellphones of people they arrest, taking on a new issue of privacy in the face of rapidly changing technology, WATE reports. The court heard two cases today involving a drug dealer and a gang member whose convictions turned in part on evidence found on their cellphones. A key question is whether Americans' cellphones, with vast quantities of sensitive records, photographs and communications, are a private realm much like their homes. Decisions are expected by late June.

The U.S. Supreme Court yesterday limited the restitution that victims of child pornography can receive under federal law from individuals who acquire and view images of the child. Ruling in Paroline v. United States, Justice Anthony Kennedy said one user’s role in causing the pornography was “very minor” compared to the acts of the producers and distributors of the pornography. As a result, a $3.4 million award in the case before the court was vacated. The National Law Journal has more.

A startup that threatens to shake up the television industry was the subject of heated debate today at the U.S. Supreme Court, the NY Times reports. A powerful coalition of broadcast and cable television stations asked the panel to rule against Aereo, which allows customers to rent a tiny Internet-linked antenna to watch or record over-the-air broadcasts. A similarly strong alliance that included technology firms and consumer groups pressed for the opposite outcome, saying a ruling for Aereo would send a signal in favor of technological innovation. The justices questioned whether Aereo was violating copyright law and what impact a ruling on either side would have on a growing cloud computing sector.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld a Michigan law banning the use of racial criteria in college admissions, CNN reports. The justices found 6-2 that a lower court did not have the authority to set aside a referendum measure approved in 2006 by 58 percent of voters. Writing for the majority, Justice Anthony Kennedy said the decision is "not about the constitutionality or merits" of affirmative action but “about who may resolve it." University of Notre Dame law professor Jennifer Mason McAward summed up the ruling as follows: "With today's opinion, the court has placed responsibility for affirmative action squarely in the hands of the states. State universities can choose to adopt affirmative action admissions programs, and state voters can choose to discontinue them." Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg dissented from the majority decision saying it "eviscerates" the equal-protection guarantee that government should not make it harder for minorities to participate in self-government. Justice Elena Kagan recused herself from the case.

As political campaigns begin to heat up, the U.S. Supreme Court is deciding whether false accusations and mudslinging made during an election can be punished as a crime. Next week, justices will consider a challenge to an Ohio law that bars false statements about political candidates, WATE reports. During the 2010 election, the Susan B. Anthony List, an anti-abortion group, planned to launch a billboard campaign accusing then-Democratic Rep. Steven Driehaus of supporting taxpayer-funded abortion because he backed President Barack Obama's health care overhaul. Driehaus urged the Ohio Elections Commission to block the ads, arguing that the proposed billboard was false under Ohio law. Given the threat of legal action, the billboard owner declined to run the ad.

The U.S. Supreme Court today declined to enter the controversy over businesses refusing to serve gay and lesbian customers, Scotusblog reports, turning aside an appeal from the owners of a photography studio who had refused to work with a lesbian couple. The decision leaves intact an appellate court ruling that the studio violated state law prohibiting discrimination. In other significant denials, the court refused to hear a case upholding a ban on direct corporate contributions to federal candidates, declined to hear a case expediting a challenge to the constitutionality of the National Security Agency’s telephone data gathering, refused to hear a case on testing federal court power to overturn an arbitration award, and denied a case assessing whether death-row inmates have a right to know the method of their execution in advance. The justices did grant one appeal to be reviewed in the next term. That case tests what information a party in a state court case must provide to have the case transferred to federal court.