Aired: 1/15/2002
New Justice Joseph Novelli reports for the first Monday in October and handles his first case: whether to grant a stay of execution to an inmate who survived a lightning strike.
Aired: 1/18/2002
Justice Novelli is uncertain of his position when the court must decide if a North Dakota court decision to allow a 16-year-old girl to get an abortion should stand.
Aired: 1/25/2002
The Court must rule on sixth-amendment rights when a murder witness requests to testify in a mask after three previous witnesses are killed.
Aired: 2/1/2002
Justice Novelli once again finds he's the swing vote when the Court is divided on whether to uphold the three-strikes law carrying a 25-years-to-life sentence for third-strike misdemeanors.
Aired: 2/8/2002
A senator with a grudge against Justice Novelli gives a reporter photos of Novelli's uncle accepting an envelope from a Chicago mobster, hoping the photo will discredit the Justice.
Aired: 3/1/2002
As the court considers whether to uphold a decision that protects a Web site calling for the murder of abortion doctors, Novelli is threatened on the Internet.
Aired: 3/8/2002
Justice Hoskins takes a passionate interest in the Court's case of a woman who wants to terminate life support for her husband, who has been in a coma for nine years.
Aired: 3/29/2002
A high-school basketball star appeals to the Supreme Court when the NBA refuses to let him play professionally until he finishes school.
Aired: 4/5/2002
The Court must decide whether to uphold Megan's Law when they hear the case of a convicted sex offender who was harassed and threatened after registering.
Aired: 4/12/2002
The case of a teen accused of violating the Child Pornography Protection Act by morphing his friends' faces with bodies of porn actors on an Internet site.
Aired: 4/19/2002
The Court must determine whether a man's Constitutional rights were violated when the police took his blood sample out of a hospital dumpster to obtain DNA.
Aired: 4/22/2002
As the Court debates whether a town's ban on guns is unconstitutional, a senator offers Justice Snow information on a colleague that could affect the final decision. Also: Justice Hoskins hosts his annual party, where Ellie catches Miguel's eye; and Chief Justice Brankin and his wife celebrate 40 years of marriage.
Aired: 5/3/2002
The Court must decide whether to allow a book culled from the tapes of a deceased CIA officer to be published or allow censorship in order to protect national security.
