Stokeling is decided 5-4 for the Government

The Supreme Court affirmed the 11th Circuit in an odd 5-4 lineup in which Chief Justice Roberts (along withe Kagan and Ginsburg) joined Justice Sotomayor in dissent.  Justice Thomas held for the majority: The Armed Career Criminal Act’s elements clause encompasses a robbery offense that, like Florida’s law, requires the criminal to overcome the victim’s resistance.

It used to be mildly surprising when Justice Breyer voted against criminal defendants, but that is the norm now.  He is among the worst justices on criminal justice issues.  In this case, one friend put it this way:  Breyer literally snatched victory from Stokeling's hands, violently.

This case is a pretty good example of how Scalia's death really affected the Court on criminal justice issues.  Scalia wrote the Johnson decision on which Stokeling's argument was based.  He likely would have sided with the defense here, where his replacement sided with the government.