SCOTUS to Hear Three Important Cases   10/07 06:27

   The Supreme Court is taking the bench again on Monday, ready to hear cases 
on ghost guns, a death sentence and transgender rights.

   WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Supreme Court is taking the bench again on Monday, 
ready to hear cases on ghost guns, a death sentence and transgender rights.

   The docket doesn't have quite as many blockbuster cases as it did last term, 
when its rulings included an opinion granting broad immunity to former 
President Donald Trump.

   Still, it's possible that the conservative-majority court could yet be asked 
to intervene in election disputes after the ballots are cast in November.

   The justices also stayed relatively busy during their summer break. The 
orders they issued on emergency appeals included a refusal to restore President 
Joe Biden's student loan plan and a partial approval of an Arizona law 
requiring proof of citizenship to vote.

   The new term also opens against the backdrop of low public trust in the 
Supreme Court, and continued debate about whether their newly adopted code of 
ethics should have an enforcement mechanism.

   Here's a look at some of the cases coming up:

   Ghost gun regulations

   The justices will hear a case Tuesday on regulations for ghost guns, 
privately made weapons that are hard for police to track because they don't 
have a serial number.

   The number of the firearms found at crime scenes has soared in recent years, 
from fewer than 4,000 in 2018 to nearly 20,000 recovered by law enforcement in 
2021, according to Justice Department data.

   The numbers have been declining in multiple cities since the Biden 
administration began requiring background checks and age verification for ghost 
gun kits that can be bought online.

   But manufacturers and gun rights groups argue that the administration 
overstepped and the rule should be overturned.

   Doubts about a death sentence

   In the decades since Richard Glossip was sentenced to die over a 1997 
murder-for-hire scheme, the case has become a rare one where prosecutors are 
conceding mistakes.

   Oklahoma's Republican attorney general has joined with Glossip in seeking to 
overturn his murder conviction and death sentence.

   Despite those doubts, an Oklahoma appeals court has upheld Glossip's 
conviction, and the state's pardon and parole board deadlocked in a vote to 
grant him clemency.

   The court will hear arguments in his case on Wednesday.

   Transgender rights

   Perhaps the court's most closely watched case so far this year is a fight 
over transgender rights.

   The case over state bans on gender-affirming care comes as Republican-led 
states enact a variety of restrictions, including school sports participation, 
bathroom usage and drag shows.

   The administration and Democratic-led states have extended protections for 
transgender people, though Supreme Court has separately prohibited the 
administration from enforcing a new federal regulation that seeks to protect 
transgender students.

   The justices will weigh a Tennessee law that restrict puberty blockers and 
hormone therapy for transgender minors. The case does not yet have a hearing 
date, but will likely be argued in December.