As a witness in the case, I’m not going to predict the outcome of O Centro v. Gonzales, argued today before the Supreme Court. But Lyle Denniston at SCOTUSblog thinks the church might get as many as eight votes for the continuation of the preliminary injunction allowing it to import its sacramental mixture despite the presence in that mixture of a controlled substance.
Bloomberg has a similar reading of today’s oral argument.
Eugene Volokh has some useful background. He must be pleased that Justice Roberts seemed to adopt his reading of the situation: since the case deals with statutory rather than Constitutional interpretation, either the courts or the Congress could revisit it if, after a decision in favor of the church, the sky does in fact begin to fall.
