Retired Supreme Court justice John Paul Stevens in 2014. (AP) (Uncredited/AP)Contributing columnistJohn Paul Stevens was the last Supreme Court justice chosen in the halcyon days before confirmations became fiercely ideological affairs. Famously, for example, he dissented from the court’s opinion holding unconstitutional Texas’s ban on burning the flag; Stevens would have upheld the law. All in all, John Paul Stevens left a legacy of gradual movement leftward in response to the court’s sharp conservative turn. Read more:Cliff Sloan: John Paul Stevens, the rule-of-law justiceDiane Marie Amann: Justice John Paul Stevens leaves behind a rich legacy that we cannot forgetObituary: John Paul Stevens, longtime leader of Supreme Court’s liberal wing, dies at 99

Source: Washington Post July 17, 2019 14:14 UTC