547 U. S. ____ (2006)

DENVER A. YOUNGBLOOD, Jr. v. WEST VIRGINIA

on petition for writ of certiorari to the supreme court of appeals of west virginia

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Justice Kennedy, dissenting.

The Court’s order to grant, vacate, and remand (GVR) in Lawrence v. Chater, 516 U. S. 163 (1996) (per curiam), had my assent. In that case there was a new administrative interpretation that the Court of Appeals did not have an opportunity to consider. Id., at 174. The Court today extends the GVR procedure well beyond Lawrence and the traditional practice of issuing a GVR order in light of some new development. See id., at 166–167. Since the issuance of a GVR order simply for further explanation is, as Justice Scalia explains, see ante, p. ___, both improper and contrary to our precedents, I respectfully dissent.