In the case of Clyde Timothy Bunkley v. Florida, 2002, the U.S. Supreme Court examined whether a change in state law could be applied retroactively to benefit an individual convicted under previous legislation. In 1986, Bunkley was sentenced to life imprisonment for burglary with a weapon after he was found carrying a pocketknife during his arrest in Florida - at that time considered illegal possession of a weapon due to its blade length exceeding three inches. However, by the time his appeal reached court in 1997, Florida had reinterpreted their laws and no longer classified such knives as weapons unless used violently or threateningly; this reinterpretation occurred before Bunkley's conviction became final but wasn't recognized until later on appeal. The question posed was whether this new interpretation should apply retroactively and potentially reduce Bunkley's sentence significantly since it would alter his crime from armed burglary (a first-degree felony) to simple burglary (a third-degree felony). The Supreme Court ruled that failure by lower courts to apply current understanding of state law violated Due Process Clause rights and remanded back down for reconsideration based on present-day interpretations.

In the dissenting opinion for Clyde Timothy Bunkley v. Florida, Justice Scalia argued that the majority's decision to retroactively apply a new interpretation of law was incorrect and inconsistent with previous rulings. He contended that it is not within the Court's power to change what constitutes a crime after someone has been convicted under existing laws. According to him, this would undermine legal certainty and stability by allowing courts to reinterpret laws at any time in light of changing societal norms or values, potentially leading to arbitrary application of justice. Furthermore, he pointed out that Bunkley had ample opportunity during his trial and appeal process to challenge the definition of "common pocketknife" but failed do so until years later when another case changed its interpretation.