The U.S. Supreme Court case Ellis Wayne Felker v. Tony Turpin, Warden in 1995 revolved around the constitutionality of a federal law that restricted death row inmates' ability to file multiple habeas corpus petitions challenging their convictions and sentences. The petitioner, Ellis Wayne Felker, was convicted for murder and sentenced to death in Georgia state court. He filed several unsuccessful appeals at both the state and federal levels before filing another habeas petition after exhausting his first round of federal review under new evidence claims which were dismissed by lower courts citing newly enacted Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA). The Supreme Court ruled against Felker stating that AEDPA's restrictions on successive petitions did not constitute a "suspension" of the writ of habeas corpus violating Article I Section 9 Clause 2 ("Suspension Clause") nor did it violate constitutional rights to due process or equal protection as claimed by him.

In the dissenting opinion for Ellis Wayne Felker v. Tony Turpin, Warden, Justice Stevens argued that the majority's interpretation of the new law was too narrow and failed to consider Congress' intent in passing it. He believed that Congress intended to expedite federal habeas corpus proceedings but not at the expense of denying petitioners their right to a fair hearing. He also disagreed with how quickly this case was decided without giving adequate time for all parties involved to fully understand and interpret this newly enacted legislation. Furthermore, he expressed concern about how such hasty decision-making could undermine public confidence in judicial decisions as well as violate principles of separation of powers by allowing legislative changes to influence ongoing court cases.