Supreme Court of the US/Library of Congress Field Trip

Supreme Court of the United States.
Creative Commons photo.

Here's the plan. Hope you can join us! Any questions, drop us a line. :) 

Wednesday, October 5: Plan A :)

10:00am Meet at the Library of Congress
10:30am Guided tour of the LOC
11:30am Head to the Supreme Court to get in line 
1:00pm Sit in on the Court case "Manuel v City of Joliet"
2:00pm Head to a museum or two before they close!

1) The Library of Congress is next door to the Supreme Court, and offers a free, guided, one-hour tour at 10:30am. We'll want to arrive a few minutes early to make sure there's room for us. Meet at the Ground Floor Visitor's Center.

2) The Supreme Court recommends getting in line an hour or more before the case you want to hear. On October 5, they are hearing three cases, two in the morning and then ours (Manuel v Joliet) at 1pm. The hearing lasts an hour. So we plan to head there directly following the LOC tour.

NOTE that they do not have age restrictions for observing court sessions; however, since it requires sitting for an hour, it's not recommended for infants or small children.

3)
--FAQ for the Court:https://www.supremecourt.gov/faq_visiting.aspx#faqvc3

--Summary of Manuel v Joliet: https://www.oyez.org/cases/2016/14-9496

--Legal brief by Manuel: http://www.scotusblog.com/…/upl…/2016/05/14-9496ts-FINAL.pdf
--Legal brief by City of Joliet: http://www.scotusblog.com/…/…/08/14-9496-merits-response.pdf
--Amicus brief by the US Government: https://www.justice.gov/…/14-9496_manuel_v._city_of_joliet.…

4) Visiting the Library of Congress: https://www.loc.gov/visit/
--LOC activities for families/kids (printouts to bring along--scroll down):https://www.loc.gov/visit/activities-for-kids-and-families/

NOTE: I am planning to arrive super early to check at the Court and make sure there aren't long lines for the 1pm session. If there are long lines and we need to get in line earlier and do the Library of Congress afterward instead, I will post on the HIS Facebook page to advise everyone.

MAP: Here is a map of the downtown Mall area. The US Supreme Court and the Library of Congress are located together to the east of the US Capitol.
https://www.nps.gov/nama/planyourvisit/maps.htm

Following the Court visit, you may wish to take advantage of being downtown.

a) The US Capitol Visitors' Center is right there and open until 4:30. https://www.visitthecapitol.gov/

b and c) I also highly recommend the National Museum of the American Indian, which is just amazing, and the National Gallery of Art is always awe-inspiring. These are the two closest museums to where we'll be; they are open until 5:30 and 5:00 respectively.

GETTING INTO DC: Getting into DC doesn't have to be scary!!!

1) If you're a family of youngers, you may wish to consider the VRE out of Manassas. Kids 10 and under are free, and it's $19 round trip for everyone else. The train is clean, smooth, has bathrooms--and drops you off right downtown at the L'Enfant Plaza station. Details here:http://www.vre.org/service/schedule/#sched-mana-nb

2) If you've got olders, you might consider driving into the city. You can park in many garages for $22 or less--and for peace of mind you can reserve a space in advance. I've used online systems like ParkWhiz and Parking Panda with great success. There are many safe parking garages up and down the Mall area.