Former Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell, whose appeal to the 4th Circuit was unsuccessful, has filed before Circuit Justice Roberts an emergency application to stay the mandate, or in the alternative asks the Court for a release on bail pending disposition of his petition for certiorari.

Here is the summary of the argument:

The application states that there is a reasonable likelihood of certiorari.

If the stay is denied, McDonnell will likely serve the entire sentence before the case will be resolved.

The next step will be if Circuit Justice Roberts requests a reply from the government, refers it to the entire Court, to denies the stay independently. At a minimum, the pattern in recent years (with respect to the contraceptive mandate and same-sex marriage litigation) is to always request a reply.