Justice Brett Kavanaugh took his seat on the Supreme Court for the first time Tuesday and quickly joined the questioning as justices struggled to make sense of a federal law that imposes longer prison terms on criminals who have three violent felonies on their records.

At 10 a.m., the justices emerged from behind the chamber’s red velvet curtain, and Kavanaugh, after surviving one of the ugliest Senate confirmation battles in modern history, took his seat at the far end of the bench next to Justice Elena Kagan. They laughed and chatted until the argument got underway.

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Stanford law professor Jeffrey Fisher, who was appointed to represent Sims, said the court should continue to draw a line between burglaries of homes and vehicles, including RVs. Home burglaries are the more serious crimes because there is greater chance they could result in injuries and violence. By contrast, breaking into a vehicle is far less likely to result in violence, he said. And if so, the criminal will be charged with assault or robbery and get a longer prison term, he said.