All Law & Courts
Supreme Court hears Texas case that tests extent of civil rights doctrineThe Supreme Court on Wednesday appeared divided over a challenge to the Fair Housing Act that liberal critics say could gut the civil rights provision.
Unanimous Supreme Court affirms Muslim inmate's right to grow beardThe US Supreme Court unanimously ruled that an Arkansas prison must offer a religious exception to the facility's no-beard rule. Prison officials had argued that beards pose a security risk.
Aurora theater shooting trial begins: how it compares with Tsarnaev caseJames Holmes has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to multiple counts of murder and attempted murder in the shooting at a midnight showing of a 'Batman' movie in 2012.
Can judicial candidates solicit donations? Supreme Court to weigh case.Thirty states have rules that bar prospective judges from personally requesting campaign money and support, but critics say such rules violate free speech rights. On Tuesday, a case on the subject arrives at the US Supreme Court.
Supreme Court agrees to rule on whether same-sex couples nationwide can marryThe justices on Friday agreed to take up a case to decide the long-running national debate over same-sex marriage, setting the stage for a potential landmark decision by late June.
How Tsarnaev lawyers are pushing judge during jury selectionTwenty potential jurors met individually with the judge, prosecutors, and the defense team Thursday. Tsarnaev's defense challenged the judge several times.
Oklahoma to resume executions, as use of death penalty declines across USNine months after a botched lethal injection, Oklahoma plans to execute death row inmate Charles Frederick Warner at 6 p.m. on Thursday. But nationwide, the use of the death penalty has reached historic lows, amid concerns about the process.
How alleged lone wolf terrorist plotted attack on US Capitol 鈥� and was stoppedWhen Christopher Cornell voiced support for the Islamic State on Twitter, an FBI informant joined the young man鈥檚 plotting to attack the US Capitol with pipe bombs and rifles. When Cornell bought rifles Wednesday, federal agents arrested him.
Can Mayor de Blasio and NYPD chart a path to reconciliation?As Bill de Blasio begins his second year in office, his administration鈥檚 relationship with the nation鈥檚 largest police force will remain, for the short term at least, in crisis mode, many observers believe. Is there a way to mend the rifts?
FocusCommunity courts let the punishment fit the crime, compassionatelyIncarceration rates in the United States increased more seven-fold between 1980 to 2010. Many communities are turning to alternative forms of justice, such as community courts, as a means to break the cycle of incarceration.
Judge Raymond Norko: A different kind of judgeJudge Norko's Hartford Community Court in Connecticut provides swift justice for non-violent offenders while unburdening criminal courts and helping to break the revolving cycle of incarceration.
Gun 'hero' George Zimmerman ordered to surrender arms after assaultGeorge Zimmerman became a folk hero to some gun lovers after he shot and killed black teenager Trayvon Martin. Now, following another assault charge, Zimmerman has been ordered to surrender his firearms.
NYPD work slowdown winds down, but New York may be changed for goodA work slowdown by police in New York, orchestrated as a protest against Mayor Bill de Blasio, has had unintended consequences. One of them could be profound for US policing: Fewer arrests didn't result in more crime.
US Supreme Court poised to take up same-sex marriageBoth sides in the same-sex marriage debate want the US Supreme Court to act definitively. Differences in federal appeals court rulings could prompt the high court's consideration of gay marriage, now legal in 36 states and the District of Columbia.
Can Texas force hair-braiders to jump through hoops? Nope, says judge.Texas had required Isis Brantley to take hundreds of hours of classes and buy expensive equipment that she said had no real bearing on her desired hair-braiding school.
The view from the courthouse in the Dzokhar Tsarnaev trialThe initial phase of jury selection in the Boston Marathon bombing trial, which saw 1,200 potential jurors descend on the US district courthouse in South Boston, concluded Wednesday afternoon.
New York mayor vs. NYPD: a new chapter in decades-old riftThe rocky relationship between the NYPD and New York Mayor Bill de Blasio echoes past tensions, but there might be paths out of the impasse, experts say.
Anti-police violence as hate crime: Do officers need more legal cover?The National Fraternal Order of Police has requested federal hate-crime protections for police officers. But some legal experts question whether such protections are necessary.
After police turn back on mayor again, where does New York go from here?Some New York police turned their backs on Mayor Bill de Blasio at the funeral for Officer Wenjian Liu. But to repair the rift and institute positive police reforms, what happens now will matter most.
NYPD told not to turn backs on mayor again: Will 鈥榗old, steely silence鈥� prevail?After hundreds of NYPD officers turned their backs on Mayor Bill de Blasio during the funeral of Officer Rafael Ramos last weekend, Police Commissioner William Bratton on Saturday urged officers to refrain from a similar tactic at Sunday鈥檚 funeral for Officer Wenjian Liu.
