All Law & Courts
- Can protesters wave gruesome signs? Supreme Court declines free speech caseAntiabortion protesters waved the signs in public as they targeted a church in Denver. A Colorado court then barred the use of the signs, and on Monday the US Supreme Court refused to examine the free speech issues in the case.
Trayvon Martin shooting: Race hangs over case as trial beginsAs the trial of George Zimmerman begins Monday, the major legal question will be whether the defendant acted in self-defense. But the Trayvon Martin shooting also pokes at issues such as profiling, interracial crime fears, and vigilantism.
Who screamed? Limits of aural forensics in Trayvon Martin case could impact George Zimmerman鈥檚 defenseIn an unusual Saturday hearing, the judge is considering forensics evidence that could tie George Zimmerman聽鈥� or Trayvon Martin, the teenager Zimmerman shot and killed聽鈥� to cries heard on a 911 tape.
Arizona's Sheriff Joe Arpaio backs down on immigration. Will others follow?A federal judge ordered Sheriff Joe Arpaio to stop using race or ancestry聽to determine who is stopped for questioning. It聽could affect other states that followed Arizona's lead on illegal immigration.
Judge in George Zimmerman trial to rule: Can experts testify about 911 calls?The yells and pleas audible on several 911 calls could provide clues about whether George Zimmerman murdered Trayvon Martin. The judge in the case will decide whether audio experts can give the jury their analyses of the calls.
With Nidal Hasan bombshell, time to call Fort Hood shooting a terror attack?Maj. Nidal Hasan, the Army major facing court-martial for a mass shooting at Fort Hood in 2009, plans to argue that he acted in defense of the Taliban in Afghanistan. So much for the official US line that the shootings were an act of workplace violence, critics say.
Why military judge has hands full with Nidal Hasan court-martialWith Maj. Nidal Hasan defending himself during his court-martial for the 2009 Fort Hood mass shootings, the judge will have a difficult proceeding to manage to prevent a jihad 'circus.' Some expect to see parallels to trial of Zacarias Moussaoui, the missing 9/11 hijacker.
Jury selection begins in Whitey Bulger trial: Who can be picked?Some 225 people took part in the jury selection process Tuesday morning, with more pools to follow. There will be 12 jurors and six alternates for the Whitey Bulger trial.
Obama to Republicans: Don't block my judgesPresident Obama nominated three top lawyers to the D.C. Circuit, the nation's second most important court. The move signals a willingness to spend political capital on his legal legacy.听
FocusWhitey Bulger trial and the FBI: How have rules about informants changed?James 'Whitey' Bulger is not the only one facing scrutiny as his trial begins Tuesday. So is the FBI, which infamously used Bulger as an informant for years. Today the FBI relies more heavily than ever on confidential informants, but under new rules.
FocusWhitey Bulger trial marks close of an era. But what new organized crime lurks?Reputed mobster James 'Whitey' Bulger is among the last of his kind, as old-style crime bosses give way to criminal groups that are more fluid, more likely to span international borders, and more reliant on modern technologies.
With three nominations to D.C. Circuit court, Obama gets aggressivePresident Obama will move Tuesday to fill all three vacancies on the D.C. Circuit, America's top federal appeals court after the Supreme Court and a training ground for future justices. Republicans are already fighting back.听
Bradley Manning: Patriotic whistle-blower or American traitor?The court-martial of Pfc. Bradley Manning began Monday. Manning has said the documents he sent to WikiLeaks served a valuable purpose. Others agree, but that might not help him legally.
Whitey Bulger on trial: what last-minute legal maneuvers portendJames 'Whitey' Bulger, reputed Boston organized-crime boss and former FBI Most Wanted fugitive, appeared in federal court Monday. Some of the trial's likely narratives were evident in pretrial motions.
Nidal Hasan can represent himself at trial, raising specter of jihadist rantsThe judge in the Nidal Hasan murder trial ruled Monday that he can represent himself at trial. Hasan's only motivation is likely a desire to use the trial as an ideological platform, legal experts say.
DNA swab of arrestee's cheek is a 'reasonable search,' Supreme Court findsThe ACLU says the Supreme Court ruling, which allows the DNA samples to be stored in a database for use in solving other crimes, creates a 'gaping new exception to the Fourth Amendment.'
Supreme Court turns away newspaper's beef about Pennsylvania election lawUS Supreme Court refused Monday to take a case involving news media access to polling places on Election Day. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette had challenged the law, unsuccessfully, in lower courts.
Afghan massacre: In US soldier plea deal, signs combat stress was consideredAfter long wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, analysts say, the military justice system may well be primed to offer lenient sentencing for crimes when post-traumatic stress disorder is seen as a factor.
Senator wants entire Chicago gang arrested. Would that work?Chicago's Gangster Disciples have more than 18,000 members, and Sen. Mark Kirk wants them all in jail to curb gun violence. But critics say mass incarceration isn't the answer.
Tsarnaev friend unarmed when killed, FBI admits. Were civil rights violated?Ibragim Todashev, a friend of bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev, was about to sign a murder confession when he turned a table on an agent, the FBI says. The agent fired as many as 7 shots.
