All Law & Courts
First LookFederal court blocks overhaul of Florida system restoring voting rightsA federal appeals court blocked a lower court ruling that mandated Florida create a new process for restoring voting rights to former prisoners. The lower court ruled in February that the state's聽current system is聽unconstitutional and聽arbitrary.
As Supreme Court hears travel ban, questions of presidential authority also on docketThe principal legal debates over the travel ban have focused on two questions: whether the Trump administration has exceeded its lawful authority; and whether, by excluding nationals from five Muslim-majority countries, the executive order violates the Establishment Clause of the Constitution.
First LookMississippi's pretrial jail terms among the longest in the nationMore than one-third of defendants jailed before trial in Mississippi spend 90 or more days incarcerated, according to a recent survey by the MacArthur Justice Center at the University of Mississippi. Inability to pay for bail or hire lawyers are some reasons for the delays.
Voter redistricting: US Supreme Court to hear third key case of termIn a year marked by several potentially landmark decisions, the most significant could be in the trio of gerrymandering cases the high court has reviewed 鈥� the last of which is being argued Tuesday.
First LookLaws limiting LGBT rights stall in US legislaturesOnly two of the 120 laws being聽tracked by LGBT activists this year remain under serious聽consideration, in part due to moderate GOP lawmakers and business leaders' fears of economic backlash.听
First LookFederal court finds pay differences based on prior salaries discriminatoryBy using prior salaries to determine future pay, employers perpetuate pay differences between women and men, a federal appeals court ruled. The plaintiff in the case, Aileen Rizo, said the case is聽'about all women and the chance that we have for pay equity.'
First LookIn California, debate brews over criminal justice reformIn November, two conflicting law enforcement initiatives could appear together on the California ballot. Many groups in the state continue to push for more lenient punishments, but an increasingly visible coalition is calling for a return to strict anti-crime policies.听
First LookNYC might bar employers sending off-hours messages to employeesThe city that never sleeps has become the city that never stops working, says Rafael Espinal,聽a New York City Council member. His recent proposal would bar聽employers from requiring employees to respond to nonemergency digital communications outside work hours.听
First LookNYPD settles case on illegal surveillance of MuslimsThe New York Police Department agreed to not conduct surveillance on the basis of religion or ethnicity as part of a settlement about its illegal spying after 9/11. The NYPD spied on mosques, restaurants, and schools, all of which never produced a terrorism lead.听
First LookComfort dogs in courthouses lead to divide between judges, defendersDogs and other support animals are increasingly being used in courts to comfort prosecution witnesses despite concerns from defense lawyers who believe they illegitimately skew witnesses' credibility and聽prejudice juries against defendants.听
First LookSacramento police chief contemplates change after Stephon Clark shootingDaniel Hahn, Sacramento's first African-American police chief, is considering policy changes after the shooting of Stephon Clark, an unarmed black man.听Some black leaders are praising his leadership, saying he has 'an opportunity to be a model.'
At Stephon Clark funeral, a familiar story amplifies drumbeat for changeMourners attending Stephon Clark's聽funeral on Thursday had little time to grieve the loss of the young father of two. The hundreds of demonstrators drawn to the California capital spent much of the past week reigniting calls to end what they say is systemic racism in law enforcement.
First Look#MeToo helps shine a light on lack of feminine hygiene products in prisonGrowing recognition of the lack of access to pads and tampons in prisons and jails has created a wave of measures in state legislatures which aim to train staff, supply inmates with hygiene products, and raise awareness on the widespread issue.
First LookSupreme Court to hear new gerrymandering case, this time from Republican challengersThe justices will hear a partisan gerrymandering case about a Democratic-leaning congressional district in Maryland. Decisions in the Maryland case and an earlier one from Wisconsin are expected in June.
Austin bomb saga shows law enforcement's deep new reachEven as it became apparent that a bombmaker had exploited modern fondness for online shopping to invoke terror, US law enforcement used emerging social dynamics, including Americans' growing comfort with surveillance cameras, to protect the public.
First LookIn fossil fuels lawsuit, judge turns courtroom into classroomUS District Judge William Alsup has asked lawyers representing San Francisco and Oakland, Calif., and those representing five major oil companies, to conduct research on the science of global warming and present their findings in a federal hearing.
In Kansas voter ID trial, a clash of two visions for AmericaTrial testimony, which wrapped up Monday, shows how policy that plays well in the court of public opinion can face a very different outcome in a court of law.
First LookSupreme Court to decide how pro-life pregnancy centers can counsel patientsA California law requires pregnancy centers that don't provide abortion services to offer information on what other local facilities perform the procedure. Advocates against abortion challenged the law and the case will be heard by the Supreme Court.听
FocusIn Kentucky, all sides agree on need for criminal justice reform. But how?From lawyers and judges to legislators and the conservative governor, nobody wants to build more prisons. But getting all those stakeholders to agree on what to do instead is proving a challenge.
First LookMichigan Senate passes legislation inspired by Nassar abuse survivorsThe fast-tracked legislation will extend the statute of limitations, restrict claims of immunity, and require more people to report suspected abuse. The legislation will 'take Michigan out of the dark ages' in terms of sexual assault laws, says one bill sponsor.
