All Law & Courts
First LookJust months after pledge of tolerance, SFPD caught in another racism scandalBarely a year after eight SFPD officers were fired for their part in an exchange of racist text messages, five more have been implicated doing the same thing.
First LookFederal judge strikes down last state law barring gay couples from adoptingSame-sex couples in Mississippi who are seeking to adopt will now finally be able to do so, thanks to a federal judge.
Why the Lexi Page case may go to the US Supreme CourtThe case echoes several other cases pitting the foster care system against the ICWA. In 2013, Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl, a case involving Veronica, a young Cherokee girl, reached the US Supreme Court.
First LookFor protesters, lack of charges in Minn. shooting is one more justice failureThe Minneapolis prosecutor tried to differentiate the shooting death of Jamar Clark from other police shootings of black men that have ignited protests across the country.
What if ISIS were run by women? In Mississippi, a glimpse.In the Middle East, female ISIS recruits play specific, gender-defined roles. But a Mississippi case shows how, in the West, women can be jihadi leaders.聽
First LookJustice Department brings 'jolt' of reform to Newark PDNewark's police reforms are the latest chapter in a nationwide trend of federally mandated changes in response to civil rights complaints.
First LookObama grants 61 drug offenders clemency: Sign of shifting times?This latest round of commutations is part of President Obama's broader push to reframe the way law enforcement treats drug offenses.
First LookPossible release of Illinois convict points to new willingness to revisit old casesThe name Jack McCullough could soon be added to the growing list of exonerees after a prosecutor dug back into the initial investigation leading to his 2012 conviction for the 1957 murder of a 7-year-old girl.
In this Supreme Court, not all ties are equalThe Supreme Court issued a 4-to-4 decision in a union case Tuesday but sought to avoid a tie in another case. The actions show how the court is seeing different cases differently.聽
In key test for public-sector unions, Supreme Court hits 'pause'The high court split 4-to-4 Tuesday in the case of a California teacher seeking to avoid union fees. The case could be re-heard once a ninth justice is confirmed, amid a larger political battle in the states that has weakened organized labor.
First LookYoung Mississippi woman followed increasingly familiar path to ISISA young Mississippi woman pleaded guilty to conspiring to support Islamic State militants Tuesday, just weeks after her fianc茅 pleaded guilty to similar charges.
Sex offender passport: Unlawful stigma or valid way to curb sex tourism?A California group filed a lawsuit challenging the new US law that聽requires sex offenders to have "unique identifiers" in their passports.
Court without Scalia: Labor unions survive bid to remove dues requirementSupreme Court justices preserved a vital source of cash for organized labor, splitting 4-4 on a conservative challenge to union dues.
First LookMassive ICE operation nabs more than 1,000 gang membersThe five-week operation targeted members of transnational gangs, though the majority of those arrested are US citizens.
Why Chicago pick for police chief is lauded 鈥� and criticizedTo many in Chicago's black community, Mayor Rahm Emanuel chose the right new police chief amid a time of high racial tension. How he went about it, however, is a problem.
First LookMerrick Garland's straight and narrow path to the Supreme CourtThe life and career of President Obama's nominee to the high court has been defined by compassion and a strong belief in judicial restraint.
First LookMan convicted in 1957 murder could not have committed the crime, says prosecutorJack McCullough was convicted of killing 7-year-old Maria Ridulph decades after her disappearance. But new evidence casts doubt on that conviction.
'Cool cop' skates through community police workOne police officer in Washington proves he is one 'cool cop' by skateboarding on the job, highlighting a model for community policing that is showing results.
Cruz wants to patrol Muslim neighborhoods. What happened when N.Y. tried it?After more than 10 years of government surveillance on Muslim neighborhoods in New York, New Jersey, and other states, the NYPD鈥檚 secret intelligence-gathering force never commenced a single investigation.
Florida joins national trend to address backlog of rape kitsFlorida Gov. Rick Scott signed legislation Wednesday that could prevent rape kits from ever gathering dust in Florida warehouses and storage rooms again.聽
