Fourteenth Amendment

Class action says Mississippi’s DA’s office has a pattern of wrongfully excluding black jurors

A federal lawsuit filed on Monday claims a Mississippi district attorney and his prosecutors are wrongfully using peremptory challenges to exclude potential black jurors more frequently than whites.

Nov 20, 2019 2:13 PM CST

Judge rules woman who joined ISIS is not US citizen based on birthright citizenship exception

A federal judge in Washington, D.C., ruled from the bench Thursday that an Alabama woman who joined the Islamic State group and traveled to Syria is not a U.S. citizen because of an exception to the Constitution’s grant of birthright citizenship.

Nov 15, 2019 11:31 AM CST

Afternoon Briefs: FBI probes slaying of US lawyer overseas; liberal group’s SCOTUS short list released

FBI to aid probe into slaying of US lawyer in Micronesia The FBI is aiding the investigation into the Monday shooting death of U.S. lawyer Rachelle Bergeron, who was acting attorney general of Yap State in the Pacific nation of Micronesia. A friend, Amos Collins, said he doesn’t know who…

Oct 16, 2019 4:11 PM CDT

Settlement provides for right to counsel in 2 municipal courts; ACLU hopes other cities take note

A federal judge in Charleston, South Carolina, has approved a $250,000 settlement that also ensures the right to a lawyer for some municipal court defendants.

Oct 11, 2019 10:48 AM CDT

SCOTUS opens new term with criminal law cases addressing insanity defense and unanimous juries

The U.S. Supreme Court has several blockbuster cases in its new term—on gay and transgender rights, federal immigration enforcement and gun regulation. But before it gets to any of those, the court on the first day of the term will take up two criminal law cases raising significant questions, even though only a handful of states are affected by each.

Oct 3, 2019 5:03 PM CDT

Want encouragement in the justice arena? Think about what’s changed, says Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

The country has come a long way, said U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and that’s what keeps her optimistic for the future. “It can be hard to do anything as a loner, but if you get together with like-minded people, you can be a force for change,” Ginsburg said at a discussion Monday at the University of Chicago.

Sep 10, 2019 3:15 PM CDT

Law student among plaintiffs challenging state law requiring couples getting married to identify race

A law student at Washington and Lee University who is planning an October wedding is challenging a Virginia law that requires couples getting married to list their race.

Sep 9, 2019 2:33 PM CDT

11 landmark SCOTUS cases that changed American education (gallery)

With school finally back in full swing across the country, it’s a great time for a history lesson in American education. Landmark U.S. Supreme Court cases such as Brown v. Board of Education, Tinker v. Des Moises and the more recent Forest Grove School District v. T.A. have forever changed…

Sep 5, 2019 1:00 PM CDT

Fines-and-fees system that helps fund court budget is unconstitutional, 5th Circuit rules

A federal appeals panel has ruled that a system of criminal fines and fees in the New Orleans criminal court was unconstitutional because the money is used to support a general fund overseen by the court’s judges.

Aug 30, 2019 10:32 AM CDT

7th Circuit allows suit over clogged toilets, unsanitary conditions in 3-day water shutdown at jail

A federal appeals court has ruled for pretrial detainees who allege a sheriff in Lake County, Illinois, skimped on water supplies during a three-day shutoff at the county jail. The Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the county sheriff and corrections chief were not protected from the lawsuit…

Aug 13, 2019 4:50 PM CDT

Judge allows class actions over inmate ‘masturbation attacks’ against public defenders and jail workers

A federal judge in Chicago has certified class actions filed on behalf of female assistant public defenders, law clerks, correctional workers and medical employees who claim they were subjected to a hostile work environment as a result of “masturbation attacks” by jail inmates. U.S. District Judge Matthew Kennelly certified the…

Aug 13, 2019 3:24 PM CDT

Handcuffing of second grader didn’t violate his constitutional rights, 8th Circuit says

A 7-year-old elementary school student who was handcuffed by a police officer for 20 minutes can’t sue because there was no violation of his constitutional rights, a federal appeals court has ruled.

Aug 5, 2019 11:31 AM CDT

9th Circuit rules against bikini baristas, rejects their First Amendment empowerment argument

A federal appeals court has ruled against bikini baristas who challenged ordinances in Everett, Washington, that required them to cover up.

Jul 8, 2019 11:32 AM CDT

DOJ replaces lawyers defending citizenship question after flip-flop; law prof suggests this argument

The U.S. Department of Justice announced Sunday that it is replacing its legal team in the court battle over a census citizenship question after President Donald Trump contradicted the lawyers’ in-court assertion that the question would be dropped from the census.

Jul 8, 2019 10:14 AM CDT

ABA supports use of traditional insanity defense in death-row inmate’s petition

In an amicus brief filed with the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday, the ABA said it supports Kansas death-row inmate James Kraig Kahler’s petition to reverse the Kansas Supreme Court decision that rejected the traditional insanity defense in his case. Kahler, who was convicted of killing four family members in…

Jun 10, 2019 12:44 PM CDT