5th Circuit Court

Reluctant prosecutor can’t ‘manufacture mootness’ or ruin standing for inmate seeking DNA test, SCOTUS says

A Texas death row inmate who wants DNA testing to establish that he wasn’t at a murder scene, although he helped plan a robbery there, has standing to challenge the state law governing testing procedures, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Thursday.

Jun 26, 2025 11:42 AM CDT

Rastafarian’s religious freedom suit against prison officials for cutting his hair wins Supreme Court review

The U.S. Supreme Court agreed Monday to decide whether a Rastafarian with religious objections to cutting his hair can seek money damages from Louisiana prison officials for strapping him down and shaving his head.

Jun 25, 2025 9:22 AM CDT

Change in establishment clause test doesn’t save Louisiana’s Ten Commandments law, 5th Circuit says

A Louisiana law requiring public schools to display the Ten Commandments in every classroom violates the establishment clause of the First Amendment, a federal appeals court ruled Friday.

Jun 23, 2025 10:05 AM CDT

These 3 potential Supreme Court picks top ranks in ‘Trump Alignment Index’

Three federal appeals judges stand out as most likely to get a nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court by President Donald Trump based on an analysis of their rulings, writing and mentors, according to a political science professor and Supreme Court scholar who created the blog Empirical SCOTUS.

Jun 10, 2025 12:51 PM CDT

Boycotting law clerks to pressure schools might ‘cross an important line,’ 8th Circuit chief judge says

A federal judge who boycotted the hiring of Columbia University graduates as law clerks won’t have to face a misconduct complaint, even though his actions raise a substantial ethical issue, according to the chief judge of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at St. Louis.

Jun 3, 2025 8:48 AM CDT

5th Circuit judge blasts ‘overcaffeinated arguments’ by library patrons challenging book removals

An en banc federal appeals court overturned its 1995 decision last month when it ruled for a library that removed 17 books with themes that included racism, gender identity and sexuality.

Jun 2, 2025 2:46 PM CDT

SCOTUS rejects 5th Circuit’s narrow ‘moment of threat’ test to evaluate officer’s shooting of fleeing man

Updated: The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled Thursday that a federal appeals court used a too-narrow time frame to evaluate whether a police officer’s fatal shooting of a fleeing man was reasonable under the Fourth Amendment.

May 15, 2025 11:51 AM CDT

Court’s religious training order for attorneys ‘plainly exceeded remedial bounds,’ 5th Circuit says

A federal appeals court ruled last week that a federal judge erred when he required lawyers for Southwest Airlines to attend “religious liberty training” for failing to comply with a court order.

May 12, 2025 12:45 PM CDT

Supreme Court will consider whether Black landlord can sue over mail said to be intentionally withheld

The U.S. Supreme Court agreed Monday to decide whether a Texas landlord can sue the U.S. Postal Service for allegedly withholding mail from herself and her tenants because she is Black.

Apr 22, 2025 10:44 AM CDT

Seeing power abuse by federal judges, 5th Circuit judge warns of ‘hundreds of kings in judicial robes’

A federal appeals judge issued a concurrence to his majority opinion in a death-penalty case last week to remark on federal trial judges who, in his view, abuse their powers to overturn the will of the electorate.

Apr 21, 2025 3:32 PM CDT

Supreme Court’s late-night order barring deportation was ‘extraordinary in many ways;’ what did Alito say?

The U.S. Supreme Court acted quickly after the American Civil Liberties Union filed an emergency application Friday evening that sought to block what appeared to be the imminent deportation of its clients.

Apr 21, 2025 9:44 AM CDT

Federal judge’s Columbia clerk boycott didn’t harm public confidence in judiciary, judicial council rules

A judge on the U.S. Court of International Trade did not violate ethics rules by refusing to hire law clerks who attended Columbia University, according to the judicial council of the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at Chicago.

Apr 10, 2025 11:36 AM CDT

Inmate executed with nitrogen gas after Supreme Court declines to intervene, with 4 dissents

A Louisiana death row inmate was executed Tuesday by nitrogen gas, the first time that the execution method was used in Louisiana and the fifth time that it was used in the United States.

Mar 19, 2025 10:02 AM CDT

5th Circuit judge challenges BigLaw firms’ ‘institutional bias’ in opinion

A federal appeals judge is calling out the country’s largest law firms for what he describes as “institutional bias.”

Mar 18, 2025 11:50 AM CDT

Seeing double standard, 5th Circuit judge resigns from judicial group over threats statement

A federal appeals judge has said he has resigned from the Federal Judges Association because it issued a statement against recent judicial threats but apparently said nothing in defense of conservative U.S. Supreme Court justices.

Mar 11, 2025 3:32 PM CDT