[JURIST] Probably not. In July 1986, six months after the Challenger accident, Ms. Jane Smith, the widow of Challenger pilot Captain Michael J. Smith, filed a wrongful death claim against the United States government, the manager of NASA, and Morton Thiokol, the manufacturer of the shuttle's solid rocket boosters. Smith settled with Morton Thiokol but not with the Government. The US District Court (712 F.Supp. 893) and the US Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals (877 F.2d 40) held that since Captain Smith's death occurred during activity incident to his military service, the wrongful death claim against the United States was barred. The Court of Appeals also held that this doctrine could not be circumvented by suing a government employee in his personal capacity. Ms. Smith appealed to the US Supreme Court. Read the 1989 Justice Department brief [text] by then Solicitor-General Kenneth Starr that successfully argued against granting certiorari.

[JURIST] NASA announced Sunday the membership of the independent investigation board formed to look into Saturday's loss of the Columbia space shuttle. The Space Shuttle Mishap Interagency Investigation Board will be chaired by retired US Navy Admiral Harold Gehman, who co-chaired the commission that investigated the attack on the U.S.S. Cole in Yemen. Read the NASA press release. NASA has also posted a webpage for investigation updates and related mission information.

[JURIST] Public warnings against interference with Space Shuttle debris are based on safety considerations, investigatory needs, and the provisions of US Code Title 18, Section 641 [text] on theft of US government property.

[JURIST] Review the President's Memorandum for the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency declaring a state of emergency for Texas [memorandum text] in connection with the loss and disintegration of the Columbia space shuttle Saturday.