The First Amendment guarantees all members of society the right to free expression. Solicitation speech is expression entitled to full protection under the First Amendment. Sections 13-2928 (A) and (B) of the Arizona Revised Statutes are content-based speech restrictions because they impose statewide criminal liability on motorists and individuals based on individuals' employment solicitation speech.

In December, the US Supreme Court [official website; JURIST news archive] heard oral arguments [day call, PDF; merit briefs] in Chamber of Commerce v. Whiting [oral arguments transcript, PDF; JURIST report] on whether an Arizona statute imposing sanctions on employers that hire illegal immigrants is preempted by federal law [JURIST report]. According to 8 USC § 1324(a)(h)(2) [text], federal law preempts any "[s]tate or local law imposing civil or criminal sanctions upon those who employ, or recruit or refer for a fee for employment, unauthorized aliens," except in cases of state licensing laws. The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld [opinion, PDF; JURIST report] the Legal Arizona Workers Act [materials] on the basis that the state statute is a licensing law, which exempts it from being preempted by the federal law.

Because only a present holder of the mortgage is authorized to foreclose on the mortgaged property, and because the mortgagor is entitled to know who is foreclosing and selling the property, the failure to identify the holder of the mortgage in the notice of sale may render the notice defective and the foreclosure sale void.

As trustee of a securitized pool of loans, Wells Fargo expects the entities who service these loans to abide by all applicable state laws, including those laws that govern foreclosure sales. Wells Fargo believes the court's ruling does not prevent foreclosures on loans in securitizations. The court simply set forth a standard legal process that mortgage servicers must follow in Massachusetts.

Foreclosure practices have come under close scrutiny is recent months. In mid-December Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard [official profile] filed a lawsuit [press release] against Bank of America (BOA) [corporate website] for misleading customers [JURIST report] in mortgage modification and foreclosure practices. In November Chief Justice Charles Canady [official profile] of the Florida Supreme Court [official website] issued a memorandum [text, PDF] to the chief judges of Florida's 20 judicial circuits directing them to ensure that all foreclosure proceedings in the state are open to the public [JURIST report]. In October, New York Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman [official profile] announced [statement, PDF] a new court rule [JURIST report] that requires lawyers to file a separate affirmation [form, PDF] confirming the accuracy of paperwork used in residential foreclosure cases. Lippman explained that the new rule was an effort to provide better protection [press release] to people facing the possibility of losing their home, particularly in response to the recent discoveries of errors in foreclosure documents nationwide. Also in October, attorneys general from all 50 states and the District of Columbia announced [joint statement, PDF; JURIST report] that they have formed a bipartisan group called the Mortgage Foreclosure Multistate Group (MFMG), which will investigate allegations of procedural defects committed by mortgage loan companies during foreclosure processes.

The prosecution of terrorists in Federal court is a powerful tool in our efforts to protect the Nation and must be among the options available to us. Any attempt to deprive the executive branch of that tool undermines our Nation's counterterrorism efforts and has the potential to harm our national security...We must have the ability to act swiftly and to have broad flexibility in conducting our negotiations with foreign countries...Requiring the executive branch to certify to additional conditions would hinder the conduct of delicate negotiations with foreign countries and therefore the effort to conclude detainee transfers in accord with our national security...Despite my strong objection to these provisions, which my Administration has consistently opposed, I have signed this Act because of the importance of authorizing appropriations for, among other things, our military activities in 2011.

The Obama administration continues its push to close the Guantanamo Bay facility, despite running into several hurdles in closing the prison, including opposition from members of Congress and the suspension of detainee transfers to Yemen [JURIST report]. In May, the US House Armed Services Committee [official website] approved [JURIST report] the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2011 [text, PDF] prohibiting the Obama administration from modifying or building a facility in the US to hold detainees currently held at Guantanamo Bay. In November, the US Senate [official website] defeated a measure which would have placed similar restrictions [JURIST report] into the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act [text, PDF; HR 3082 materials]. In June 2009, the US House denied [JURIST report] an Obama administration request for $60 million to fund the closure of the Guantanamo Bay detention facility, and required the president to submit a detailed plan to Congress documenting the costs and risks of transferring a detainee to the US for trial or detention at least two months before the detainee is to be transferred. The number of detainees at Guantanamo has been significantly reduced as the administration continues to transfer detainees to a growing list of countries including Germany, Italy, Spain, Maldives, Georgia, Albania, Latvia, Switzerland, Slovakia, Somaliland, Palau, Belgium, Afghanistan and Bermuda [JURIST reports]. There are currently 178 detainees awaiting transfer from Guantanamo.

The violence in Arizona today has senselessly taken five lives and inflicted tragic loss on dedicated public servants and their families. We in the judiciary have suffered the terrible loss of one of our own. Chief Judge John Roll was a wise jurist who selflessly served Arizona and the nation with great distinction, as attorney and judge, for more than 35 years. I express my deepest condolences to his wife Maureen and his children, as well as the other victims and their families. Chief Judge Roll's death is a somber reminder of the importance of the rule of law and the sacrifices of those who work to secure it.

President Barack Obama directed that the investigation into the shooting be conducted [press releases] by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), coordinated by Director Robert Mueller. Authorities have arrested suspect Jared Lee Loughner and are searching for a possible accomplice [press release]. Due to the currently polarized political climate, many suspect that the attack was politically motivated [ABC report]. Giffords received harsh criticism in Arizona for her vote for the health care reform law [HR 3590; JURIST report] and was among those members of Congress who reported threats or vandalism in 2010. Giffords also was an outspoken critic of Arizona's controversial immigration law [SB 1070 text; JURIST news archive]. Ultimately, a clear motive into the shootings has yet to be identified.