Florida Pledge of Allegiance recitation ruling [US DC] News
Florida Pledge of Allegiance recitation ruling [US DC]

Cameron Frazier v. Cynthia Alexandre, United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, Judge Kenneth L. Ryskamp, May 31, 2006 [holding that a state law requiring students to stand and recite the Pledge of Allegiance is unconstitutional and that a student does not need a parent's permission to be excused from reciting the Pledge]. Read the full text of the Order [PDF]. Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here.

THIS DAY @ LAW

President Lincoln suspended the writ of habeas corpus

On April 27, 1861, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln suspended the writ of habeas corpus in Maryland and parts of several midwestern states during the American Civil War. Lincoln took this action to address draft riots and the threat of secession by Union states bordering the Confederacy. The President maintained his suspension even after it was overturned by the federal judiciary in Ex parte Merryman 17 F.Cas. 144 (1861). Learn more about Lincoln's suspension of habeas corpus.

War crimes trials of WWII Japanese leaders began

On April 27, 1946, the International Military Tribunal for the Far East began its trials in Tokyo, Japan, ruling on the indictments of former Japanese Prime Minister Hideki Tojo and 27 associates.

Learn more about the International Military Tribunal for the Far East.