The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Wednesday ruled that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) must pay disability benefits to blue water navy Vietnam veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange. Alfred Procopio, Jr. served aboard the USS Intrepid during the Vietnam War but never set foot on land. Procopio twice sought [...]

UN human rights experts on Wednesday called for a probe into the collapse of a tailing dam in Minas Gerais, Brazil, that killed nearly 60 people and left hundreds missing. The disaster occurred on January 25 and is the second such incident involving the same company in the past three years. The experts urged the government [...]

The New York State Assembly passed comprehensive gun legislation on Tuesday to diminish gun violence in the state. Among the legislation passed is the “Red Flag Bill” that blocks a person deemed to be a threat to the safety of themselves or others from buying a gun for up to a year. A petitioner, which [...]

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Palestine will not accept US foreign aid after Thursday for fear of potential US legal consequences per Congress’ Anti-Terrorism Clarification Act (ATCA) of 2018. The US currently provides nearly $60 million in security funding to the Palestinian government each year. Though the aid is needed, Abbas says the cost of [...]

New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham on Tuesday issued an executive order requiring state officials to reduce methane gas emissions over the next decade to combat climate change. The order declared that New Mexico would be joining the US Climate Alliance. It shows New Mexico’s commitment to a “climate-conscious future and moves to protect people, natural [...]

The Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR) filed an emergency appeal to the US Supreme Court on Monday to prevent enforcement of a Louisiana law that establishes admitting privileges for doctors performing abortions. The Unsafe Abortion Protection Act, also known as Act 620 requires any physician providing abortion services in Louisiana to have admitting privileges at [...]

Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby announced on Tuesday that Baltimore will no longer be prosecuting marijuana possession, regardless of weight or criminal history. The decision to end prosecution was based on a “lack of a demonstrable public safety benefit, the resource drain that resolving marijuana possession cases places on prosecutors, and the racially unjust manner [...]

Sea-Watch e.V. filed a complaint against Italy with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) on Monday because Italy refuses to allow the ship Sea-Watch 3 to dock at its ports. The ship currently is holding 47 migrants that were rescued from a shipwreck off the Libyan coast earlier this month. The Mayor of Syracuse in [...]

Long-time Trump associate and former campaign adviser Roger Stone pleaded not guilty in a federal DC court on Tuesday. Stone appeared in front of Magistrate Judge Deborah Robinson following his arrest by the FBI on Friday. Stone has been charged with obstruction of a proceeding, witness tampering and making false statements to House Representatives regarding his involvement in WikiLeaks’ publication of stolen [...]

As US immigration courts opened on Monday to the 86,000 cases that were canceled during the shutdown, attorneys speculatde that it could take years to get through this backlog. As of the end of November, it was estimated that there were more than 800,000 cases pending before the immigration courts. Jennifer Williams, an immigration law [...]