The US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit said Tuesday that Massachusetts’ winner-take-all system for presidential electors treats all voters equally and does not infringe on voters’ constitutional rights. Three Massachusetts voters challenged the constitutionality of the winner-take-all method, alleging that it violates their right to an “equally weighted vote” under the Equal Protection [...]

Washington Governor Jay Inslee signed a bill into law Tuesday limiting the use of facial recognition technology. “AN ACT Relating to the use of facial recognition services” will allow law enforcement to use facial recognition “in a manner that benefits society while prohibiting uses that threaten our democratic freedoms and put our civil liberties at [...]

The Human Rights Law Centre published a report Wednesday accusing mining giant Rio Tinto of human rights violations on the island of Bougainville in Papua New Guinea. The mine was abandoned by Rio Tinto in 2016 without any effort to assist in the cleanup or closure of the mine. The open mine, which is located [...]

A class action suit was filed on Monday in the Northern District of California against Zoom Video Communications, Inc., claiming Zoom illegally collected and shared its users’ information with third parties. The complaint includes allegations under the California Consumer Privacy Act, California Consumers Legal Remedies Act, California Unfair Competition Law, and Art. 1, § 1 [...]

The Bureau of Federal Prisons issued an order Wednesday directing prisons to keep inmates confined in cells for a 14-day period. The directive will impact operations in all 122 federal prison facilities around the country. Bureau Director Michael Carvajal made the decision in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. The large number of inmates and guards [...]

The US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled Tuesday that a petitioner who fled Ghana to the US after he was assaulted and threatened by his father and neighbors for his sexuality is eligible for asylum. Petitioner had been in a same-sex relationship with a friend, and when his father and neighbors found [...]

The US Supreme Court of granted certiorari Monday in Brownback v. Douglas, a case concerning excessive force by police. James King was stopped by two undercover officers from a federal-state joint task force in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 2014. The officers, one an FBI agent and one a local police officer, attempted to arrest King, [...]

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday announced a proposal to lift Venezuelan sanctions if the country adopts a new transitional government. According to Pompeo, “his framework calls for the establishment of broadly acceptable transitional government to administer free and fair presidential elections and a pathway to lifting Venezuela-related sanctions.” The plan requires Nicolás [...]

Federal judges on Monday temporarily blocked Texas, Alabama and Ohio from enforcing COVID-19 abortion bans for the duration of the lawsuits. On March 22, Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued an Executive Order that: applies throughout the State and to all surgeries and procedures that are not immediately medically necessary, including routine dermatological, ophthalmological, and dental [...]

The National Election Board of Ethiopia announced Tuesday that it would postpone Ethiopia’s upcoming general election amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The board had planned to conduct the election in August. The planned elections marked a transition towards democratic stability in Ethiopia. Ethiopia experienced a period of ethnic tension and unrest throughout 2016 and 2017. The [...]