In a 5-4 vote, the US Supreme Court found Thursday in Allen v. Milligan that Alabama’s legislature violated the voting rights of Black Alabamians with the composition of the state’s congressional maps. Based upon section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, the court found that Alabama’s newly redrawn congressional maps closed off the political process [...]
The US Supreme Court ruled Thursday in Dubin v. United States that in order to constitute aggravated identity theft, the use of a person’s identity must be at the “crux” of what makes the conduct criminal, reversing a lower court decision. The Court held in favor of the appellant, David Dubin, who was convicted of [...]
The Biden administration knew that Ukraine planned to attack a majority Russian-owned natural gas pipeline, owned by Nord Stream, three months ahead of an actual attack on the gas line, according to documents reviewed by the Washington Post. According to a Tuesday report from the Post, the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) received information from [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled on Tuesday that the Second Amendment of the Constitution protects non-violent offenders from federal firearm bans. The case resulted from Bryan Range’s appeal from the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Circuit Judge Thomas M. Hardiman authored the opinion of the court. [...]
Human Rights Campaign (HRC), an LGBTQ+ rights group, declared a state of emergency for LGBTQ+ people in the US on Tuesday in a new report that highlights the steep increase in laws and harassment targeting the LGBTQ+ community. This is the first time HRC, founded in 1980, has taken such an action. HRC president Kelley [...]
The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention released a report alleging that Afghanistan, Lithuania, Morocco, Poland, Romania, Thailand, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the US all participated in human rights violations against Abd al-Rahim Hussein al-Nashiri, a man accused of assisting in the bombing of the USS Cole in 2000. Al-Nashiri is currently held in [...]
The Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board voted on Monday to accept the application for the establishment of the Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School. The school will operate as a public charter school, paid for by taxpayer dollars. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) stated they will join Americans United, a group that fights [...]
The US Supreme Court announced Monday it will take up the trademark case Vidal v. Elster, to determine whether the application of Section 2(c) of the Lanham Act to political figures violates the First Amendment. The case surrounds the trademark application by Steve Elster for the phrase “Trump Too Small,” which Elster attempted to trademark for [...]
Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed SB 14 on Friday, which bans gender-affirming care for minors and places restrictions on children already taking gender-affirming prescription drugs. The law becomes effective on September 1, 2023. SB 14 provides that child health plans may not provide coverage for services intended to “transition a child’s biological sex as determined [...]
Rodolfe Jaar was sentenced to life in prison Friday by Judge Jose Martinez of the Southern District of Florida for his role in the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise. In Jaar’s March plea agreement, he admitted to “knowingly and willfully” providing weapons and personnel in furtherance of the plot. Jaar’s original indictment alleges that a [...]
