The State of New York Court of Appeals Tuesday ruled that Happy the elephant is not a “person” subject to illegal detention and thus cannot invoke habeas corpus. In 2018, the Nonhuman Rights Project filed a petition for a common law writ of habeas corpus in order to transfer Happy from the Bronx Zoo to an [...]

Members of white supremacist group Patriot Front Monday were released from jail on bond after being charged with conspiracy to riot, a misdemeanor. Coeur d’Alene police originally arrested 31 group members on Saturday after a 911 call reported men in riot gear near a local pride event who “looked like a little army.” Police first [...]

New York Governor Kathy Hochul Monday signed six bills aimed at protecting the rights of those who provide and seek abortions. The legislative package includes the Reproductive Health Act (RHA) and the Comprehensive Contraception Coverage Act (CCCA).  Hochul commented: Reproductive rights are human rights, and today we are signing landmark legislation to further protect them and all who [...]

The US Supreme Court Monday held 8-1 in Kemp v. United States that the term “mistake” in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b)(1) “includes a judge’s errors of law.” Rule 60(b)(1) allows a party to a lawsuit to seek relief from a judgement based on a mistake. The court considered “whether the term ‘mistake’ includes a [...]

The US Supreme Court Monday unanimously held in ZF Automotive US, Inc. v. Luxshare, Ltd. that “nly a governmental or intergovernmental adjudicative body constitutes a ‘foreign or international tribunal'” under 28 U.S.C. §1782. Justice Barrett wrote the court’s opinion. This case is a consolidation of two cases involving foreign arbitration proceedings. 28 U.S.C. §1782 allows [...]

A group of legal and political experts Monday testified before the US House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol that former President Donald Trump’s allegations of voter fraud during the 2020 presidential election are unsubstantiated. The second day of publicized hearings included testimony from Trump senior advisor Jason [...]

The US Supreme Court Monday ruled in two separate cases that undocumented immigrants who are detained for more than six months are not entitled to a bond hearing. Johnson v. Arteaga-Martinez was unanimous, with only Justice Breyer dissenting in part, while Garland v. Aleman Gonzalez was a 6-3 decision. The first case concerned Antonio Arteaga-Martinez, [...]

The US Supreme Court Monday denied certiorari in Andrus v. Texas; Justices Sotomayor, Breyer and Kagan dissented. Andrus was charged with capital murder for killing two individuals during a failed carjacking. After his conviction and sentence were affirmed by the state appellate courts, Andrus filed a habeas application and alleged that his trial counsel was [...]

The United States Supreme Court Monday issued its opinion in Denezpi v. United States, ruling in favor of the dual sovereignty doctrine. The dual sovereignty doctrine applies to the double jeopardy clause of the Fifth Amendment, allowing for two sovereign entities to charge one defendant under the same set of facts under two different laws and [...]

A group of 20 US senators released a bipartisan proposal Sunday to combat the nation’s epidemic of gun violence. The proposal, which includes 10 Republicans, 9 Democrats, and 1 independent, would expand access to mental health care nationwide and impose greater restrictions on the purchase of firearms. The official statement brands the plan as “a [...]