A three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit unanimously ruled Thursday that a federal district court improperly limited the scope of a lawsuit alleging that the FBI had illegally targeted mosques and Islamic individuals for surveillance on a basis of religion. The suit, brought by the American Civil Liberties Union [...]
A judge for the US District Court for the Central District of California ruled Thursday that the federal government cannot seize the trademark rights of the logo used by the Mongols motorcycle club. The ruling overturned a federal jury’s decision to strip the club of its logo after finding “a direct connection between the gang’s crimes and [...]
The US House of Representatives on Thursday approved further legislation to broaden federal gun control measures. The new bill, titled Enhanced Background Checks Act of 2019, attempts to address the “Charleston loophole” in the Brady Bill. Currently, this loophole permits automatic clearance for the sale of guns when the FBI fails to complete requisite background [...]
The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) stated on Thursday that it will extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for individuals from Sudan, Nicaragua, Haiti and El Salvador as long as a temporary injunction issued in October remains in effect. The DHS is also extending the validity of TPS-related documents, such as Employment Authorization Documents, through [...]
A West Virginia judge ruled Wednesday that parts of West Virginia’s “Workplace Freedom Act” (WFA), preventing employees from being required to pay union dues, is unconstitutional. Under the WFA, West Virginia workers could choose to pay no fees to the union required to represent them. The case began in 2016 when several labor unions sued [...]
The Utah House of Representatives passed the Concurrent Resolution in Support of Advanced Nuclear Reactor Technology on Wednesday. The resolution “supports the procurement of energy from advanced nuclear facilities as well as the construction and operation of advanced nuclear facilities within the state of Utah.” The use of the advanced nuclear facilities are deemed to be [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on Wednesday affirmed the dismissal of an Ohio woman’s defamation lawsuit against actor James Woods. The suit comes as a result of an exchange on Twitter during the 2016 election. In 2016 James Woods reposted a tweet that had side-by-side comparisons of Portia Boulger, the plaintiff [...]
The New Hampshire House of Representatives on Wednesdayapproved a bill to legalize marijuana. The bill seeks to allow law enforcement to “focus on violent and property crimes.” It also seeks to generate “revenue for education and other public purposes,” and additionally cites individual freedom as an interest that the New Hampshire House of Representatives is [...]
US District Judge Fred Biery on Wednesday blocked an initiative led by Acting Texas Secretary of State David Whitley to flag registered Texas voters suspected of being non-citizens. In January the Texas Secretary of State’s office issued an election advisory that conferred with the Department of Public Safety records to confirm Texas voters’ citizenship status. This [...]
US District Judge Leonie Brinkema on Wednesday allowed a lawsuit brought by three former inmates of Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq against military contractor CACI Premier Technology to proceed. The case, originally filed in 2008 by the Center for Constitutional Rights, alleges that military police (MPs) tortured the prisoners at the direction of civilian contractors [...]