On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Center overturned the landmark case Roe v. Wade. It is essential to clarify the specific right Roe established. It was not an unqualified affirmative right to abortion but a right protecting a woman from unduly burdensome interference with her freedom to [...]

The US Supreme Court Monday ruled that the US government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a doctor knowingly prescribed opioids “in an unauthorized manner” in order to secure a conviction for the illegal distribution of controlled substances. In the case of Ruan v. United States, Doctors Xiulu Ruan and Shakeel Kahnalong  were convicted [...]

The US Supreme Court ruled Monday in Concepcion v. United States that judges should have sentencing discretion under the 2018 First Step Act and 2010 Fair Sentencing act in crack-cocaine cases. The 2010 Fair Sentencing Act brought crack-cocaine sentencing more in-line with cocaine sentencing. Prior to the act, crack-cocaine sentences were far harsher than cocaine [...]

Orleans Parish Civil District Court Judge Robin Giarrusso issued a temporary order Monday blocking Louisiana’s abortion ban trigger laws from going into effect. The decision comes as a result of the US Supreme Court’s controversial Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Center, which held that abortion is not a constitutional right. The order came in response [...]

The US Supreme Court Monday declined to hear a case where a Christian ministry sued the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) over being labeled a hate group. The appellants in Coral Ridge Ministries v. SPLC  asked the court to review its 1964 decision in New York Times Co. v. Sullivan, which held that public figures [...]

The US Supreme Court ruled 6-3 Monday that Joseph Kennedy, a high school football coach, was wrongfully terminated by the Bremerton School District. Kennedy had been holding prayers with students for eight years when the school asked him to refrain from continuing the practice due to Establishment Clause concerns. Kennedy briefly stopped and then resumed [...]

Switzerland’s Federal Criminal Court Monday fined Credit Suisse two million Swiss francs for failing to stop an employee who allowed a criminal organization to launder money through the bank. It also confiscated 12 million francs from Credit Suisse accounts linked to money laundering. The court says that between July 2007 and December 2008 a customer relations [...]

In Terminiello v. Chicago, Justice Jackson famously commented that the constitution “is not a suicide pact.” His point was in response to the Court’s decision to invalidate Chicago’s disorderly conduct conviction of Arthur Terminiello, who had given a speech that threatened to breach the peace. Writing for the Court, Justice Douglas rejected Chicago’s assessment that [...]

Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of President Biden’s speech criticizing the Supreme Court’s rejection of Roe v. Wade is that he gave the speech at all. Presidents historically have wisely refrained from commenting on Supreme Court decisions. Biden’s delivery of the speech on the very same morning that the Court delivered its opinion in Dobbs [...]

Arizona lawmakers Friday approved House Bill 2319 (HB 2319), making it unlawful for someone to knowingly record law enforcement activity within eight feet of the incident that is transpiring. HB 2319 passed through the Senate Thursday by a vote of 16-12-2-0. Earlier drafts of this legislation banned recording within 15 feet of police encounters, but [...]