The Trump administration said Thursday that it will not defend portions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in a challenge by 20 states. The administration filed a response Thursday to the complaint along with a letter from Attorney General Jeff Sessions agreeing with the plaintiffs and calling for a declaratory judgment by the court to [...]
The International Criminal Court (ICC) Appeals Chamber acquitted former vice president of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and military leader Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo Friday on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. In 2016, Bemba was found guilty and sentenced to 18 years imprisonment for two counts of crimes against humanity (murder and [...]
New Jersey’s legislature approved a bill to legalize sports gambling on Thursday, approximately three weeks after the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the state to allow the practice. Assembly Bill 1441 passed first, then identical Senate Bill 2602 was passed. According to the bill, casinos with horse racing and sports betting will be taxed [...]
Two transgender women represented by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) won a challenge Wednesday against Iowa’s Department of Human Services in the Iowa District Court for Polk County over its ban on Medicaid coverage for transition-related surgeries. The court found that the regulation banning Medicaid coverage for transition-related surgeries violates the Iowa Civil Rights [...]
The Arizona Court of Appeals on Tuesday upheld a Phoenix anti-discrimination law that makes it illegal for businesses to discriminate against people because of their sexual orientation. The suit was brought by the two owners of a business that specializes in designing wedding and special event products. They are “devout Christians and believe their work [...]
The UK Supreme Court on Thursday indicated disapproval of Northern Ireland’s strict abortion law , though ultimately dismissed the appeal brought by challengers of the legislation. The legal proceedings were initiated by the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC) , who argue that the existing law—which lists having an abortion as a criminal offense punishable [...]
Amnesty International (AI) called on Mozambican authorities Thursday to take immediate steps to end what they called a “killing spree” in the Cabo Delgado Province of the country. According to the statement, at least 37 people in have been killed over the past two weeks. The killings are being carried out by a group known [...]
The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , Tomás Ojea Quintana, urged North Korea Thursday to begin to release its political prisoners in anticipation of the proposed June 12 denuclearization talks with the US. “It might be a gradual process, it’s not that I’m saying you [...]
In a judgment Wednesday in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California , Judge Dana Sabraw said that Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ “zero tolerance” immigration policy in which the government has been separating minor children from their parents may violate due process. The class action lawsuit involves a Congolese asylum-seeking mother, [...]
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein condemned the government of Bangladesh on Wednesday for the killing of suspected drug offenders by security forces in the country. The High Commissioner responded to reports that 130 individuals had been killed in three weeks and thousands arrested after the government proclaimed a zero-tolerance policy [...]
