The Supreme Court of Georgia ruled Monday that a state law that makes the identity of an execution drug supplier a “confidential state secret” is constitutional. In a 5-2 decision, the court reversed a lower court ruling that granted a stay of execution to death row inmate Warren Lee Hill . Hill’s lawyer said he [...]

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) on Monday announced that a grand jury in the Western District of Pennsylvania brought hacking charges against the Chinese nationals in a case of cyber espionage. The indictment alleges that the defendants were involved in computer hacking, economic espionage and other offenses directed at six US victims in the [...]

A jury for the US District Court for the Southern District of New York on Monday convicted Egyptian-born Muslim cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri of supporting terrorism. Al-Masri was found guilty of 11 criminal charges, which included planning to establish a jihad training camp in Oregon, conspiring to kidnap Americans in Yemen by enabling hostage-takers to [...]

A judge for the US District Court for the District of Oregon on Monday struck down Oregon’s voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage, saying that the ban could not be enforced because it unconstitutionally discriminates against same-sex couples. In his opinion, Judge Michael McShane wrote that because the laws discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation, [...]

The US Supreme Court ruled 6-3 Monday in Petrella v. MGM that a copyright suit against Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) over recent profits from the 1980 film Raging Bull may go forward. Paula Petrella, daughter of the original screenwriter, filed suit against MGM in 2009, arguing that she should be entitled to some of the profits from [...]

JURIST Guest Columnist Michael Blissenbach, University of St. Thomas School of Law Class of 2015, discusses Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe’s Veto of SB 236, which would have codified the rights of students to pray voluntarily in school and at school events and argues that his veto of the bill was justified…On April 27, 2014 Virginia [...]

The US Supreme Court on Monday granted certiorari in Department of Homeland Security v. MacLean to determine whether the code of Prohibited Personnel Practices can bar an agency from taking action against an employee who intentionally divulges sensitive security information. The Aviation and Transportation Security Act (ATSA) , which created the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) [...]

An Egyptian court on Monday acquitted 169 Muslim Brotherhood supporters on charges relating to the violence following the ouster of president Mohammed Morsi last year. The men had been charged with “illegal gathering” last August but will now be released from prison. The acquittals represent a break from the pattern of mass trials of Morsi [...]

Former Bosnian Serb general Ratko Mladic began his defense case before the UN International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) on Monday with testimony of Mile Sladoje, a former Serb army officer who claimed that he was never ordered to shoot civilians during the the 1995 Srebrenica massacre . Mladic faces an 11-count indictment, [...]

Minnesota lawmakers on Friday approved a bill legalizing medical marijuana in pill or liquid form for a limited number of patients who suffer from severe or fatal illnesses. The state’s Senate voted 46-16 and the House voted 89-40 to approve the bill with bipartisan support. Governor Mark Dayton has said he will sign it into [...]