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State appealing federal court decision against ‘banned concepts’ law
Months after a federal court held that a 2021 state law regulating how teachers address race, gender, and other topics was unconstitutional , New Hampshire’s Attorney General’s Office has filed an appeal. In a filing to the First Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston announced Wednesday, the office argued that the U.S. District Court of New Hampshire […]
Spokane eyes defunding police by $9.38M, $4.75M from fire, more from courts
Spokane Mayor Lisa Brown told her fellow officials they could pull the city out of its deficit; all it would take is extensive personnel and funding cuts, which could diminish public safety. Brown has alluded to this option several times already: first when proposing her Community Safety Levy and then when announcing a two-book outlook for next year. The […]
Report: Judiciary plagued by systemic failures to protect employees
A joint report released Wednesday found systemic failures in the judiciary’s oversight of workplace abuses, leading to sexual assault, harassment and misconduct. “No American should suffer sexual misconduct, abuse, or harassment while on the job, yet it continues even in the halls of our judicial system where decisions about every aspect of our lives are […]
Supreme Court Strikes Executive Branch Power in Trio of Rulings
The U.S. Supreme Court curbed the power of federal agencies in a slew of decisions at the end of its most recent term. Three major cases, Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, SEC v. Jarkesy, and Corner Post v. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, all served to curtail various aspects of federal agency […]
The Supreme Court’s Chevron Decision Is Already A Disaster For Some Americans
The right-wing majority on the Supreme Court last month upended a 40-year legal precedent that has governed how federal agencies are able to set rules, in a decision legal experts say will do sweeping damage to the regulation of everything from health care to student loan forgiveness to environmental protections and more. The consequences for transgender Americans […]
Spokane passes gun control law despite constitutional concerns and no legal review
Spokane took the final step in passing a local gun control measure, subverting the state’s preemption despite lacking a constitutional review. The “Gun Violence Prevention for a Safer Spokane” ordinance passed 5-2 on Monday despite constitutional concerns. Councilmember Michael Cathcart said he talked to the city’s Legal Department before Monday’s meeting, which noted they had […]
Judge Files Complaint Alleging Racial And Gender Discrimination
Judge Kimberly Cocroft only filed an EEOC complaint after her calls for an investigation into a complaint filed against her were met with silence. Kimberly Cocroft, a Black Franklin County, Ohio, judge, has filed a federal complaint against fellow judges in the Franklin County Common Pleas Court, alleging that she and her staff received discriminatory […]
Across Maine, judges are deciding when the lack of an attorney becomes a constitutional violation
On June 25 in Caribou, Judge Stephen Nelson faced a constitutional dilemma. Prosecutors had charged a defendant with aggravated drug trafficking, furnishing and possession nearly three weeks prior, but he still didn’t have an attorney. “The court finds that there has been a violation of his constitutional rights to counsel,” Nelson said. “It’s been an unreasonable […]
Mississippi Republicans’ Maps Struck Down for Being Too Racist
A U.S. district court in Mississippi ruled Tuesday that three state congressional maps crafted in 2022 by the state’s Republican-led legislature violated the Voting Rights Act and dilute the Black vote in three majority-Black districts. The lawsuit , filed in 2022 by the ACLU on behalf of the Mississippi State Conference of the NAACP, argued that lawmakers redrew voting maps that ”dilute black […]