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 Sunday, May 19, 2013
Maryland ordered rail company to disclose its role in Holocaust
Adiah Oreyomi
On May 19, 2011, Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley signed a bill requiring French railroad company SNCF to disclose information regarding its participation in the Jewish Holocaust. SNCF was accused of transporting 76,000 Jews and other prisoners from Paris to Germany from 1942 to 1944. In October 2006, the company faced 1,200 claims from families seeking damages for its role in the Holocaust. In June 2006, SNCF was ordered by a French trial court to pay a Jewish family for its participation in crimes against humanity, but on March, 27, 2007, a French appeals court overturned that conviction.
Flag of Maryland
Learn more about the Holocaust from the JURIST news archive.
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Saturday, May 18, 2013
Vermont became first state to outlaw fracking
Arjun Mishra
On May 18, 2012, Vermont became the first US state to ban hydraulic fracking when Governor Peter Shumlin signed Bill H. 464 into law. Hydraulic fracking is a method used by many major oil companies to extract natural gas and obtain shale oil and gas by using an extremely pressurized mixture of water, sand and undisclosed chemicals to break through rock. The Green Mountain State passed this measure preemptively, without evidence of a reserve of oil or gas in the state. New York extended its moratorium on fracking, while former North Carolina Governor Beverly Perdue vetoed a measure lifting a statewide ban on fracking in July 2012, and NJ Governor Chris Christie vetoed a bill that would have banned the practice in the state in June 2011.
Read an overview of Fracking in Features.
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Friday, May 17, 2013
Massachusetts became first state to legalize same-sex marriage
Arjun Mishra
On May 17, 2004, Massachusetts became the first state in the union to legalize same-sex marriage. The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts ruled in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health that the state's constitution prohibited a ban on same-sex marriage passed in November 2003. Attempts to reverse the legalization of same-sex marriage in the state through ballot initiatives, amendments and legislation were unsuccessful, despite support from Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.
Seal of Massachusetts
Read an overview of Same-Sex Marriage in Features.
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Thursday, May 16, 2013
Texas group sued to block border fence construction
Kyle Webster
On May 16, 2008, the Texas Border Coalition, a group of Texas-based business owners and officials, filed a class action lawsuit to enjoin the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from constructing a fence on the US-Mexico border. The group claimed that approval of the fence's construction violated the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, which required the government to hold fair negotiations with landowners when seeking access to property along the border. The case was dismissed in May 2009 due to lack of standing. The issue of construction of a continuous border fence or virtual fence with cameras and radar between the US and Mexico continues to be debated.
Read an overview of US Immigration Law in Features.
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Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Anti-illegal immigration ordinance was challenged in court
Kyle Webster
On May 15, 2007, two advocacy groups requested a temporary restraining order from the US District Court of the Northern District of Texas in an effort to block an anti-illegal immigration city ordinance passed in Farmers Branch, Texas. The ordinance was scheduled to go into effect that same day after being approved by voters the week prior. The ordinance required apartment renters to demonstrate proof of US residency and penalized landlords who rented to undocumented immigrants with a $500 fine. The ordinance was originally scheduled to go into effect in January 2007, but was delayed due to a previous challenge. In March 2012, the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit upheld the district court's ruling that the ordinance was unconstitutional.
Read an overview of US Immigration Law in Features.
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Tuesday, May 14, 2013
New York representatives introduced Equality Act
Zachariah Rivenbark
On May 14, 1974, former US Representatives Bella Abzug and Ed Koch of New York introduced the Equality Act in the US House of Representatives. The Equality Act was a proposal to expand the coverage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation. The bill was referred to the House Judiciary Committee, but it died in committee and never became enacted. Lawmakers continued to propose similar legislation, only to have the bills fail in the House of Representatives, including the April 2011 Employment Non-Discrimination Act, proposed by former Representative Barney Frank of Massachusetts.
Learn more about legal issues surrounding sexual orientation from the JURIST news archive.
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Monday, May 13, 2013
Kazakhstan approved constitutional amendment to increase presidential powers
Sarah Steers
On May 13, 2010, the upper house of the Kazakhstan Parliament passed a constitutional amendment granting significant additional powers to President Nursultan Nazarbayev. The lower house of Parliament had approved the amendment the day before. The amendment would have extended significant additional benefits to Nazarbayev, including being named "leader of the nation," granting immunity from investigation or prosecution for life and assuring that his property and holdings could not be confiscated for any reason. Facing intense scrutiny both in Kazakhstan and abroad, on June 4, 2010, Nazurbayev declined to sign the amendment into law.
Emblem of Kazakhstan
Learn more about Kazakhstan from the JURIST news archive.
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