Environmental brief ~ Federal judge upholds DC hazmat rail ban News
Environmental brief ~ Federal judge upholds DC hazmat rail ban

[JURIST] In Tuesday's environmental law news, US District Judge Emmet Sullivan has refused [order text, PDF] to block a Washington DC law [text, DOC] that bans the shipment of hazardous materials on railroads through the city. He also held yesterday that CSX Transportation [company website] and the federal government had not provided evidence that the railroad or rail security would suffer irreparable harm if the company were forced to route trains around DC. CSX has announced [CSX press release] it will appeal the decision. The DC Office of the Attorney General has background legal documents [documents, PDF] in the case. The Washington Post has more.

Earlier JURIST Paper Chase coverage:

THIS DAY @ LAW

Indian National Congress founded

The Indian National Congress (INC) was founded on December 28, 1885 in Bombay (now Mumbai), India. In subsequent decades, the so-called Congress Party would advocate for Indian independence from the UK, which was eventually achieved in 1947. The first Prime Minister of independent India, Jawaharlal Nehru, was elected as a member of the INC. Learn more about the history and founding of the Indian National Congress.

Congress recognized Pledge of Allegiance

On December 28, 1945, Congress officially recognized the Pledge of Allegiance and encouraged its recitation in schools. The Pledge was supposedly written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus Day. The words “under God” were added by Congress in 1954. The revised version of the Pledge was the subject of litigation before the United States Supreme Court originally brought by Michael Newdow, a parent who unsuccessfully objected to his daughter's school district policy requiring daily recitation of the Pledge. The court ruled that Newdow had no standing.

Nepal ends monarchy, establishes republic

On December 28, 2007, the Kingdom of Nepal's interim parliament ended the country's monarchy and established the Republic of Nepal. Free elections were held on April 10 of the following year to elect a Constituent Assembly.

Learn more about the rise of democracy in Nepal.