A federal jury in Madison, Wisconsin, on Thursday awarded two transgender state employees $780,500 in damages after a district court found that a ban on insurance coverage for gender-changing surgery amounts to sexual discrimination. In March 2017 the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a complaint on behalf of Alina Boyden, a University of Wisconsin-Madison [...]

Liew Vui Keong, chief minister in the Malaysian Prime Minister’s office, announced Wednesday that Malaysia would abolish the death penalty by the next sitting of Parliament. The move comes after several humanitarian groups, including Amnesty International, called for the death penalty’s abolition as a result of the execution of several minor offenders, including Westerners. Upon [...]

The Washington state Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the state’s death penalty laws are unconstitutional. The opinion comes out of the case of Allen Eugene Gregory, who had previously been convicted of aggravated first degree murder and sentenced to death. Gregory appealed this conviction, and his case was remanded for resentencing. Another jury then sentenced [...]

A judge for the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida on Tuesday sentenced Guy Vallerius, also known as “Oxymonster” on the dark web, to 20 years in prison for charges related to drug trafficking and money laundering. The South Florida High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force led the investigation that uncovered Vallerius’ [...]

The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit on Tuesday allowed the US Department of Energy (DOE) to halt construction on a mixed oxide fuel (MOX) fabrication facility project in South Carolina. The appeals court granted a motion to stay an injunction granted by the US District Court of South Carolina that had prevented the DOE [...]

The US Supreme Court on Wednesday heard arguments in two cases, one of which challenges the detention provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) and the other concerning maritime asbestos injuries. In the first case, Nielson v. Preap, the court is asked to determine: “Whether a criminal alien becomes exempt from mandatory detention under if, after the [...]

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio signed a bill into law Tuesday that will allow individuals to elect a third gender category on birth certificates issued within city limits, removing a number of medical and administrative barriers to doing so. The bill was recently passed by the New York City Council, which worked closely [...]

US Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Wednesday temporarily blocked three decisions of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York that required two Trump officials to appear for depositions regarding a controversial 2020 Census citizenship question. US Department of Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and Justice official John Gore were ordered [...]

The UK Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that Christian bakery owners did not discriminate against a gay customer when they refused to make a cake supporting same-sex marriage. Mr. Lee, a gay rights activist, brought a claim against Ashers Baking Company, located in Northern Ireland, after the bakery refused to make a cake iced with the [...]

A judge for the Cole County Circuit Court of Missouri held  Tuesday that the affidavit and advertisement requirements of the Missouri’s voter identification law were unconstitutional. The law, HB 1631 , was passed in 2016 to require that voters present an acceptable form of ID at the voting ballot. The law provides several ID options, [...]