The US Department of Justice (DOJ) Inspector General Micheal Horowitz announced on Tuesday that his office has uncovered pervasive problems in FBI wiretap applications. The Office of the Inspector General’s (OIG) report comes out of an investigation into the FBI’s Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) applications, which was sparked after a report last year found inconsistencies [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit upheld its own decision Tuesday to allow Florida ex-convicts to vote despite lingering financial and legal obligations. The court refused to reconsider en banc its original decision, effectively cementing its earlier decision on the case. In February, the court issued its original opinion on this case [...]
The Trump administration on Tuesday weakened the fuel efficiency standards for cars and trucks, previously one of the nation’s most aggressive policies against climate change. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, on behalf of the Department of Transportation, amended carbon dioxide and fuel economy standards for model years 2021 [...]
Thirteen detainees of the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency won a temporary restraining order from a Pennsylvania federal court Tuesday after complaining of the poor conditions in the facilities where they were held and their risk of contracting COVID-19. Judge John E. Jones III described the unique and fraught circumstances of the response [...]
Idaho Governor Brad Little signed two bills into law Monday that limit transgender individuals’ rights. House bill 509 prohibits transgender people from making changes to the biological sex recorded on their birth certificates. Under the law, an amendment can be made to the biological sex within one year of filing the certificate only if the [...]
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, issued a statement on Tuesday in response to recent measures Hungary has taken to further consolidate power in the hands of its prime minister, Viktor Orbán. While not calling out Hungary by name, the statement from the EU leader condemns exploiting emergency situations to undermine democratic [...]
The US Department of Justice Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) announced via Twitter Monday evening that hearings in non-detained immigration cases will be postponed until May 1. The EOIR said that immigration courts are open for detainee hearings, including bond hearings, where applicable. Operational status of courts nationwide are updated on the office’s website. [...]
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Pennsylvania filed an emergency petition to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Monday seeking the release of some in the Commonwealth’s county jails—what the petition argues is a necessary measure to allow jails space to follow CDC-recommended safe social distancing practices to prepare for COVID-19. The petition asks the [...]
The US Supreme Court on Monday affirmed a Third Circuit court opinion, holding that the plain language of the safe-berth clause in the parties’ sub-charter agreement establishes a warranty of safety. In the final stretch of a tanker’s journey from Venezuela to New Jersey, an abandoned ship anchor punctured the tanker’s hull, causing 264,000 gallons [...]
Singapore’s Supreme Court on Monday upheld Section 377A of Singapore’s Penal Code criminalizing homosexual activity between men. Three gay men challenged the law’s constitutionality following India’s victory in legalizing same–sex intercourse in September 2018. The High Court reasoned that it was bound by the Court of Appeal’s 2014 decision that Section 377A was constitutional and [...]
