The US Department of Justice (DOJ) took its first steps to combat COVID-19 related fraud on Saturday by filing a complaint in the US District Court for the Western District of Texas against an online company offering vaccine kits in exchange for a $4.95 shipping charge. Currently, the World Health Organization has not approved any [...]
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals delayed the execution of John William Hummel on Monday due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The execution was scheduled for Wednesday, but the court determined that “the execution should be stayed at the present time in light of the current health crisis and the enormous resources needed to address that [...]
Former US congressman Duncan Hunter (R-CA) was sentenced to 11 months in prison on Tuesday for stealing $250,000 in campaign funds. The theft of the funds continued for almost a decade. The judge denied Hunter’s request to serve part of his sentence in home confinement, citing the continuous nature of the theft. During that time, the [...]
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court declared a statewide judicial emergency on Monday due to the outbreak of COVID-19. County president judges are now able to declare judicial emergencies in their counties, which allows them to use technology to conduct court proceedings or temporarily close their doors. The Court deems it necessary for the Pennsylvania Judiciary to [...]
The US Supreme Court announced Monday that they are postponing oral arguments scheduled for the March session beginning March 23. By deferring the arguments the court is “keeping with public health precautions recommended in response to COVID-19.” The justices last took to the bench on March 9 and were not scheduled to do so again [...]
In a Congressional report released on Wednesday, the Majority Staff of the House Committee on Financial Services detailed findings from its yearlong investigation into Wells Fargo’s adherence to financial regulations, finding that the company has failed to comply. The report also looked to identify policy solutions to help protect consumers from recidivist banks. The committee [...]
Argentina’s President Alberto Fernández announced in a speech to the National Congress on Sunday that he plans to present a bill to legalize abortion within the next 10 days. Currently in Argentina, abortion is only available in cases of rape or when the mother’s health is at risk, otherwise having an abortion can result in [...]
Human Rights Watch (HRW) released a report on Monday documenting how Tanzania’s health policies deny adequate services to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people and other people who are at risk of contracting HIV. The report details the escalating attacks against LGBT individuals and how the anti-LGBT crackdown has disabled many of the community [...]
The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Wednesday in a case about secular aid for public school choice when that school is a religious school. The question before the court in Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue is whether the Constitution allows the wholesale exclusion of religious schools from a state scholarship program. The [...]
Human Rights Watch released its annual World Report on Tuesday, in which, Executive Director Kenneth Roth warned about China’s existential threat to human rights worldwide. “While other governments commit serious human rights violations, no other government flexes its political muscles with such vigor and determination to undermine the international human rights standards and institutions that [...]
