The American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania (ACLU-PA) said Friday that it is nearing a settlement in a federal lawsuit challenging a controversial Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (DOC) mail policy in which photocopies of incoming mail be delivered to inmates instead of the original copies, which were stored. The ACLU-PA, joined by the Pennsylvania Institutional [...]

The Vermont Supreme Court ruled Friday that a mother’s kindergarten and preschool-aged children were not in need of a Children in Need of Care or Supervision (CHINS) classification due to repeated truancy because they were not within the age required by law to attend school. In CHINS cases, the state—comprising a social worker, judge and [...]

Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak signed new state legislation Friday that extends firearm background checks and closes a loophole that allowed gun buyers to go through unlicensed sellers to avoid them. Bill Sponsor and Senate Majority Leader Kelvin Atkinson said Friday, “Background checks are proven to be the best way to prevent guns from getting into [...]

Maria Ressa, Philippine journalist and known critic of the country’s president was arrested Wednesday on charges of cyber libel for her work as CEO and executive editor for Philippines-based news site Rappler, drawing criticism from rights groups. Rappler has been critical in its coverage of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, whose administration has alarmed human rights [...]

The US Senate voted 92-8 Tuesday to approve legislation setting aside nearly two million acres of public land for conservation—a bipartisan package of more than 100 public lands, natural resources and water bills. The bill designates 1.3 million acres in western states with the most stringent classification of “wilderness,” prohibiting any development or motor vehicles. [...]

An Australian Court on Friday ruled against the development of a coal mine in New South Wales because of its potential as a climate change contributor. The mine proposed, an open cut coal mine, is a process in which coal, closer to the surface, is extracted from the earth by its removal from an open [...]

Acting US Attorney General Matthew Whitaker testified on Friday before the House Judiciary Committee concerning his involvement in special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference with the 2016 presidential campaign. Whitaker said he had not spoken with President Donald Trump about the matter in his tenure as acting Attorney General. “There has been no [...]

New York Attorney General Letitia James, and a coalition of five other states and New York City, on Wednesday, filed a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency for failure to comply with certain provisions of the Clean Air Act. According to a press release from James’ office, the EPA is obligated to provide Federal Implementation [...]

Bahrain’s highest court on Monday upheld a life sentence for Shiite opposition leader Sheikh Ali Salman for spying for neighboring country Qatar. According to Amnesty International, the case is based on conversations that Salman had in 2011 with the former Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Qatar, SSheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber [...]

The Illinois Supreme Court upheld cause of action provisions of a 2008 state law on Friday that requires companies who collect a person’s biometric information such as fingerprints, retina scans or face matching, to obtain consent and inform a person how it will be stored, used and shared. The unanimous ruling stems from a mom, [...]