In a split decision, the Supreme Court ruled Monday that former US presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for actions taken within their constitutional purview, thus clearing a path for Donald Trump to challenge a federal indictment accusing him of conspiring to sabotage the 2020 elections. The case, US v. Trump, centers on the former [...]
In a closely watched decision stemming from the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot, the US Supreme Court ruled on Friday that the government must prove a defendant impaired or attempted to impair the availability or integrity of evidence to be convicted under a key obstruction statute. On January 6, 2021, a crowd of supporters of then-President Donald [...]
![US Supreme Court declines to ban emergency abortions in Idaho](https://www.jurist.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/06/supreme_court_1719520687.jpg)
The US Supreme Court on Thursday declined to block access to emergency abortion services in Idaho. In Moyle v. US, the Supreme Court was asked to determine whether a federal law—the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA)—would preempt Idaho’s near-total abortion ban. Under EMTALA, any hospital that receives federal Medicare funding must provide [...]
![Assange pleads guilty to one count of US espionage, walks free](https://www.jurist.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/02/Assange_1708541658.jpg)
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange pleaded guilty in a remote US court on Wednesday to one count of conspiracy for releasing troves of US classified documents via WikiLeaks. The Australian national was released with time served. He had spent the past five years in a UK prison, where he had been battling extradition requests from the US. For [...]
![WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange free ahead of anticipated US plea deal](https://www.jurist.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/03/Assange-supporters.jpg)
Julian Assange is free after 12 years of confinement, having negotiated a plea deal with the US Department of Justice on charges related to his website WikiLeaks’ publication of classified materials. In 2006, Assange founded WikiLeaks, a website reputed for high-profile releases of leaked classified documents, including unredacted US diplomatic cables and sensitive defense information. [...]
![US Supreme Court to rule on legality of gender-affirming care bans for transgender youth](https://www.jurist.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/06/doctors_office_1719249580.jpg)
The US Supreme Court announced Monday it will review the legality of state efforts to ban gender-affirming medical care for minors — a contentious issue in a nation deeply divided over transgender rights and the role of medical intervention in youth gender identity. The case, US v. Skrmetti, centers on a Tennessee law enacted in [...]
![US Supreme Court upholds law barring gun possession for those under domestic violence restraining orders](https://www.jurist.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/07/supreme_court_1689179461.jpg)
The US Supreme Court on Friday upheld a federal law barring gun ownership for individuals who have been subjected to domestic violence restraining orders. The case, US v. Rahimi, centered on Zackey Rahimi, who—according to case documents—was subjected to a restraining order after publicly beating his girlfriend and then firing shots. Subsequently, in a separate [...]
![Biden announces new legal protections for undocumented spouses, children of US citizens](https://www.jurist.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/02/President_Joe_Biden_delivers_remarks_in_the_Roosevelt_Room-1.jpg)
President Joe Biden announced new measures Tuesday allowing hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrant spouses and children of US citizens to remain in the country while applying for permanent residency, thus enabling these families to stay together. Typically, noncitizen spouses are required to apply for spousal visas from abroad — a lengthy bureaucratic process. Though [...]
![Immigrants’ rights advocates sue Biden administration over US asylum ban](https://www.jurist.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/06/us_mexico_1718297049.jpg)
A coalition of advocacy groups filed a federal lawsuit on Wednesday challenging a new Biden administration rule that effectively bans many asylum seekers from protection based on where and how they entered the US. On June 4, President Joe Biden signed an executive order barring asylum claims from most migrants who cross the US-Mexico border [...]
![US Supreme Court unanimously rejects challenge to abortion pill Mifepristone](https://www.jurist.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/06/supreme_court_1718293314.jpg)
The US Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously struck down a bid by pro-life advocates to restrict the availability of abortion drug Mifepristone. Reproductive rights laws have shifted wildly in the two years since the US Supreme Court decided to overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision that held abortion was a constitutionally enshrined right. In [...]