The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the finalization of new drinking water standards Wednesday that aim to reduce the amount of harmful chemicals legally allowed in water in the United States. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are synthetical chemicals that have been used in commercial products since the 1950s. The chemicals can be found [...]
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin vetoed 30 pieces of legislation Tuesday related to the state regulation of guns. Though all related to guns, the vetoed bills ranged in topic, from criminalizing the dealing of guns near primary schools to requiring fingerprinting for a concealed weapons permit. In a press release, Youngkin stated that these laws “would punish [...]
The third of six members of the Mississippi deputy group who referred to themselves as the “Goon Squad,” Daniel Opdyke, was sentenced Wednesday to 17 and a half years in federal prison for his involvement in the torture of two black men. In January 2023, six members of Mississippi law enforcement entered the home of [...]
Alabama State Senator Tim Melson filed a bill Tuesday in an effort to protect the state’s in-vitro fertilization (IVF) industry following the recent state Supreme Court ruling. Senator Melson proposed Senate Bill 160 in order to prevent more clinics from halting operation. This bill would give criminal and civil immunity to health care providers performing [...]
Bills advanced in both the Florida House of Representatives and Senate on Wednesday that would allow compensation for the victims of the Dozier School for Boys that attended the school between 1940 and 1975. The Dozier School for Boys was a reform school located in Mariana, Florida, originally opened in 1900. In 1955, the school [...]
The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled Wednesday that police officers who conducted a no-knock raid on a house and injured four unarmed people were not subject to qualified immunity, a type of immunity that protects individual government officials from being sued over acts in the course of their duties. In [...]
US Representative Cori Bush (D-MO) released a statement on X (formerly Twitter) Tuesday confirming that she is currently under investigation by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) over the potential misuse of campaign funds. In October 2022, reports alleged Bush spent high levels funds on personal security measures. More recently, this spending has caused increased [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit denied Tuesday the appeal of Texas citizen journalist Priscilla Villarreal, who claimed that her arrest for misuse of information was unconstitutional. Villarreal had brought a civil rights claim against the city of Laredo, Texas over her 2018 arrest. Villarreal, known online as “La Gordiloca,” is a [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit granted an en banc rehearing Wednesday to Texas in the state’s dispute with the federal government over a barrier meant to deter migrants from crossing the Rio Grande, vacating the court’s previous judgment. This means that the full court will hear the case instead of a [...]
A federal judge in Alabama ruled on Wednesday that the state can proceed to use nitrogen gas in the execution of Kenneth Smith. Smith has been on death row since he was convicted of murder in 1988. Smith is currently scheduled to be executed on January 25. He was previously scheduled to be executed on [...]
