A three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit rejected a challenge Thursday from tobacco companies that alleged a bill requiring graphic imagery on cigarette packaging and advertisements was a violation of the First Amendment to the US Constitution. The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act (TCA) was enacted by [...]

Democratic Republic of Congo journalist Stanis Bujakera was freed from prison Tuesday after serving a six-month jail sentence for forgery and spreading false rumors for an article about a government intelligence agency’s involvement in the death of political opposition candidate Cherubin Okende. Bujakera’s lawyer Yana Ndikulu announced the news in a statement to the journalist’s employer [...]

The US Department of State imposed arms restrictions Thursday on the import or export of US-origin weapons and services from or to Nicaragua. In a statement to the press, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller cited “brutal repression” and “recent sham elections” as ongoing concerns for the Biden administration, vowing to continue to use “diplomatic and [...]

A federal district judge found the city of Flint, Michigan in contempt for its failure to finish the replacement of lead-contaminated pipes in the city’s water supply system according to a timeline laid out in a 2023 court order. The order, released Tuesday, granted a motion from the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) which sought to [...]

The Delaware House of Representatives passed a bill Thursday requiring individuals who are seeking to purchase a handgun to first obtain permission from the state, in addition to undergoing fingerprinting and firearms training. The bill now awaits approval from the Delaware Senate before it becomes law. The bill also includes provisions on firearms resale and [...]

South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster signed a bill Thursday permitting concealed and open carry for firearms throughout the state. The so-called “constitutional carry” bill allows individuals who are 18 and above and legally able to own a firearm to carry that firearm either openly or concealed. The bill does not require any registration or training [...]

The US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit ruled Friday that enhancements were improperly applied to the sentencing of a participant in the January 6, 2021 Capitol riot. The court ordered that the participant be re-sentenced, which is a decision that could potentially affect the sentences of hundreds of other rioters sentenced for their [...]

A Texas federal judge ruled Tuesday that the US Congress passed a 2022 $1.7 trillion government spending bill unconstitutionally. Federal District Judge James Wesley Hendrix blocked the enforcement of a portion of the bill, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PFWA), based on a violation of the US Constitution’s “quorum clause.” The 2022 spending bill passed [...]

The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit agreed to re-hear the court’s 2023 three-judge panel decision Thursday which struck down a ban on butterfly knives in Hawaii. Chief Judge Mary Murguia vacated the panel’s previous decision setting up another test for the scope of the Supreme Court’s 2022 ruling in New York State [...]

The US Supreme Court denied a petition to hear an appeal Tuesday concerning the exclusion of potential jurors based on the jurors’ religious beliefs in a Missouri sex discrimination case. Jean Finney, a worker for Missouri’s Department of Corrections who is also lesbian, sued her employer alleging sexual discrimination and retaliation after Finney began dating [...]