Federal judge blocks Louisiana marriage law News
Federal judge blocks Louisiana marriage law

A judge for the US District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana [website] blocked [opinion, PDF] a law [text, PDF] Wednesday that would prevent foreign-born US citizens from marrying. The legislation at issue required a birth certificate to obtain a marriage license. The law had barred [AP report] 32-year-old Viet Anh Vo from marrying his fiancee in 2016. Vo was thee months old when he came to the US after being born in a refugee camp in Indonesia. Both Vo and his fiancee are US citizens, though Vo was never issued a birth certificate. The judge halted [press release] the law after finding it to violate equal protection and the fundamental right to marry.

The rights of immigrants in the US have been receiving national scrutiny as of late. In March the Department of Justice [official website] petitioned [JURIST report] to have the travel ban executive order by President Donald Trump reviewed more quickly. That same month the Mississippi Senate [official website] approved a bill [JURIST report] that would prohibit cities in the state from passing so-called “sanctuary” laws limiting how local government groups cooperate with federal immigration agencies. Also in March the California Chief Justice asked [JURIST report] Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to stop following undocumented immigrants to courthouses in order to make arrests.

THIS DAY @ LAW

38 Santee Sioux hanged by US for rebellion

On December 26, 1862, 38 Santee Sioux men were hanged in a mass execution for their roles in a rebellion against US authorities in Minnesota which left hundreds dead and made refugees of some 40,000 white settlers. Government annuities promised under a treaty with the Sioux had failed to arrive on schedule and credit for purchases was not advanced in the meantime, threatening the tribe with starvation. The Santee Sioux Tribe's members were deported first to South Dakota and ultimately to Nebraska, where they remain today. Learn more about the 1862 Minnesota Sioux Rebellion.

Louis XVI put on trial during French Revolution

On December 26, 1792, Romain de Sèze, a defense attorney for deposed King Louis XVI, presented a defense of his client. The former King was on trial before a French Revolutionary court on thirty-three charges, including treason and other crimes against the state. He was convicted on January 15, 1793 executed by guillotine on the following January 21.