Legal News

  • Missouri Supreme Court Blocks Deal to Spare Marcellus Williams from Execution Amidst Battle Over His Innocence

    The Missouri Supreme Court has halted an agreement that would have saved death row inmate Marcellus Williams from execution. Williams, who was convicted for the 1998 murder of Lisha Gayle, now faces a scheduled execution on Sept 24, 2024. The court’s decision came just hours after a St. Louis County judge approved a plea deal…

  • SCOTUS Allows Family Planning Grant Cut in Oklahoma Abortion Dispute

    The U.S. Supreme Court allowed the Biden administration on Tuesday to cut $4.5 million in federal funding for Oklahoma’s family planning projects after the state refused to provide abortion-related referrals. Oklahoma had requested the Court block the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) from terminating its funding for 2024 while the state appealed…

  • Renowned Civil Rights Attorney Ben Crump Joins Calls for Justice After Dolphins Star Tyreek Hill Detained Before Game

    Civil rights attorney Ben Crump is demanding answers after Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill was detained by Miami-Dade police just hours before the team’s game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Hill was handcuffed and held on the ground by officers, in a scene captured on video and widely circulated online. One video shows an officer…

  • FINRA Dodges Broker’s Post-Jarkesy Challenge to Disciplinary Hearing

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) can relax after a federal judge in Philadelphia refused to block a disciplinary hearing against a broker who argued that the proceeding violated his Seventh Amendment right to a jury trial. In June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in SEC v.…

  • Austin Police Officer Faces Federal Lawsuit for Allegedly Shooting Man Twice Through Door Without Warning

    An Austin police officer is facing a federal lawsuit for allegedly using excessive force when he shot Avelino Medel II multiple times through an apartment door without attempting to de-escalate the situation. Officer Gabriel Walker Prado, who had been on the force for only seven months, fired four shots at Medel, hitting him twice in…

  • California, Hawaii Can Ban Guns in Bars and Parks, Appeals Court Rules

    A federal appeals court ruled on Friday that California and Hawaii can enforce bans on carrying guns in certain public locations, including bars and parks, partially reversing lower court decisions that blocked the restrictions. A unanimous panel from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals determined that both states can implement gun bans in bars,…

  • Massachusetts securities regulators have fined Morgan Stanley $2 million for failing to properly oversee trades made by a First Republic Bank insider before the bank collapsed, according to a spokesperson for the regulator and a consent order disclosed on Friday. Morgan Stanley managed the account of a former First Republic insider but did not confirm…

  • Michigan Judge Suspended After Racist and Homophobic Comments Caught on Tape

    Judge Kathleen Ryan, a White Michigan judge, has been temporarily removed from her position after audio recordings revealed her making racist and homophobic remarks. The recordings, which surfaced after being shared by her colleague Edward Hutton, an Oakland County Probate Court Administrator, captured Ryan referring to herself as a “new racist” and making derogatory comments…

  • Judge Unlikely to Block NLRB Case Pending Challenge to Agency’s Powers

    On Friday, a federal judge in Chicago expressed skepticism about a medical center’s argument that National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) members and administrative judges are improperly shielded from removal by the president. Alivio Medical Center, a nonprofit serving Chicago’s Hispanic community, sought to halt an NLRB administrative case against it, claiming that the agency’s structure…

  • Court Extends Suspension of 97-Year-Old Federal Judge

    A federal appeals court extended the suspension of U.S. Circuit Judge Pauline Newman, the nation’s oldest active federal judge, for another year following concerns about her fitness to serve. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit’s Judicial Council unanimously agreed to extend the suspension, which started in September 2023, through September 2025. The…