Disgraced ex-Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich appeals prison

Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich is asking a U.S. appeals court to nullify his 14-year prison term and order a third sentencing hearing, with a lawyer arguing on his behalf that the Democrat's model behavior behind bars and other factors justified a reduction in his sentence. Attorneys for the Chicago Democrat filed the appeal late Tuesday night with the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Federal court strikes down Republican-drawn maps in Wisconsin

Two weeks after a stunning election defeat, Wisconsin Democrats won an equally surprising legal victory Monday as a federal court struck down legislative maps drawn by Republicans in 2011. A panel of federal judges ruled 2-1 that the redistricting maps were "intended to burden the representational rights of Democratic voters throughout the [10-year] period by impeding their ability to translate their votes into legislative seats."

“Unconstitutional gerrymander”: Federal court strikes…

With the 2016 election, Donald Trump became the first Republican presidential candidate to win Wisconsin in nearly 30 years and Republicans took control of nearly two-thirds of the Legislature, including their largest majority in the Assembly since 1957, despite a roughly even split of votes between Democrats and Republicans in statewide races. On Monday, a federal court overturned Wisconsin's Republican-drawn legislative maps as an "unconstitutional gerrymander" that likely played a major factor in the party's disproportionate electoral success.

Appeals court blocks ‘Making a Murderer’ inmate’s release

In this Jan. 19, 2010 file photo, Brendan Dassey, left, listens to testimony at the Manitowoc County Courthouse in Manitowoc, Wis. Dassey, whose homicide conviction was overturned in a case profiled in the Netflix series "Making a Murderer" was ordered released Monday, Nov. 14, 2016, from federal prison while prosecutors appeal.

‘Making a Murderer’ inmate Brendan Dassey to stay in prison as he …

In this Jan. 19, 2010 file photo, Brendan Dassey, left, listens to testimony at the Manitowoc County Courthouse in Manitowoc, Wis. Dassey, whose homicide conviction was overturned in a case profiled in the Netflix series "Making a Murderer" was ordered released Monday, Nov. 14, 2016, from federal prison while prosecutors appeal.

State of Wisconsin fights ‘Making a Murderer’ inmate release

The state of Wisconsin moved quickly Tuesday to try and block, or at least delay, the release of a man convicted in the case featured in the Netflix series "Making a Murderer." Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel asked that a federal court order made Monday to release Brendan Dassey be put on hold, saying the harm in releasing him is "real and substantial."

Judge orders release of nephew in ‘Making a Murderer’ case

A federal magistrate judge on Monday ordered the release of Brendan Dassey, one of the two men whose cases were examined in the Making a Murderer Netflix series. U.S. Magistrate Judge William Duffin of Milwaukee ordered Dassey released pending the state's appeal of his overturned conviction, report the Chicago Tribune , the New York Times and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel .

Nephew in ‘Making a Murderer’ ordered released

A man whose homicide conviction was overturned in a case profiled in the Netflix series "Making a Murderer" could be celebrating Thanksgiving at home with his family in Wisconsin after a judge Monday ordered him released from prison. Brendan Dassey's release was ordered by U.S. Magistrate Judge William Duffin even as prosecutors appeal the judge's earlier ruling overturning Dassey's conviction.

Federal Judge Concerned About Small Number of Christians Among Syrian Refugees Admitted to US

Holding crosses painted in the colors of the Syrian opposition flag, Syrian Christians protest persecution in their homeland The American people have been given no good explanation for the "perplexing discrepancy" between the tiny proportion of Christians among Syrian refugees resettled in the U.S. and the considerably larger proportion of Christians in the Syrian population, a federal appellate court judge has written. In a concurring opinion in a case relating to immigration policy, Judge Daniel Manion of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit expressed his "concern about the apparent lack of Syrian Christians as a part of immigrants from that country."

Court rules Mike Pence unfair to Syrian refugees

A federal appeals court on Monday dismissed as "nightmare speculation" Indiana Gov. Mike Pence's fears that Syrian refugees could commit acts of terror, siding with a judge who blocked Pence's order seeking to prevent agencies from helping resettle the immigrants in the state. The ruling for the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago affirmed a preliminary injunction that a federal judge in Indianapolis issued in February.

Court Strikes Down Gov Pence’s Refugee Ban Monday, October 3

The U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has struck down efforts by Gov. Mike Pence's administration to ban Syrian refugees from resettling in Indiana. The state was attempting to overturn a lower court ruling that found the Pence administration erred in its judgment when the governor ordered state agencies to stop providing federal dollars to groups that were assisting Syrian refugees resettle in the Hoosier state.

Appeals court upholds order against Pence on Syrian refugees

A federal appeals court on Monday dismissed as "nightmare speculation" Indiana Gov. Mike Pence's fears that Syrian immigrants could commit acts of terror, siding with a judge who blocked Pence's order seeking to prevent agencies from helping the immigrants resettle in the state. The ruling by a three-judge panel for the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago affirmed a preliminary injunction that a federal judge in Indianapolis issued in February.

Supreme Court to Weigh ‘Malicious Prosecution’ and the 4th Amendment

On March 18, 2011, an Illinois man named Elijah Manuel was asleep in the passenger seat of his car while his brother was driving when their vehicle was stopped by Joliet police for allegedly failing to signal. Here is how the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit summarized Manuel's allegations about what happened next: A police officer detected an odor of burnt cannabis from inside the car.

Testimony from WWII probe of Tribune could go public

A Maryland historian is a step closer in his fight for the release of decades-old grand jury testimony involving a story the Chicago Tribune published during the World War II Battle of Midway, the newspaper reported. The story, published June 7, 1942, said the U.S. Navy obtained advance knowledge of the Japanese fleet's plans.

Wisconsin AG appeals ruling on ‘Making a Murderer’ nephew

Wisconsin's attorney general on Friday appealed the overturned conviction of a man accused of helping his uncle kill a woman in a case profiled in the popular Netflix series "Making a Murderer." A federal magistrate judge ruled in August that investigators tricked Brendan Dassey into confessing that he helped his uncle, Steven Avery, rape and kill photographer Teresa Halbach in 2005.