Fourth Circuit Rules That Suspicionless Forensic Searches of…

In a victory for privacy rights at the border, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit today ruled that forensic searches of electronic devices carried out by border agents without any suspicion that the traveler has committed a crime violate the U.S. Constitution. The ruling in U.S. v.

Cities, volunteers clash over feeding homeless in public Source: AP

When Adele MacLean joined others in an Atlanta park to feed the hungry the Sunday before Thanksgiving, she left with a citation and a summons to appear in court. The case was dropped when she showed up in court earlier this month, but she and her lawyers say the citation for serving food without a permit was improper and demonstrates callousness toward the homeless.

Trump announces five more judges to be considered for Supreme Court

Already well on his way to reshaping the federal judiciary, President Trump announced Friday the names of five more conservative jurists that he will consider for the next Supreme Court vacancy. The new list of candidates for the high court includes Judge Brett Kavanaugh, a conservative stalwart on the high-profile U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Federal judge strikes down two abortion restrictions in Alabama

A U.S. judge on Thursday struck down two abortion restrictions in Alabama that limited how close clinics can be to public schools and banned a procedure used to terminate pregnancies in the second trimester. The decision is a blow to abortion opponents in Alabama, who have joined conservatives in other states in enacting new laws that critics said were chipping away at the U.S. Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v.

Sexual orientation Title VII cases work way toward Supreme Court

When the Trump Justice Department last month asserted that civil rights laws don't protect against discrimination based on sexual orientation, it clashed with another part of the administration - the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission - which previously claimed that the laws did apply. Federal appeals judges are also at odds.

Atheist group scores win as judge reluctantly orders cross removed from Florida park

A federal judge on Monday reluctantly ordered the removal of the Bayview Cross from a public park in Pensacola, Florida, explaining that U.S. Supreme Court precedent left him little choice. Senior U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson gave the city 30 days to remove the cross, which has stood in various forms in a corner of Bayview Park for about 75 years, even though he said the Founding Fathers "would have most likely found this lawsuit absurd."

Reasonable Interpretation of Ambiguous Regulation May Not Preclude False Claims Act Liability

A recent ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit establishes that a defendant in a False Claims Act case cannot rely on a defense that there was no intent to defraud the government just because the defendant had a reasonable interpretation of an ambiguous government regulation. The ruling in a qui tam FCA lawsuit filed by former sales employees of a diabetic testing supplies distributor gives notice that, at least in the Eleventh Circuit, ambiguity alone will not provide an impenetrable shield against FCA liability for healthcare and other contractors responsible for ensuring the accuracy of claims they submit for reimbursement by the government.

Inmate’s lawyers seek to halt execution citing faulty drug

Lawyers for a condemned Alabama inmate made a series of legal filings Wednesday to try to halt his upcoming execution, arguing there are questions about the sedative that will be used. Robert Melson, 46, is scheduled to die by lethal injection Thursday for the 1994 fatal shooting at a Popeye's restaurant he was robbing in Gadsden, 60 miles northeast of Birmingham.

The Latest: Governor denies request by condemned inmate

This undated photo released by the Alabama Department of Corrections shows death row inmate Tommy Arthur, who was convicted in the 1982 murder of Troy Wicker. Arthur, nicknamed the Houdini of death row after having seventh executions postponed is facing an eighth date with the death chamber on Thursday, May 25, 2017, and a diminishing chance of winning another reprieve.

Trump narrows down Supreme Court nominee list to 3

WASHINGTON >> President Donald Trump has narrowed his choice to fill the Supreme Court vacancy to three judges and said he expects to make his decision in the coming days. A person familiar with the selection process said the three judges, all white men who sit on federal appeals courts, were on the list of 21 potential high court picks Trump announced during the presidential campaign.

Court clears Jacksonville in black firefighter case

In an issue that goes back decades, a federal appeals court said the city of Jacksonville should not be held in contempt for its handling of an agreement that required hiring more black firefighters. The case stemmed from a 1982 court-approved agreement, known as a consent decree, that required the city to begin hiring an equal number of black and white firefighters for the Jacksonville Fire & Rescue Department.

Walker County, Ga., Appeals Ruling That It Pay Erlanger over $8 Million On Hutcheson Debt

Walker County has filed a notice of appeal to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals on the ruling by Federal Judge Harold Murphy that the county pay Erlanger Health System over $8 million related to the Hutcheson Hospital bankruptcy.

Ninth Circuit Finds That Removal of Action to Federal Court Does Not…

In a precedential opinion, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently chose to follow the lead of the Eleventh Circuit, holding that tribes do not waive sovereign immunity merely by removing a case to federal court. This decision provides clarity for tribes within the Ninth Circuit who face certain types of lawsuits filed in state court.

Georgia town can continue banning the sale of sex toys – but probably not for long

A federal appeals court has upheld a ban on the sale of sex toys in Sandy Springs, Georgia - but acknowledged the decision probably won't stand, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports . A panel of three judges on the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta made the decision, saying they had no choice but to follow a 2004 case precedent.