Arizona House committee moves to prevent police budget cuts
The bill would make it illegal for a city to spend less on its police force than it did in the year prior. But no Arizona cities have reduced their police budgets since the 2008 recession.
ABA Joins with Dozens of Law Schools to Address Issues in Police Practices - Patricia Lee Refo
"America was founded on the principle that all men are created equal. Throughout our history we have not always lived up to that self-evident truth. This has been especially true in our criminal justice system."
4 Ex-Cops Indicted on US Civil Rights Charges in Floyd Death - Amy Forliti and Michael Balsamo
"A federal grand jury has indicted the four former Minneapolis police officers involved in George Floyd's arrest and death accusing them of willfully violating the Black man's constitutional rights as he was restrained face-down on the pavement and gasping for air."
Exclusionary and classist: Why the legal profession is getting whiter - Hassan Kanu
"A recent American Bar Association study found that the legal profession in America has remained overwhelmingly white and male over the last decade and that racial diversity among lawyers has actually regressed in some respects"
Cops' support spotlights race issues in ex-Black Panther's parole case - Hassan Kanu
"An unusual coalition is banding together in a petition to release an 84-year-old former Black Panther convicted for his role in the killing of a police officer."
Officers And Paramedics Are Charged In Elijah McClain's 2019 Death In Colorado - Associated Press
"Colorado's attorney general said Wednesday that a grand jury indicted three officers and two paramedics in the death of Elijah McClain a Black man who was put in a chokehold and injected with a powerful sedative two years ago in suburban Denver."
DOJ To Investigate Louisville Police In Response To Death Of Breonna Taylor - Alana Wise
"The Justice Department will launch an investigation into the Louisville Metro Police Department to determine if there is a pattern of discrimination or excessive force within its ranks Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Monday."
Muslim Advocacy Group Sues Facebook Over Claims it Removes Hate Speech - Elizabeth Culliford
"NEW YORK (Reuters) - Civil rights group Muslim Advocates sued Facebook Inc and its top executives on Thursday alleging they misled the U.S. Congress and others by falsely claiming the company removes content that violates its policies."
Suspect in Manhattan Attack on Asian Woman Charged With Assault as a Hate crime - Peter Szekely Gabriella Borter
"A New York man previously convicted of murdering his mother has been arrested and charged with assaulting a 65-year-old Asian woman in a hate crime an attack captured on a video that went viral amid a rise in anti-Asian incidents in the United States."
Henrietta Lacks' Family Hires Ben Crump for Legal Battle - Free Press/NPR
"The family of the late Henrietta Lacks who unwittingly spurred a research bonanza when her cancer cells were taken without her knowledge in 1951 has hired a prominent civil rights lawyer to seek compensation from pharmaceutical companies."
Major Law Firms and Advocacy Groups Unite to Combat Anti-Asian Violence - Lisa Boylan
"A new alliance will connect victims of anti-Asian hate with pro bono legal services and work to prevent further acts of violence. The effort shows the importance of clear goals and strong networking in addressing social problems."
The Year in Hate and Extremism 2020 - Rachel Janik and Keegan Hankes
"Trump refused to condemn the insurrection which left five people dead including a Capitol law enforcement officer. He even praised the rioters calling them "patriots" saying "we love you" and "you are very special." The episode was reminiscent of his notorious declaration that there were "very fine people on both sides" in the aftermath of the violence at the deadly 2017 white supremacist rally in Charlottesville Virginia."
Biden Faces Pressure to Take Action on Racial Justice Issues - Marty Johnson and Morgan Chalfant
"President-elect Joe Biden will be under tremendous pressure to take action toward greater racial justice throughout the country on Day 1 of his presidency following massive nationwide protests sparked by the police killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor along with other incidents of violence against Black Americans."
White House Says Fatal Police Shooting of Black Teen in Columbus 'Tragic' - Morgan Chalfant
"White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Wednesday called the fatal police shooting of a Black teenage girl in Columbus Ohio 'tragic' and said that President Biden has been briefed on the matter."
U.N. Rights Boss Welcomes Biden Stance Against Death Penalty - Stephanie Nebehay
"The U.N. human rights chief on Tuesday welcomed a pledge by U.S. President Joe Biden to work towards abolishing the death penalty in the United States."
Second Prosecutor Resigns from Trump's Police Commission - Sarah N. Lynch
"A second local prosecutor on Thursday asked the U.S. Justice Department to have his name removed from a controversial report on policing reforms saying he feared it would fail to address systemic racism in the criminal justice system."
Harris: Country Must Confront Racial Injustice After Chauvin Verdict - Brett Samuels
"Vice President Harris on Tuesday urged every American to do their part to confront racial injustice after a jury convicted former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin of murder in the death of George Floyd."
Biden and Harris Call Floyd Family After Chauvin Verdict - Brett Samuels
"President Biden and Vice President Harris on Tuesday phoned the family of George Floyd after a jury found ex-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin guilty of Floyd's murder. 'Vice President Harris on Tuesday phoned the family of George Floyd after a jury found ex-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin guilty of Floyd's murder.'"
Rep. Bush Calls Trump a 'White Supremacist President' on House Floor - Aris Folley
"Newly sworn-in Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.) referred to President Trump as the 'white supremacist in chief' in her remarks on the House floor on Wednesday as the lower chamber prepares to impeach the president for a second time."
Anti-Defamation League Criticizes White House Appointee 'Who Has Consorted With Racists' - Joseph Choi
"The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) decried the Trump administration's decision to appoint Darren Beattie to a commission tasked with preserving Holocaust-related sites after it originally fired him in 2018 for appearing at a conference with white nationalists."
Supreme Court Refuses to Hear Cases Challenging Qualified Immunity - John Kramer
"The U.S. Supreme Court today refused to hear eight separate cases that had presented opportunities to reconsider its doctrine of qualified immunity. That doctrine created by the Supreme Court in 1982 holds that government officials can be held accountable for violating the Constitution only if they violate a clearly established constitutional rule. In practice that means that government officials can only be held liable if a federal court of appeals or the U.S. Supreme Court has already held that someone violated the Constitution by engaging in precisely the same conduct under precisely the same circumstances."
Supreme Court Rejects Community Caretaking Doctrine to Authorize Warrantless Search of Home to Seize Firearms - J. David Marsey
"The 21st Century law enforcement officer serves a variety of public service functions only some of which involve the enforcement of criminal laws. From some of those non-criminal public service roles the courts have recognized the community caretaking doctrine to authorize some limited stops and searches by officers that may not be related to criminal enforcement duties."
With the Elderly in Mind U.S. Supreme Court Wary of Limiting Police in Home Entries - Andrew Chung
"U.S. Supreme Court justices returned to the contentious issue of police powers on Wednesday as they grappled with whether to make it easier for officers to enter a home without a warrant for reasons of health or public safety in a case involving the confiscation of a Rhode Island man's guns."
U.S. Supreme Court Widens Ability to Sue Police for Excessive Force - Lawrence Hurley
"The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday expanded the ability of people to sue police for excessive force ruling in favor of a New Mexico woman who filed a civil rights lawsuit after being shot by officers she had mistaken for carjackers."
Sotomayor Blasts Kavanaugh's Decision on Juvenile Life Sentences - John Kruzel
"Justice Sonia Sotomayor in a blistering dissent Thursday hammered a 6-3 decision penned by Justice Brett Kavanaugh that rejected certain limits on juvenile life sentences."
GOP blocks House bill to ban race-based hair discrimination - Cristina Marcos
"The House fell short of passing legislation on Monday that would prohibit discrimination against people with hair styles associated with a particular race or national origin."