Latest Supreme Court of the United States News

Historic acquittal in Louisiana fuels fight to review 'Jim Crow' verdicts

May. 29, 2023 02:46 AM EDT

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Evangelisto Ramos walked out of a New Orleans courthouse and away from a life sentence accompanying a 10-2 jury conviction, thanks in large part to the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision bearing his name. Ramos v. Louisiana outlawed nonunanimous jury...

Supreme Court limits regulation of some US wetlands, making it easier to develop and destroy them

May. 26, 2023 00:26 AM EDT

The U.S. Supreme Court has stripped federal agencies of authority over millions of acres of wetlands, weakening a bedrock environmental law enacted a half-century ago to cleanse the country’s badly polluted waters. A 5-4 majority significantly expanded the ability of farmers,...

Connecticut House passes most wide-ranging gun bill since legislation passed after Sandy Hook

May. 25, 2023 15:15 PM EDT

Connecticut lawmakers on Thursday advanced the most wide-ranging package of gun safety measures since the legislation passed after the 2012 Sandy Hook school massacre, with proponents noting the state is not “recklessly retreating” from regulating guns like other states. The...

What's on DeSantis' agenda? A look at the laws he passed as Florida governor, from abortion to guns

May. 24, 2023 15:40 PM EDT

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — From the death penalty to gender identity to abortion, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has cemented himself as a conservative standard-bearer in the lead-up to his 2024 presidential announcement. With the help of GOP supermajorities in the statehouse, the...

Montana acts to protect Native American priority in adopting Native children

May. 23, 2023 14:48 PM EDT

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte has signed legislation giving Native American families preference in fostering and adopting Native children involved with child protective services, a proactive move to protect such rights as the U.S. Supreme Court considers a case that could...

Appeals court says Alabama can't execute intellectually disabled inmate

May. 19, 2023 20:56 PM EDT

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — A federal appeals court on Friday said Alabama cannot execute a man with an IQ in the 70s, agreeing with a lower court's ruling that he is intellectually disabled and that his death sentence is unconstitutional. The Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of...

Why the Supreme Court tiptoeing past a key social media shield helps Big Tech

May. 18, 2023 15:21 PM EDT

Google, Twitter, Facebook and other tech companies fueled by social media have dodged a legal threat that could have blown a huge hole in their business models. The U.S. Supreme Court delivered the reprieve Thursday by rejecting one lawsuit alleging social media platforms should be...

Illinois Democrats say abortion-access protections are a promise: 'You're safe here'

May. 17, 2023 18:56 PM EDT

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Access to abortion is essentially locked down in Illinois. But Democrats are looking for ways to further protect the practice and its availability, including to outsiders who potentially face home-state penalties for seeking treatment here. Legislation...

Michigan protects workers from retaliation for having an abortion

May. 17, 2023 17:39 PM EDT

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan companies will be prohibited from firing or otherwise retaliating against workers for receiving an abortion under a bill signed Wednesday by Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer that amends the state's civil rights law. Michigan's Elliott-Larsen Civil...

3 judges who chipped away abortion rights to hear federal abortion pill appeal

May. 16, 2023 00:14 AM EDT

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Three conservative appeals court judges, each with a history of supporting restrictions on abortion, will hear arguments May 17 on whether a widely used abortion drug should remain available. The case involves a regulatory issue — whether the Food and Drug...