Latest Courts News

Man convicted in Laken Riley's killing asks for a new trial

Dec. 04, 2024 10:18 AM EST

ATLANTA (AP) — The Venezuelan man convicted of killing Georgia nursing student Laken Riley and sentenced to serve life in prison without parole has requested a new trial. Athens-Clarke County Superior Court Judge H. Patrick Haggard found Jose Ibarra guilty of murder and other...

District of Columbia says Amazon secretly stopped fast deliveries to 2 predominantly Black zip codes

Dec. 04, 2024 10:17 AM EST

The District of Columbia sued Amazon on Wednesday, alleging the company secretly stopped providing its fastest delivery service to residents of two predominantly Black neighborhoods while still charging millions of dollars for a membership that promises the benefit. The complaint...

Transgender rights case lands at Supreme Court amid debate over ban on medical treatments for minors

Dec. 04, 2024 09:35 AM EST

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is hearing arguments Wednesday in just its second major transgender rights case, which is a challenge to a Tennessee law that bans gender-affirming care for minors. The justices' decision, not expected for several months, could affect similar...

Japanese court convicts Australian who says she was tricked into smuggling drugs

Dec. 04, 2024 06:08 AM EST

CHIBA, Japan (AP) — A Japanese court on Wednesday sentenced an Australian woman to six years in prison for smuggling amphetamines into the country, despite accepting her testimony that she was tricked as part of an online romance scam. The Chiba District Court said it found Donna...

13 women convicted in Cambodia of acting as pregnancy surrogates for foreigners

Dec. 03, 2024 19:45 PM EST

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Thirteen women from the Philippines have been convicted on human trafficking-related charges for acting as surrogates in Cambodia for a ring selling babies to foreigners for cash. The women were each sentenced to four years in prison after being found...

President-elect Donald Trump’s lawyers urge judge to toss his hush money conviction

Dec. 03, 2024 19:22 PM EST

NEW YORK (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump’s lawyers formally asked a judge Monday to throw out his hush money criminal conviction, arguing that continuing the case would present unconstitutional “disruptions to the institution of the Presidency.“ In a filing made public...

Freedom is permanent for Missourian described as the longest-held wrongly incarcerated woman in US

Dec. 03, 2024 18:56 PM EST

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Years of legal wrangling have come to an end for a woman who spent 43 years behind bars for a killing that her attorneys argue was committed by a discredited police officer. A judge ruled Tuesday that Sandra Hemme can't be retried, the final step in a...

FACT FOCUS: Vermont ruling does not say schools can vaccinate children without parental consent

Dec. 03, 2024 18:39 PM EST

Social media users are misrepresenting a Vermont Supreme Court ruling, claiming that it gives schools permission to vaccinate children even if their parents do not consent. The ruling addressed a lawsuit filed by Dario and Shujen Politella against Windham Southeast School District...

Tight race for the North Carolina Supreme Court is heading to another recount

Dec. 03, 2024 18:19 PM EST

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The very close election for a North Carolina Supreme Court seat heads next to a hand recount even as election officials announced a machine recount of over 5.5 million ballots resulted in no margin change between the candidates. The statewide machine recount...

Ex-ballerina sentenced to 20 years in Florida for manslaughter in husband's killing

Dec. 03, 2024 17:47 PM EST

BRADENTON, Fla. (AP) — A former Florida ballerina has been sentenced to 20 years in prison following her manslaughter conviction for fatally shooting her estranged husband in 2020. Manatee County court records show Circuit Judge Matt Whyte imposed the sentence Tuesday on Ashley...