Jun 29th, 2008 · The landmark Supreme Court decision on gun rights has sparked a series of lawsuits by the National Rifle Association against handgun bans in five jurisdictions around the country. The NRA is suing San Francisco, Chicago and three smaller municipalities.
Jun 28th, 2008 · A day after the Supreme Court issued a landmark gun ruling striking D.C.'s handgun ban, the National Rifle Association filed suit in five jurisdictions to overturn their bans as well. One of the suits is against the City of San Francisco over its ban on handguns in public housing.
Dec 3rd, 2007 · Law enforcement officials are tracking sex offenders with a new biometric tool: iris scanning. Jurisdictions in seven states are experimenting with technology that takes a picture of an offender's iris, stores it in a national database, and can be used to identify those who fail to re-register.
Oct 17th, 2007 · The House had been expected to approve a Democratic overhaul of the Federal Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, on Wednesday, but now it's unclear when the vote will occur. The bill expands oversight of the government's spying program and broadens the jurisdiction of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court.
Jun 4th, 2007 · A military judge at Guantanamo Bay has dismissed charges against Canadian prisoner Omar Khadr, who was 15 when he was captured. He is accused of killing a U.S. soldier in Afghanistan. The judge said the military tribunal lacked jurisdiction over the prisoner because of wording in a law the U.S. Congress drafted last year.
Jan 11th, 2007 · In Fulton County, Ga., Brian Nichols faces trial for allegedly killing four people in an Atlanta courthouse in 2005. Jury selection begins Thursday and could take several months. The county wants to move the trial, but couldn't find another jurisdiction willing to take it.
Jul 10th, 2006 · A sheriff in a Louisiana parish (similar to counties in other states) said recently that people with dreadlocks and "other chee wee hairstyles" are unwelcome in his jurisdiction. Dreadlocked essayist Jimi Izrael offers his thoughts on the sheriff's bias, and says he's unlikely to vacation in Tammany Parish.
May 8th, 2006 · The president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe has vowed to build an abortion clinic on Indian land -- despite South Dakota's statewide ban on abortion. The clinic, which would be outside the jurisdiction of the state, could possibly remain open even if the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling were someday overturned by the Supreme Court. But some residents of the reservation oppose the plan, which has sparked a national fundraising effort in support of the clinic.