A newsletter by Reuters and Westlaw |
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REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton |
A handful of Democratic-led states are trying to make it easier for residents to sue federal agents deployed to their communities, a reform push that has gained steam amid protests over ICE's tactics to advance President Trump's immigration crackdown. Here’s what to know: |
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- The legislation being considered in New York and California, among other states, would address an accountability gap in the U.S. legal system, sponsors of the legislation say.
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Similar legislation has also been proposed by lawmakers in states including Connecticut, Maryland and Virginia.
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More than 150 years ago, the U.S. Congress passed a law that allows people to bring civil rights lawsuits against state and local officials. But Congress has never passed a similar law allowing for lawsuits against individual federal agents, like ICE officers. Read more about the obstacles to suing ICE agents here.
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This state-level effort could lead to a wave of high-profile lawsuits seeking monetary damages from individual law enforcement officers who violate constitutional rights.
- Jan Wolfe has more on the legislation here.
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Constitutional law: The 4th Circuit will hear arguments in a lawsuit challenging whether a South Carolina law limiting absentee voting by those under 65 years old violates the Fourteenth or Twenty-Sixth Amendment.
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Government: U.S. District Judge Richard Leon in D.C. will hear U.S. Senator Mark Kelly's request for a court order blocking the Pentagon from cutting his retirement pay and reducing his rank.
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Constitutional law: U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell in Fort Myers, Florida, will hold an evidentiary hearing in a lawsuit challenging constitutional violations at “Alligator Alcatraz.” Chappell will hear testimony from people formerly detained at the facility. Read the complaint.
- Death penalty: The Utah Supreme Court will take up a challenge to the state’s protocols for lethal injection and firing squad executions from five men on death row who argue the methods amount to cruel and unusual punishment.
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Criminal: The suspect accused of shooting two National Guard members in an ambush in downtown D.C., killing one, in November is set to enter a plea to murder and other charges in federal court.
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Court calendars are subject to last-minute docket changes. |
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The federal judiciary may not be able to fully maintain operations past February 4 in a government shutdown. Read more here.
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That’s how much money launderers received in crypto last year, up sharply from $10 billion in 2020, blockchain researchers said. Read more here. |
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U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy in Boston allowed Vineyard Wind to resume work on its Massachusetts offshore wind project, which the Trump administration halted along with four other projects last month. Read more here.
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Family members of two men killed in a U.S. missile strike against a suspected drug boat near Venezuela filed a wrongful death lawsuit in Boston federal court, alleging the pair were murdered in a "manifestly unlawful" military campaign targeting civilian vessels. Read the complaint.
- Tiktok agreed to settle a social media addiction lawsuit that also named YouTube, Meta and Snap as defendants. Snap settled on January 20. The bellwether trial began Tuesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court with jury selection.
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Smartphone video app maker Reincubate sued Apple in New Jersey federal court, alleging the iPhone maker stole its technology and holds an illegal monopoly over the U.S. smartphone software market. Read the complaint.
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The office of Texas' Republican Attorney General, Ken Paxton, sued a Delaware-based nurse practitioner for allegedly prescribing and mailing abortion pills to women in Texas, a new front in a nationwide battle over access to abortion drugs. Read the petition.
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FAT Brands, the parent company of restaurant chains such as Fatburger, Johnny Rockets and Round Table Pizza, filed for bankruptcy protection in Houston after its business took a hit from the indictment of its former CEO and rising costs on its $1.4 billion in debt. Read more here.
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