The DHS Agent Who Tried To Kill Kevin Byrd Can't Be Sued—Because He Works for the Federal Government
It's almost impossible to hold federal officers to account.
Courts
Judges Who Violate Due Process Rights For Personal Gain Just Got a Major Pass From This Federal Court
Judge Paul Bonin profited from making defendants wear ankle monitors. The victims can't sue.
Police Shot a Man Driving Away, Can't Keep Their Stories Straight, Get Qualified Immunity Anyway
A federal court admitted the officers violated the man's rights. It doesn't matter.
Where Does Biden Get the Authority To Mandate Vaccination?
Emergency OSHA rules are frequently struck down by courts.
COVID-19 Vaccination Should Not Be Legally Required for Parenthood
Only in extreme circumstances should a court come between a parent and their child.
California Court Rules Vegan Creamery Has First Amendment Right To Call Products 'Butter' and 'Cheese'
Who thought it was a good idea to give the government control over marketing?
Abortion Ban To Take Effect in Texas on Wednesday
Plus: Kids got more obese during the pandemic, how Section 230 protects gun rights, and more...
Cops Are Dressing Up Like FedEx Guys and Arresting People for Drugs
A little-known agreement allows police officers to seize packages at FedEx sorting centers.
In 'Precedent Setting' Transgender Rights Case, Court Strikes Down Hobby Lobby Bathroom Policy
Plus: The critical race theory debate, delta variant surges and vaccination rates, school mask mandates, and more...
A Federal Cop Devised a Bogus Sex Trafficking Ring and Jailed This Teen for 2 Years. The Cop Can't Be Sued.
The most powerful officers are held to the lowest standard of accountability.
Town Drops Obscenity Case Against New Jersey Homeowner for 'Fuck Biden' Signs
The First Amendment clearly protects the right to political expression, even when it's vulgar.
Judge Says 'Fuck Biden' Signs Are Obscenity and Orders Their Removal
Plus: Facebook blamed for missed Biden vaccine goal, court sides with CDC in cruise ship battle, and more...
Government To Blame for Texas Church Shooting That Left 26 Dead, Says Court
Plus: Trump's absurd lawsuits against social media, states take aim at Google app store, and more...
Trump Judicial Appointees Clash Over Qualified Immunity and 'the Woke Constitution'
The fight over qualified immunity divides "conservative" judges on the 5th Circuit.
He Died After Cops Shackled Him and Held Him Facedown. A Court Said That Was Constitutional. SCOTUS Isn't So Sure.
The officers might receive qualified immunity, however.
This Suicidal, Gasoline-Drenched Man Burned to Death After Cops Tased Him. A Federal Court Says That's Reasonable Force.
"In what legal universe is it not even plausibly unreasonable to knowingly immolate someone?" asks dissenting judge
Study on Bloodstain Pattern Analysis Finds 'Conclusions Were Often Erroneous'
Bloodstain pattern analysis is one of several forensic techniques that has come under scrutiny in recent years for its lack of established error rates.
Indiana Said the Government Should Be Able To Take Everything You Own if You Commit a Drug Crime. The State Supreme Court Wasn't Having It.
After eight years, Tyson Timbs finally gets to keep his Land Rover—once and for all.
The Trouble With 'Common Good Originalism'
A new conservative faction embraces "authoritative rule for the common good."
A Euclid Cop Killed a Man Who Had Been Sleeping in His Car. The Cop Can't Be Sued. The City Can't Be, Either.
The Supreme Court has a chance to fix this. The stakes are high.
Cops Who Beat a Man After Pulling Him Over for Broken Lights Receive Qualified Immunity
The victim will now have no right to argue his case before a jury in civil court.
Supreme Court Won't Make Ban on Non-Unanimous Jury Convictions Retroactive
Bad news for hundreds of imprisoned defendants in Louisiana and Oregon
He Lost His Eye After a Cop Allegedly Fired a Tear Gas Canister at His Face. The Officer Says He Has Qualified Immunity.
If the officer succeeds, the victim will not be allowed to sue on those claims.
When Eminent Domain Is Used for Economic Assassination
Government officials who wield land grabs to pick economic winners and losers now want to use them to kill disfavored businesses.
Cops Receive Qualified Immunity for Coercing a 13-Year-Old Into Confessing to a Murder He Didn't Commit
The boy was sentenced to 25 years' imprisonment.
Is Stephen Breyer About To Retire? His Clerk-Hiring Spree Suggests Otherwise.
Progressive activists are pushing the 82-year-old justice to step down.
Joe Biden, Who Says He's 'Not a Fan of Court Packing,' Just Created a Presidential Commission to Study Court Packing
The Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court of the United States will examine “the membership and size of the Court.”
No Qualified Immunity for Cop Who Shot and Killed a Suicidal Man, Says Federal Court
“An officer violates the Fourth Amendment if he shoots an unarmed, incapacitated suspect who is moving away from everyone present at the scene.”
They Served Their Sentences. Now They Want To Know When They Can Go Home.
Programs that keep sex offenders indefinitely confined face new challenges.
Trump's Bump Stock Ban Just Lost Big in Federal Court
“It is not the role of the executive—particularly the unelected administrative state—to dictate” the terms of criminal law, said the 6th Circuit.
'If You Wear a Federal Badge, You Can Inflict Excessive Force on Someone With Little Fear of Liability,' Complains Judge Don Willett
A federal judge protests the Supreme Court’s “rights-without-remedies” Bivens doctrine.
CDC Can't Force Landlords To Provide Free Housing, Says Court
Plus: Mexico moves closer to legalizing marijuana, Facebook fights monopoly allegations, and more...
Cops Who Assaulted and Arrested a Man for Standing Outside His Own House Got Qualified Immunity. SCOTUS Won't Hear the Case.
The Supreme Court delivers another blow to a victim of egregious police abuse.
Some Jobs Are More Equal Than Others
All professions deserve the same constitutional protections that speech-heavy industries get.
A SWAT Team Destroyed This Innocent Woman's House While Chasing a Fugitive. The City Refuses To Pay for Damages.
"I've lost everything," says Vicki Baker.
A Promising Qualified Immunity Decision From a Potential Biden SCOTUS Nominee
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson denied qualified immunity to the officers involved in Patterson v. United States.
Merrick Garland's Worrying Record on Criminal Justice Reform
What to expect from Joe Biden’s pick for attorney general.
This Cop Wants Qualified Immunity for Fatally Shooting a Passenger in a Fleeing Vehicle
The unfolding legal saga of City of Hayward v. Stoddard-Nunez
Larry Flynt Made the World Freer for Everybody by Pushing Boundaries
Abrasive, tasteless, and uncompromising, Flynt undoubtedly made the world safer for speech of all varieties.
The Zoom Cat Lawyer Used Federal Agents To Torment a Former Lover With Drug Raids and Bogus Charges
In 2014, Reason reported on the misbehavior of Rod Ponton, who has suddenly risen to internet stardom after being unable to turn off an adorable filter during an online legal case.
An Unconstitutional Arrest for Refusing To Show ID to the Cops
Fourth Amendment advocates prevail in Wingate v. Fulford.
Indiana Argues That the State Should Be Able To Take Everything You Own if You Commit a Drug Crime
The state used civil asset forfeiture to seize Tyson Timbs' car in 2013. His nightmare hasn't ended.
Federal Court Confirms That Shackling an Inmate During Exercise Is Cruel and Unusual Punishment
The warden at the center of the case was originally given qualified immunity.
Prison Guards Who Forced Menstruating Visitor To Expose Vaginal and Anal Cavities Are Protected by Qualified Immunity
A federal court said it did not violate her Fourth Amendment rights.
A Libertarian Judge Champions Privacy Rights Against Warrantless Police Searches
Justice Clint Bolick dissents in Arizona v. Mixton.
Joe Biden Picks Merrick Garland for Attorney General
The Biden administration has just delivered its first disappointment to criminal justice reform advocates.
