Civil rights violations
Judge: COVID was reason for jail to go from books to tablets

May. 31, 2021 10:15 AM EDT
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Officials at a Louisiana jail reacted reasonably to the COVID-19 pandemic by taking away printed books and giving inmates tablets on which...

Court rejects appeal by man who killed wife with shotgun

Apr. 30, 2021 12:40 PM EDT
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — The state supreme court has upheld the murder conviction and 40-year sentence for man who killed his wife with a shotgun blast in their...

FILE - In this Jan. 11, 2005, file photo, Clayton County Sheriff Victor Hill, left, is flanked by a member of his legal team, attorney Rolf Jones, right, as he speaks during a news conference, in Jonesboro, Ga. The Atlanta-area sheriff, Hill, is accused of violating the civil rights of several people in his agency's custody by ordering that they be unnecessarily strapped into a restraint chair and left there for hours, according to a federal indictment. The indictment against Sheriff Hill was filed April 19, 2021, and was unsealed by a federal judge Monday, April 26. (AP Photo/Gene Blythe, File)
Feds accused Georgia sheriff of civil rights violations

By Kate Brumback Apr. 27, 2021 01:01 PM EDT

Appeals court panel rejects Texas inmates' COVID-19 lawsuit

Mar. 26, 2021 10:31 PM EDT
HOUSTON (AP) — A federal appeals court Friday struck down a lawsuit brought by elderly inmates of a Texas prison who alleged the state did not implement...

This undated photo posted on social media and provided by the Ruiz Family shows Daniel Ruiz. The family of Ruiz, a 61-year-old California inmate who died of the coronavirus, sued state corrections officials Tuesday, March 16, 2021. The family blames a botched transfer of infected inmates to San Quentin State Prison that killed 28 inmates and a correctional officer in 2020. (Angel Ruiz Corona/Courtesy of Ruiz Family via AP)
Inmate lawsuits blame California for spreading infections

By Don Thompson Mar. 16, 2021 09:08 PM EDT

FILE - In this Sept. 23, 2020, file photo, Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron addresses the media in Frankfort, Ky., following the return of a grand jury investigation into the death of Breonna Taylor. Last year, a grand jury formed by state Cameron charged one officer with putting Taylor's neighbors in danger but issued no charges related to her death. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley, File)
Federal look into Breonna Taylor's death casts a wider net

Dylan Lovan Mar. 12, 2021 06:13 AM EST

FILE - This Nov. 4, 2020 file photo shows the Supreme Court in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
High court revives ex-student's suit against Georgia college

By Jessica Gresko Mar. 08, 2021 06:35 PM EST

NAACP files suit over virus outbreak at Georgia prison

By Russ Bynum Jan. 22, 2021 03:33 PM EST
SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — The NAACP has filed suit against Georgia prison officials, blaming a lack of COVID-19 testing and insufficient safeguards for an outbreak...

Lawsuit: Huntsville billboard rules violate free speech laws

By Jeff Martin Dec. 30, 2020 01:07 PM EST
A northern Alabama city is illegally restricting signs based on their content in violation of free speech laws, according to a lawsuit by a company that...

State faults officers' use of force against ICE detainees

Dec. 15, 2020 04:07 PM EST
BOSTON (AP) — Officers at a Dartmouth detention center used excessive force when they deployed pepper spray, police dogs and a flash bang device against...

Editorial Roundup: Ohio

By The Associated Press Dec. 14, 2020 02:14 PM EST
Recent editorials of statewide and national interest from Ohio newspapers: Republicans harming our democracy by cowering to Trump ...

Judge denies motion to toss Pennsylvania mask mandate

Dec. 11, 2020 05:47 PM EST
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania may continue to enforce its mask mandate and perform contact tracing, a federal judge decided Friday, ruling against two...

FILE - In this Dec. 3, 2020, file photo, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker speaks after touring the DCU Center as it gears up to be used as a COVID-19 field hospital for the second time in Worcester, Mass. The Supreme Judicial Court ruled Thursday, Dec. 10, that Baker did not overstep his authority when he issued sweeping orders to close businesses to control the spread of the coronavirus. (Nancy Lane/The Boston Herald via AP, Pool, File)
Top court upholds governor's sweeping virus emergency orders

By Alanna Durkin Richer Dec. 10, 2020 10:20 AM EST

Editorial Roundup: New England

By The Associated Press Nov. 27, 2020 04:06 PM EST
Recent editorials of regional and national interest from New England’s newspapers: CONNECTICUT: Thanksgiving amid...

Buildings at Hunter Oaks Apartments undergo renovations on Tuesday. Sept. 22, 2020, in Memphis, Tenn. Owners of the apartment complex are among seven landlords who manage or own more than 5,000 rental units and have filed a lawsuit claiming that a national eviction moratorium has not only placed them under unfair financial strain, but also infringed on their rights as property owners. (AP Photo/Adrian Sainz)
Judge won't pause eviction ban amid Tennessee landlord suit

By Kimberlee Kruesi Nov. 13, 2020 02:20 PM EST

In a photo provided by Word Aflame Ministries, people are outdoors during a service at Word Aflame Tabernacle in La Habra Heights, Calif. The Pentecostal church says the city violated its constitutional rights by harassing it over the way it has held outdoor gatherings during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Word Aflame Ministries via AP)
Church: California city violated its rights during pandemic

By Brian Melley Oct. 29, 2020 08:10 PM EDT

The sun sets behind the Notre Dame church in Nice, southern France, after a knife attack took place on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2020. An attacker armed with a knife killed at least three people at a church in the Mediterranean city of Nice, prompting the prime minister to announce that France was raising its security alert status to the highest level. (AP Photo/Daniel Cole)
The Latest: Prosecutor: attacker not on intelligence radar

Oct. 29, 2020 08:54 AM EDT

A briefcase of a census taker is seen as she knocks on the door of a residence Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2020, in Winter Park, Fla. A half-million census takers head out en mass this week to knock on the doors of households that haven't yet responded to the 2020 census. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Supreme Court halts census in latest twist of 2020 count

By Mike Schneider Oct. 13, 2020 09:35 PM EDT

Election workers attend to voters at a makeshift polling station inside a parking garage in Santa Fe, N.M., on Tuesday, May 5, 2020. The arrangements by Santa Fe County Clerk Geraldine Salazar allow for greater social distancing and air circulation to guard against transmission of the coronavirus and avoids possible contamination of Santa Fe County government offices. Early in-person voting in New Mexico's June 2 primary began as election authorities encourage absentee balloting by mail. (AP Photo/Morgan Lee)
FBI agent, federal prosecutor assigned to monitor election

Cedar Attanasio Oct. 05, 2020 06:20 PM EDT

Homeless challenge Denver encampment sweeps in federal court

By Colleen Slevin Oct. 05, 2020 06:07 PM EDT
DENVER (AP) — Homeless people filed a federal lawsuit on Monday seeking to stop Denver from clearing their encampments around the city, saying the operations...