Topic: U.S. Court of Appeals

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Major gay marriage cases in federal court and where they stand

Battles over same-sex marriage have been raging in the federal courts for several years. Two could reach the US Supreme Court within a year: one challenging California's ban on gay marriage under Proposition 8, and the other seeking to invalidate the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Here are the cases to follow.
Newt Gingrich: 8 of the GOP idea man's more unusual ideas
Photos of the Day: Photos of the day 06/08
Waterboarding and other 'Decision Points' in Bush's war on terror
Gallery: Notable women in US politics

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Supreme Court declines appeal in lottery winner's excessive force suit

Robert Swofford, a former Army special forces captain and lottery winner, is free to pursue his case against sheriff's deputies who shot him without warning, after the Supreme Court declined to hear the deputies' appeal.
Supreme Court declines appeal for Guantánamo detainee once ordered free

Mohammed al-Adahi, a Guantánamo detainee, has been held without charge since 2002. A US judge ordered his release, but an appeals court reversed that, and the Supreme Court declined the case.
Supreme Court: Did it just hint at stance on a health-care law challenge?

The Supreme Court refused to take up a case examining Congress's authority under the commerce clause, a key issue in a legal challenge to Obama's health-care law. Two justices dissented.
Former covert CIA agent charged with leaking secrets to newspaper

The indictment of former CIA agent Jeffrey Sterling says he gave secrets to a reporter after becoming angry about the agency's unwillingness to send him on undercover assignments abroad.
Prop. 8 gay marriage case takes detour to California Supreme Court

Do gay couples have a constitutional right to marry? A US appeals court withholds judgment, instead asking California's Supreme Court to resolve whether Prop. 8 backers have legal standing to defend the gay marriage ban.
Blogger gets 33 months for threatening Chicago judges on Internet

The blogger, a former Internet radio talk show host, was angry at three federal appeals court judges for upholding a Chicago gun ban. In his blog he wrote the judges 'deserve to be killed.'
What can lawyers claim in their ads? Supreme Court inaction sets no limit.

Inaction by Supreme Court justices leaves standing a ruling by a federal appeals court that a New York law went too far in restricting claims made by ads for lawyers.
Pentagon already taking steps to blunt 'don't ask, don't tell'

A repeal of 'don't ask, don't tell' failed in the Senate Thursday, but the Pentagon is already changing policies to make it more difficult for the military to expel gays.
Prop. 8: judges express doubts about California gay marriage ban

Supporters of Prop. 8, the California gay marriage ban, face tough questioning in hearing before an appeals court. They are seeking a reversal of a federal judge's ruling against Prop. 8.
Wal-Mart wins Supreme Court review of huge bias suit against it

The Supreme Court said Monday it will consider whether a class-action suit filed against Wal-Mart, representing 1.5 million former and current female employees, should be allowed to proceed.
Prop 8. gay marriage ban to be argued in federal appeals court

The long-running fight over gay marriage in California heads to a federal appeals court Monday. A panel of the Ninth US Circuit Court of Appeals must decide whether a federal judge was correct in ruling that the US Constitution protects the right of gay and lesbian couples to marry.
Health-care reform law is constitutional, federal judge rules

Legal challenges to health-care reform include a lawsuit filed on behalf of Liberty University in Virginia. On Tuesday, a federal judge dismissed that suit. Others remain outstanding.
Supreme Court to examine Arizona campaign-finance reform law

The Supreme Court will look at whether an Arizona campaign-finance law that discourages candidates from spending large amounts of money is constitutional.
Supreme Court rejects case on fines for illegal Internet music downloads

The Supreme Court on Monday declined to take a case concerning big fines for illegal downloads of music on the Internet. A teenager had sought lower fines, claiming she didn't know it was illegal.
Supreme Court refuses to hear bid to block 'don't ask, don't tell'

Supreme Court justices decline to take up request by the Log Cabin Republicans to reinstate a federal judge's injunction against the 'don't ask, don't tell' policy on gays in the military.
Waterboarding and other 'Decision Points' in Bush's war on terror

Former President George W. Bush has returned to political life with today's release of his new memoir, 'Decision Points.' Controversial decisions during his tenure as commander-in-chief have also returned to public scrutiny, with the 43rd president talking openly in interviews this week about his choice to approve waterboarding and other questionable acts in the war on terror.
Elizabeth Smart kidnapping trial abruptly stopped by court

Elizabeth Smart trial: Opening statements in the case of Brian David Mitchell were interrupted to announce the decision by the three-judge panel of the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver.
Religious schools, government money? Supreme Court hears Arizona case.

The Supreme Court must decide if an Arizona program that gives tax credits for private school donations favors religion, or if participants in the program are just exercising personal choice.
Arizona immigration law: tough questions for both sides at hearing

A three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit is weighing whether to overturn a federal judge's decision in July to block some of the most controversial sections of the Arizona immigration law.
Elizabeth Smart kidnapping trial begins, suspect kicked out of court

Elizabeth Smart, now 22, was 14 when she was kidnapped at knifepoint from her home on June 5, 2002. She was recovered nine months later — in March 2003 — after a motorist spotted her walking the streets of a Salt Lake City suburb with Mitchell and his now-estranged wife, Wanda Eileen Barzee.
Judge blocks Arizona execution, state appeals

An Arizona judge blocked the execution of Jeffrey Landrigan scheduled for Tuesday, on the grounds that the state has not been forthcoming. The state immediately appealed the ruling saying the judge made faulty assumptions and had disregarded provisions of the execution protocol.
'Don't ask, don't tell' back in force after appeals court issues stay

An appeals court decides that 'don't ask, don't tell' can temporarily remain in effect as legal proceedings continue. The Obama administration is appealing a ruling last week that 'don't ask, don't tell' must be abandoned immediately.
No delay for 'don't ask, don't tell' ruling, so Pentagon takes gays - for now

A federal judge refuses to suspend last week's ruling that the Pentagon must stop enforcement of 'don't ask, don't tell.' So the Pentagon says it will comply and accept openly gay recruits. But it cautions that the ruling is being appealed.
Supreme Court rejects Massachusetts felons' voting rights challenge

Three Massachusetts felons alleged that the commonwealth violated the Voting Rights Act when it passed a referendum stripping incarcerated felons of the right to vote.
Supreme Court to hear Ashcroft appeal of US Muslim's detention

A lower court has allowed a suit by an American Muslim, detained without charge in 2003 as a material witness, to proceed against former Attorney General John Ashcroft. The Supreme Court says it will consider Ashcroft's appeal.