Pro-democracy Hong Kong lawmakers voted Thursday to reject a bill that would have allowed Hong Kong’s leader to be elected by the general public. After a lengthy debate, 28 legislators voted against the proposal, enough to defeat the measure. The Chinese government, which had supported the legislation, said it was disappointed in the vote , [...]

The US Supreme Court ruled in McFadden v. United States on Thursday that in a synthetic drug case, the government must prove that the defendant understood that he was dealing a substance regulated under the Controlled Substances Act or Analogue Act . The ruling could make it more difficult for prosecutors to convict drug dealers [...]

The US Supreme Court on Thursday reinstated the death sentence of a California man convicted of murder 25 years ago, despite evidence that seven of the prosecution’s peremptory challenges to jurors in the case were race-based. In a 5-4 decision, the majority held in Davis v. Ayala that even though all blacks and Hispanics available [...]

The US Supreme Court ruled 5-4 Thursday in Brumfield v. Cain that a man who was convicted in 1993 for killing a police officer in Louisiana is entitled to have a new hearing to determine if he is mentally disabled, making him ineligible for the death penalty. The court decided that Kevan Brumfield, who was [...]

The US Supreme Court on Thursday ruled 9-0 that statements made by children to their teachers regarding possible abuse may be used as evidence at trial, even if the child does not testify in court. In Ohio v. Clark the court decided that defendants do not have a constitutional right to cross-examine child witnesses. The [...]

United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression David Kaye on Wednesday issued a report calling the use of anonymity and encryption software in digital communication vital to free speech. Kaye noted that due to heightened online security and mass and targeted surveillance and data collection, individuals use encryption and anonymity to provide themselves with [...]

The US District Court for the District of Minnesota on Wednesday ruled that Minnesota’s sex offender program and civil commitment statutes are unconstitutional, but has chosen to await further proceedings on a remedy before taking any immediate action. The civil commitment program allows the state to detain individuals with “acute symptoms of severe mental illness,” [...]

The US Supreme Court on Thursday ruled 5-4 in Walker v. Sons of Confederate Veterans that state governments can restrict the kinds of messages printed on specialty licence plates. The Sons of Confederate Veterans had argued that the Texas government’s refusal to issue specialty licence plates including an image of the confederate flag violated First [...]

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced on Wednesday that it plans to fine AT&T Mobile 100 million dollars for their actions in slowing internet speeds after “unlimited data” users reached a certain limit. The FCC claims that AT&T slowed down internet speeds for unlimited users and failed to notify them that they would receive slower [...]

The Ukraine Prosecutor General on Wednesday revealed that two government soldiers have been detained for alleged links to the murders of two women who sympathized with armed separatists from the east. It is reported that earlier this week the soldiers broke into the home of the victims in village of Luhanske and shot them both [...]