West Virginia Supreme Court halts impeachment trials
West Virginia’s Supreme Court has effectively halted the legislature’s remaining efforts to impeach the state’s justices as a violation of the separation of powers doctrine.
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Manafort to be sentenced in February; appears in wheelchair
A judge has set a February sentencing date for Paul Manafort, who appeared in court Friday for a post-trial hearing in a wheelchair and green jail jumpsuit. The hearing in federal court in Alexandria was largely procedural but provided the first glimpse of the former Trump campaign chairman since he began cooperating with prosecutors in special counsel Robert Mueller’s office.
Russian woman charged in first 2018 election meddling case
The U.S. accused a Russian woman on Friday of helping oversee the finances of a sweeping, secretive effort to sway American public opinion through social media in the first federal case alleging foreign interference in the 2018 midterm elections. The criminal complaint against Elena Alekseevna Khusyaynova alleges Russians are using some of the same techniques to influence U.S. politics as they relied on ahead of the 2016 presidential election.
After long medical marijuana hearing, lawmakers make no recommendation
Legislators halted any progress of legalizing medical marijuana in Indiana on Thursday after a study committee failed to agree on how to move the issue forward.
Judges, lawyers bemoan political nature of Kavanaugh hearings
Ask any constitutional scholar whether the process of confirming Justice Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court played out as was constitutionally intended, and the answer will likely be “no.” Federal judges and practicing lawyers agree: regardless of your politics, the animosity that exploded in the Senate over the last month was not what the Framers had in mind.
Hanlon confirmed to Southern Indiana District Court
James Patrick “J.P.” Hanlon was confirmed to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana by the U.S. Senate Thursday evening in a voice vote. The partner at Faegre Baker Daniels was nominated by President Donald Trump and will fill the vacancy created when Judge William Lawrence took senior status in July.
Councilman to replace outgoing Indiana Senate leader
An Allen County councilman has been selected to fill the seat of the outgoing Republican leader of the Indiana Senate, President Pro Tem David Long, also of Fort Wayne.
Bitter fight over Kavanaugh shadows a conservative court
The moment conservatives have dreamed about for decades has arrived with Brett Kavanaugh joining the Supreme Court. But with it comes the shadow of a bitter confirmation fight that is likely to hang over the court as it takes on divisive issues, especially those dealing with politics and women’s rights.
State’s request for stay rebuffed in voter registration case
An attempt by the state of Indiana to squash discovery into its practice of maintaining voter rolls has been stopped by the Southern Indiana District Court, which pointed out to both parties that it has “extremely broad discretion in controlling discovery.” Judge Tanya Walton Pratt issued the order Friday in Common Cause Indiana v. Connie Lawson, et al., denying the state’s request to stay proceedings and discovery while the case is on interlocutory appeal.
Supreme Court nominee Kavanaugh clears crucial Senate hurdle
A deeply divided Senate pushed Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination past a key procedural hurdle Friday, setting up a likely final showdown this weekend in a battle that’s seen claims of long-ago sexual assault by the nominee threaten President Donald Trump’s effort to tip the court rightward for decades. The Senate voted 51-49 to limit debate, effectively defeating Democratic efforts to scuttle the nomination with endless delays.
Mueller shedding more attorneys in Russia investigation
Special counsel Robert Mueller is trimming more attorneys from his office, another sign his team of prosecutors is winding down parts of their investigation into potential ties between Russia and President Donald Trump’s campaign.
Kavanaugh says he ‘might have been too emotional’ at hearing
Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh acknowledged Thursday he “might have been too emotional” when testifying about sexual misconduct allegations as he made a final bid to win over wavering GOP senators on the eve of a crucial vote to advance his confirmation. Three GOP senators and one Democrat remain undecided about elevating Kavanaugh to the high court.
Cemetery case puts property rights issue before high court
Rose Mary Knick makes no bones about it. She doesn’t buy that there are bodies buried on her eastern Pennsylvania farmland, and she doesn’t want people strolling onto her property to visit what her town says is a small cemetery.
Indiana law professors sign letters opposing Kavanaugh confirmation
Law professors from all four of Indiana’s law schools have signed letters asking the United States Senate to oppose the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court. One letter argues Kavanaugh lacks the temperament to be seated on the nation’s highest court, while the other asserts he was not fully vetted and that his judgments would erode civil and individual rights.
White House gives FBI freer rein in Kavanaugh investigation
The White House has given the FBI clearance to interview anyone it wants to by Friday in its investigation of sexual misconduct allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. The new guidance was issued to the FBI over the weekend in response to Democratic and news media pushback that the scope of the probe was too narrow.
Trials adding up for West Virginia Supreme Court justices
The federal trial of a suspended West Virginia Supreme Court justice is starting a day after a colleague’s impeachment trial began in the state Senate. Jury selection is set to get under way Tuesday in the U.S. District Court in Charleston for Justice Allen Loughry, while an impeachment trial against Justice Beth Walker begins its second day on Tuesday.
Supreme Court term starts in shadow of Kavanaugh
On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court will begin its new term with the crack of the marshal’s gavel and not a camera in sight. The term’s start has been completely overshadowed by the tumult over Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the high court.
Donnelly won’t support Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination
Democratic U.S. Sen. Joe Donnelly from Indiana says Brett Kavanaugh won’t get his vote for confirmation to the U.S. Supreme Court. Donnelly said Friday that sexual assault allegations against President Donald Trump’s nominee are “disturbing and credible.”
GOP advances Kavanaugh after Flake calls for FBI probe
After a flurry of last-minute negotiations, the Senate Judiciary Committee advanced Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination for the Supreme Court after agreeing to a late call from Republican Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona for a one-week investigation into sexual assault allegations against the high court nominee.
Supreme Court agrees to decide fate of Yorktown clerk-treasurer’s job
The Indiana Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether Yorktown can forcibly remove its clerk-treasurer from office, a decision the clerk-treasurer’s attorney told the justices could have implications beyond his client.