Mercy for a small group of federal prisoners. President Joe Biden pardoned 11 people convicted of nonviolent drug offenses and commuted the sentences of five others on Wednesday. The Associated Press “During Second Chance Month, we reaffirm our commitment to rehabilitation and reentry for people returning to their communities post incarceration,” Biden said in a written statement. CBS News Related: The list of those granted clemency. The White House In Mississippi. Mississippi Clarion-Ledger In New York. Albany Times-Union In Tennessee. The Tennessean TMP Context: The pardons granted by then-President Donald Trump highlighted a broken system. The Marshall Project
Rudy Giuliani, Mark Meadows, 16 others, indicted in “fake electors” scheme in Arizona. A state grand jury on Wednesday indicted allies of former President Donald Trump on fraud and conspiracy charges stemming from their attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. NBC News Trump was described in the indictment as an “unindicted co-conspirator.” The Washington Post A sweeping indictment begs the question: Why wasn’t Trump indicted? Just Security More: Trump is also considered an unindicted co-conspirator in the Michigan “fake elector” plot to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. Detroit News
More campus protests, more arrests, more concerns about free speech rights and excessive force, across the U.S. Law enforcement officials in Austin, Texas, including state troopers and officers in riot gear on horseback, arrested more than two dozen pro-Palestinian protesters on the University of Texas campus on Wednesday. The Texas Tribune Police in Los Angeles arrested nearly 100 protesters late Wednesday at the University of Southern California. Los Angeles Times Hundreds of Jewish anti-war protesters were arrested late Tuesday outside Sen. Chuck Schumer’s home in Brooklyn, New York. The Guardian Anti-war protests spread to some campuses across the U.S. The Washington Post
A divided U.S. Supreme Court confronts the legacy of its decision to strike down Roe v. Wade. The justices appeared divided during oral argument on Wednesday, in a case that pits Idaho’s near-total abortion ban against a federal law designed to protect patients who need emergency medical care. The New York Times The Biden administration says the federal law should supersede the state law. Idaho’s ban includes the possibility of prosecution for doctors who perform abortions. Scotusblog Related: Read the transcript. U.S. Supreme Court More: Arizona lawmakers moved closer to repealing the state’s 1864 ban on abortions. NBC News
Crime and punishment. A North Carolina man convicted of assaulting police officers at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 was sentenced to six years in prison this week. Prosecutors had sought a longer sentence for David Gietzen, citing his lack of remorse for the attack. The New York Times A Capitol rioter carrying a Confederate flag and wearing a pro-Trump T-shirt while attacking police officers on Jan. 6 was sentenced this week to two and a half years in prison. NBC News More: A state-by-state look at how authorities are investigating the “fake electors” plots designed to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. Lawfare
One year after a school shooting in Nashville, Tennessee, lawmakers have passed a measure allowing more guns in schools. The Washington Post Teachers and other school staff would be allowed to carry concealed handguns on school campuses if the measure is signed by Gov. Bill Lee. The New York Times “Blood on your hands,” shouted protesters after the legislation passed by a vote of 68-28 on Tuesday. The Tennessean
Did California prosecutors systematically exclude Jewish and Black jurors from capital cases? A federal judge has ordered Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price to review more than 30 cases after prosecutors found handwritten notes from jury selection in cases handled in the 1990s. The Oaklandside Such discrimination in jury selection is unlawful. The Guardian
Deliberations are underway in Alexandria, Virginia, in a lawsuit brought by three men who were imprisoned at the notorious Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq two decades ago. They’ve sued contractors who they say tortured them. The New York Times
Voters in Maricopa County, Arizona, a swing county in a swing state, will choose between two candidates for district attorney in November. The incumbent Republican, Rachel Mitchell, has pledged not to prosecute women who get an abortion under the state’s harsh new anti-abortion law. Her challenger, Democrat Tamika Wooten, says she won’t prosecute doctors, either. Bolts
A federal judge in Georgia has held state corrections officials in contempt of court and threatened them with fines for violating a settlement agreement designed to reform the use of solitary confinement in the state’s most restrictive prison. ABC News/The Associated Press
Trump v. United States. The U.S. Supreme Court “has to consider how allowing a former president to be prosecuted and possibly convicted for Trump’s bad acts might impact a whole range of less bad acts by the current and future presidents.” Lawfare
When citizens are turned into public servants overnight. Let’s praise the courage of the jurors in Trump’s “hush money” election interference case. Some are fearful of reprisals, as though they were sitting in judgment on a mob boss. MSNBC
What happens when an attorney loses credibility with a trial judge? The gag order hearing over Trump’s social media posts during his “hush money” election interference case highlights the gulf between the reality of a courtroom and the illusion of the MAGA world. Slate More: Dispatches from the first two days of the Trump trial in New York. Lawfare
Cookies and cake for the executioners. Lethal injections for the condemned. “For all the handwringing about extravagant last meals, those of us who know executions know that the gustatory requests of the condemned are seldom, if ever, met.” The Appeal TMP Context: The details of the Trump administration’s execution spree. The Marshall Project
Getting real about crime in southern California. “Contrary to anti-reform folklore, no one charged with a dangerous felony is simply let go unless they can raise a lot of money for bail.” Los Angeles Times
Federal law enforcement is a critical pressure point in the upcoming election. FBI Director Christopher Wray doesn’t think the Capitol rioters should be called “hostages,” by former President Donald Trump or anyone else. NBC News
The costs of the death penalty. Idaho taxpayers have already spent $3.6 million on the high-profile capital murder case of Bryan Kohberger, records reveal. He’s been in jail for over 450 days, and there is still no trial date set in the case. Idaho Statesman
Fifty-five people died in custody in Wisconsin last year, records show. Corrections officials in the state do a poor job of collecting and sharing information on deaths behind bars. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
A father reflects on losing his son at Columbine. Twenty-five years after the mass school shooting in Colorado, Tom Mauser, the father of one of the young victims, continues his fight against the gun lobby. The Bulwark
Show them the money. The University of Chicago promised two years ago to give $15 million to promote violence prevention programs on the city’s South Side. It has given out less than $3 million, advocates say. Block Club Chicago
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