The U.S. Supreme Court held a historic oral argument on Tuesday over a federal law used by prosecutors against hundreds of Capitol rioters. NBC News The justices appear divided over whether the Justice Department overstepped its authority by charging rioters with obstructing an “official proceeding” on Jan. 6. The New York Times Related: Read the transcript of the argument. U.S. Supreme Court More: Background on the federal obstruction statute at the center of the dispute. Politico Federal prosecutors say more than 2,000 people may ultimately be charged for an alleged role in the Capitol riot. The New York Times
Maine moves forward with new gun laws months after the mass shooting in Lewiston. State legislators have endorsed Gov. Janet Mills’ omnibus gun safety bill, which bolsters the state’s yellow flag gun restraining law, broadens background checks on private gun sales, and funds violence prevention initiatives and a mental health crisis center in Lewiston. Lawmakers rejected another measure that would have allowed victims of gun violence to sue gun manufacturers for damages. The Associated Press TMP Context: It’s the guns, not the mental illness, says a responsible gun owner living with a mental illness. The Marshall Project
Seven jurors have been selected to sit in judgment of former President Donald Trump at his “hush money” election interference case in New York. NBC News Jury selection continues. The judge wants 12 jurors and six alternatives before proceeding to opening statements. The Associated Press Related analysis: Defense attorneys may be seeking to find a juror willing to reject the legitimacy of the court and the justice system itself. Just Security A reminder that serving on a jury in a high-profile case is nothing like serving on a jury in a case no one is following. The Washington Post
Arguing over how many hundreds of cases may have been tainted by a disgraced former detective. In January, Brooklyn prosecutors mistakenly sent to defense attorneys a 524-page PDF file listing cases that may have been tainted by the misconduct of Louis Scarcella, a retired homicide detective whose work has been frequently cited in wrongful conviction cases that have cost New York millions. One list included 319 cases. The actual number is 235, prosecutors claim. They have asked the judge to force defense attorneys to return the list without sharing its details with the public. The New York Times TMP Context: Masks on, fists up: Scenes from a New York protest. The Marshall Project
Why can’t you watch the Trump trial on your phone, computer or television? Because New York has a strict law limiting media coverage inside courtrooms. The restrictions date back nearly a century, to the media circus that took place during the 1935 trial of Bruno Hauptmann, convicted of murdering the Lindbergh baby. The Associated Press
Jury selection is underway this week in another high-profile criminal trial. In Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Karen Read is on trial for allegedly murdering her boyfriend, a Boston police officer. Defense attorneys seem to think pretrial publicity might help their client. The Boston Globe
The threat of gun violence is pervasive in K-12 schools in Arizona. Police agencies across the state have responded to thousands of 911 calls from students, teachers and school administrators since 2019, according to a new investigation. In 2022, police responded to an average of two gun threats a day. Here’s the first of a four-part series. Arizona Republic
The couple who owned the Colorado funeral home where nearly 200 decaying bodies were found last year have been indicted on federal charges that they fraudulently obtained nearly $900,000 in pandemic relief funds. The couple already faces state charges for abusing corpses. The Associated Press
The family of a woman who died days after she was released from the jail in Dallas County, Alabama, has filed a federal lawsuit against jail officials for failing to adequately treat her pneumonia. Mary Strong, 60, died of septic shock. AL.com
Inside the courtroom for the first day of the trial of the century. Donald Trump faces a calm, cool judge who made it clear on Monday that he won’t take any crap from either prosecutors or the defense, Jonathan Alter reports. Washington Monthly
When you have no evidence, why not delay an inevitable defeat? The farce that is the impeachment trial of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. The Washington Post
The quiet authoritarian choice the U.S. Supreme Court just made. By refusing to rescue DeRay Mckesson from a civil lawsuit, the justices just encouraged litigation against the leaders of protest movements in a way that undermines the First Amendment. Vox
Stop sending South Carolina runaways or truants to jail. “No wonder we have such high crime rates compared to other states: We’re literally sending kids to criminal school just because they skip regular school.” Charleston Post and Courier
A grieving parent’s simple request: Solve more murder cases. “By closing more gun homicide cases, we can make law enforcement part of the healing process, break the cycles of killing the people we love and have more of the peace we deserve.” Los Angeles Times
How Texas defends its death penalty. In a dissent from the U.S. Supreme Court’s refusal to accept a capital case for review, Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson explained this week how Texas’ highest criminal court failed to properly analyze dubious challenges to prospective jurors by trial prosecutors. Cornell Law School/U.S. Supreme Court
Homicide rates are down sharply in one U.S. city after another. 2020 is increasingly seen as a pandemic-fueled outlier for murder rates. The Wall Street Journal
“It’s offensive that my employees and other immigrants are being leapfrogged by new arrivals.” As new migrants receive work permits, some undocumented immigrants who have lived in the U.S. longer say they want some, too. Some business leaders, too, think it’s unfair that longtime employees can’t get permits. The New York Times
“For those who are already driven by hate, it is a big, warm hug.” How Elon Musk’s Twitter became “X” and a haven for verified pro-Nazi accounts. NBC News
A “crisis of abandonment.” California’s homelessness crisis is a direct result of policy choices made by state and local lawmakers, the authors of two new books on the topic argue. The New Republic
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