US prosecutors told to push for more, harsher punishments
Attorney General Jeff Sessions is directing federal prosecutors to pursue the most serious charges possible against the vast majority of suspects, a reversal of Obama-era policies that is sure to send more people to prison and for much longer terms.
Harsher sentences could result from guidance weighed by DOJ
Justice Department officials have been weighing new guidance that would encourage prosecutors to charge suspects with the most serious offenses they can prove, a reversal of Obama-era policies that aimed to reduce the federal prison population and show more leniency to lower-level drug offenders.
Justice Dept. warns of fewer election observers at the polls
Justice Department officials are warning that they’ll be dispatching fewer trained election observers as a result of a Supreme Court opinion that gutted a key provision of the Voting Rights Act.
Feds review concerns over Hattiesburg charges
The U.S. Justice Department is reviewing questions from U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson as to whether investigators are unfairly targeting black officials in Forrest County.
Justice Department sues Mississippi over mental health care
The U.S. Justice Department sued Mississippi on Thursday, saying the state is violating the Americans With Disabilities Act by “unnecessarily and illegally” making mentally ill people go into state-run psychiatric hospitals.
Miss. prosecutor sets up civil rights unit
The head of the U.S. Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division says there’s more work to be done to guarantee the rights of citizens in Mississippi and nationwide.
Boycott over LGBT law impacts more than just the music fans
Stagehand Kery Eller doesn’t own any Bruce Springsteen albums, but he would smash them if he did.
N.C. governor’s lawsuit against feds may shift narrative on LGBT law
After weeks of taking a beating from critics over North Carolina’s law dictating which restrooms transgender people can use, Gov. Pat McCrory adopted a strategy long favored by Southern conservative governors: He went after the federal government.
US gives directive to schools on transgender bathroom access
Public schools must permit transgender students to use bathrooms and locker rooms consistent with their chosen gender identity, according to an Obama administration directive issued amid a court fight between the federal government and North Carolina.
‘Folks back home’ have varying views on N. Carolina LGBT law
In defending a law limiting protections for LGBT people, North Carolina’s powerful Republican Senate leader recently said that “folks back home” couldn’t understand the outcry that’s included loud demonstrations, and dozens of arrests, over the law.
Debate over transgender bathroom access spreads nationwide
There was a showdown in Houston last fall. This spring, North Carolina became the battleground. By now, confrontations have flared across the country over whether to protect or curtail the right of transgender people to use public restrooms in accordance with their gender identity.
US sues North Carolina over transgender bathroom law
A potentially epic clash over transgender rights took shape Monday when the U.S. Justice Department sued North Carolina over the state’s bathroom law after the governor refused to back down.
N.C. gov. faces Fed’s deadline on LGBT law
North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory shows no signs of backing down in the face of the federal government’s deadline today to declare he won’t enforce the new state law limiting protections for LGBT people — defiance that could risk funding for the state’s university system and lead to a protracted legal battle.
NC college system’s federal funds in crosshairs of LGBT law
North Carolina’s prized public universities could be the biggest losers as state leaders defend a new law limiting the rights of LGBT people.
N.C. leaders denounce federal threat on LGBT law
Giving no indication of yielding to pressure, North Carolina’s Republican leaders called a federal warning about the legality of the state’s new law limiting LGBT anti-discrimination rules a broad overreach by the government.
DOJ, schools ask for OK on desegregation order
Department of Justice and Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District officials appear to have reached an agreement on a permanent desegregation order for the school system, and both sides’ attorneys have asked a federal judge to approve the new document.
SOCSD proposes bringing East elementary students to city campuses
Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District administrators propose bringing kindergarten through fifth grade students attending East Elementary School to city middle schools to satisfy Department of Justice issues with racial diversity at the county campus.
DOJ, SOCSD ask for new desegregation report due date
Department of Justice and Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District representatives are asking a judge for more time to negotiate a long-term desegregation order.
Justice Dept. encourages prosecutions of corporate execs
The Justice Department issued new guidance to its prosecutors Wednesday, aimed at encouraging more white-collar criminal and civil cases against corporate executives.
DOJ says Indian tribes can grow and sell marijuana
Indian tribes can grow and sell marijuana on their lands as long as they follow the same federal conditions laid out for states that have legalized the drug, the U.S. Justice Department said Thursday.