Religious Adviser to Death Row Inmate Sues to Delay Execution, Citing Pandemic The longtime spiritual adviser to an inmate on federal death row is seeking to delay the July 15 execution because he worries about contracting COVID-19 at the prison.Updated at 11:49 a.m. ET The spiritual adviser to a federal inmate facing death this month has sued the U.S. attorney general and prison officials seeking a delay to his execution. The Rev. Seigen Hartkemeyer, 68, is a Buddhist priest with lung troubles. He's worried that traveling to the federal death chamber in Terre Haute, Ind., could put him in...…Religious Adviser to Death Row Inmate Sues to Delay Execution, Citing Pandemic The longtime spiritual adviser to an inmate on federal death row is seeking to delay the July 15 execution because he worries about contracting COVID-19 at the prison.Updated at 11:49 a.m. ET The spiritual adviser to a federal inmate facing death this month has sued the U.S. attorney general and prison officials seeking a delay to his execution. The Rev. Seigen Hartkemeyer, 68, is a Buddhist priest with lung troubles. He's worried that traveling to the federal death chamber in Terre Haute, Ind., could put him in...WW…

Michael Flynn Case Should Be Thrown Out, Appeals Court Says The judges rule that a lower court must dismiss the prosecution following requests both from Flynn and the Justice Department, which dropped its charges.Updated at 2:44 p.m. ET A federal appeals court in Washington ordered a lower court judge to dismiss the case against former national security adviser Michael Flynn on Wednesday. That ruling followed that the matter had become moot after both they and the Justice Department asked for the case to be dropped. Judge Emmet Sullivan and began a process to find out more about the Justice...…Michael Flynn Case Should Be Thrown Out, Appeals Court Says The judges rule that a lower court must dismiss the prosecution following requests both from Flynn and the Justice Department, which dropped its charges.Updated at 2:44 p.m. ET A federal appeals court in Washington ordered a lower court judge to dismiss the case against former national security adviser Michael Flynn on Wednesday. That ruling followed that the matter had become moot after both they and the Justice Department asked for the case to be dropped. Judge Emmet Sullivan and began a process to find out more about the Justice...WW…

Federal Prosecutors Discussed 'Burying' Evidence In Troubled New York Case The government acknowledged problems with sharing evidence with the defense, but prosecutors argue the missteps were inadvertent, not malicious. A judge is assessing the matter.Updated at 2:01 pm E.T. Federal prosecutors under scrutiny for failing to turn over favorable evidence to a defendant told a judge they didn't act in bad faith, even as they disclosed internal emails in which they discussed whether they might try to "bury" a document they were giving to defense lawyers in a stack of other papers. Prosecutors...…Federal Prosecutors Discussed 'Burying' Evidence In Troubled New York Case The government acknowledged problems with sharing evidence with the defense, but prosecutors argue the missteps were inadvertent, not malicious. A judge is assessing the matter.Updated at 2:01 pm E.T. Federal prosecutors under scrutiny for failing to turn over favorable evidence to a defendant told a judge they didn't act in bad faith, even as they disclosed internal emails in which they discussed whether they might try to "bury" a document they were giving to defense lawyers in a stack of other papers. Prosecutors...WW…

Trump's Judges, Mostly White Men, Will Rule For Decades The Senate majority leader, boosted by President Trump, hits a new milestone in his effort to "leave no vacancy behind." The judges, who are far from retirement age, are largely white men.Heard onToggle more optionsWith a boost from the Republican-led Senate, President Trump has now confirmed 200 federal judges. Each one has a life term, representing a that could extend for a generation. The president often trumpets the achievement in speeches and on Twitter. But the credit belongs as much to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell,...…Trump's Judges, Mostly White Men, Will Rule For Decades The Senate majority leader, boosted by President Trump, hits a new milestone in his effort to "leave no vacancy behind." The judges, who are far from retirement age, are largely white men.Heard onToggle more optionsWith a boost from the Republican-led Senate, President Trump has now confirmed 200 federal judges. Each one has a life term, representing a that could extend for a generation. The president often trumpets the achievement in speeches and on Twitter. But the credit belongs as much to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell,...WW…

Whistleblowers Allege Improper Hiring At Justice Department During Trump's Last Days The whistleblowers accuse Jeffrey Bossert Clark of conducting a "sham" process and elevating a person who volunteered to defend a controversial Trump policy on abortion access.Two whistleblowers assert that a Justice Department official improperly injected politics into the hiring process during his waning days in the Trump administration, . The whistleblowers accuse Jeffrey Bossert Clark of conducting a "sham" process and elevating a person who volunteered to defend a controversial Trump policy on abortion...…Whistleblowers Allege Improper Hiring At Justice Department During Trump's Last Days The whistleblowers accuse Jeffrey Bossert Clark of conducting a "sham" process and elevating a person who volunteered to defend a controversial Trump policy on abortion access.Two whistleblowers assert that a Justice Department official improperly injected politics into the hiring process during his waning days in the Trump administration, . The whistleblowers accuse Jeffrey Bossert Clark of conducting a "sham" process and elevating a person who volunteered to defend a controversial Trump policy on abortion...WW…

Pennsylvania Sentencing Case Challenges 'Felony Murder' More than 1,000 people are serving life sentences in Pennsylvania, even though they never intended to kill anyone — 70% of them are Black. A lawsuit calls the concept cruel and unconstitutional.Heard onToggle more optionsA first-of-its-kind court case in Pennsylvania is asking a big question: How long do people need to stay in prison before they get a second chance? More than 1,000 people are serving life without parole in Pennsylvania, even though they never intended to kill anyone. Seventy percent of those people are Black. I met...…Pennsylvania Sentencing Case Challenges 'Felony Murder' More than 1,000 people are serving life sentences in Pennsylvania, even though they never intended to kill anyone — 70% of them are Black. A lawsuit calls the concept cruel and unconstitutional.Heard onToggle more optionsA first-of-its-kind court case in Pennsylvania is asking a big question: How long do people need to stay in prison before they get a second chance? More than 1,000 people are serving life without parole in Pennsylvania, even though they never intended to kill anyone. Seventy percent of those people are Black. I met...WW…

New DOJ Leadership Will Inherit Julian Assange Case And Others Zachary Terwilliger told NPR he isn't sure whether the Justice Department will continue trying to extradite after a defeat in court. Terwilliger, meanwhile, is set to hang up his U.S. flag pin.Updated at 10:25 a.m. ET The federal prosecutor seeking to try WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Espionage Act charges said he's uncertain about whether the administration of President-elect Joe Biden would continue the extradition effort. Zachary Terwilliger, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, pointed out that the...…New DOJ Leadership Will Inherit Julian Assange Case And Others Zachary Terwilliger told NPR he isn't sure whether the Justice Department will continue trying to extradite after a defeat in court. Terwilliger, meanwhile, is set to hang up his U.S. flag pin.Updated at 10:25 a.m. ET The federal prosecutor seeking to try WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Espionage Act charges said he's uncertain about whether the administration of President-elect Joe Biden would continue the extradition effort. Zachary Terwilliger, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, pointed out that the...WW…

Watchdogs Seek New Support For Their Work Under Biden "Our job, we know, has never been more important, more significant, or more challenging than it is right now," says Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz.Updated at 4 p.m. ET Federal watchdogs who guard against fraud foresee plenty of work to keep them busy next year: from more than 100 investigations related to the coronavirus pandemic to new probes over misuse of some of the nearly $3.5 trillion in stimulus money. The federal government's 75 inspectors general, as they're known, are reeling from chaos in the Trump era,...…Watchdogs Seek New Support For Their Work Under Biden "Our job, we know, has never been more important, more significant, or more challenging than it is right now," says Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz.Updated at 4 p.m. ET Federal watchdogs who guard against fraud foresee plenty of work to keep them busy next year: from more than 100 investigations related to the coronavirus pandemic to new probes over misuse of some of the nearly $3.5 trillion in stimulus money. The federal government's 75 inspectors general, as they're known, are reeling from chaos in the Trump era,...WW…

Barr Announces New Charges In 1988 Lockerbie Bombing The new charges follow decades of work by Justice Department leaders aimed at investigating and prosecuting those responsible for 270 deaths.Heard onToggle more optionsUpdated at 5:30 p.m. ET The U.S. Justice Department has charged a Libyan man with constructing a bomb that detonated on a passenger plane over Lockerbie, Scotland, in 1988, killing 270 people and launching a decades-long international manhunt for the culprits. U.S. Attorney General William Barr Monday — exactly 32 years after that deadly flight — that the department is...…Barr Announces New Charges In 1988 Lockerbie Bombing The new charges follow decades of work by Justice Department leaders aimed at investigating and prosecuting those responsible for 270 deaths.Heard onToggle more optionsUpdated at 5:30 p.m. ET The U.S. Justice Department has charged a Libyan man with constructing a bomb that detonated on a passenger plane over Lockerbie, Scotland, in 1988, killing 270 people and launching a decades-long international manhunt for the culprits. U.S. Attorney General William Barr Monday — exactly 32 years after that deadly flight — that the department is...WW…

Advocates Push For Resurrection Of DOJ Civil Rights Division Under Biden Critics say President Trump constrained the Civil Rights Division from being as effective as it should. Business could look very different under the new incoming administration.Toggle more optionsSix months after Donald Trump became president, he delivered remarks about law enforcement that set the tone for civil rights. In a speech to law enforcement officers on Long Island, : "Please don't be too nice." To applause from the crowd, the president added that it might not be necessary to protect the heads of suspects...…Advocates Push For Resurrection Of DOJ Civil Rights Division Under Biden Critics say President Trump constrained the Civil Rights Division from being as effective as it should. Business could look very different under the new incoming administration.Toggle more optionsSix months after Donald Trump became president, he delivered remarks about law enforcement that set the tone for civil rights. In a speech to law enforcement officers on Long Island, : "Please don't be too nice." To applause from the crowd, the president added that it might not be necessary to protect the heads of suspects...WW…