Plus new video on small-town government retaliation. | View in browser
Institute for Justice updates
Free Speech
Small-Town Newspaper Punished for Its Reporting Fights for the First Amendment
In lower Alabama, four people with deep ties to their community—the co-owner of a small-town newspaper, her reporter, a school board member, and a school board employee—found themselves in jail, all facing the same unusual criminal charge: sharing grand jury secrets. Rather than let a political disagreement be settled at the ballot box, a district attorney and sheriff waged a campaign of retaliation resulting in the arrests. Now, the “Atmore Four” are suing with IJ over the violation of their constitutional rights..
Department of Justice Suspends Controversial Airport Interdictions After Viral Footage
The Department of Justice suspended the Drug Enforcement Administration’s controversial practice of having agents intercept travelers, interrogate them, and insist on searching their bags in what the agency calls “consensual encounters.” That suspension comes on the heels of an Office of the Inspector General report that criticizes the practice and refers to shocking footage of one traveler’s experience, which IJ released on YouTube in July.
Despite Dark Warnings, Study Shows New Mexico’s Civil Forfeiture Reform Did Not Affect Crime Rates
A new IJ study just published in Criminal Justice Review answers an important question for New Mexicans: Did reforming civil forfeiture make them less safe? The study of nine years of crime data found that, no, crime did not rise when law enforcement lost the ability to take property without charging people with a crime.
As we enter the season of giving and gratitude, we'd like to say a special thank you to everyone who makes our work possible. At IJ, we're grateful for our courageous clients, our amazing attorneys and other staff, and our steadfast supporters.
Beyond the Brief: When Lawsuits Go Viral with @CivilRightsLawyer
We’re talking with special guest John Bryan, better known as The Civil Rights Lawyer. John knows firsthand how difficult civil rights lawsuits have become–and he previously partnered with IJ to overcome one of the many immunity doctrines that make it nearly impossible for ordinary people to vindicate their rights in court.
The Rooker-Feldman doctrine is a weed that has grown to crowd out justiciable federal claims in the federal courts. Our guest details how a doctrine that is supposed to prevent appeals from state court to the lower federal courts has become a catch-all to get rid of deserving cases.
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