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Federal Judge Blocks Florida Law, Protecting Transgender Teacher’s Pronouns in the Classroom

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A federal judge in Tallahassee has issued a preliminary injunction blocking Florida from enforcing a law that requires a transgender teacher to use pronouns that align with her sex assigned at birth. The judge ruled that the law violated the teacher’s First Amendment rights. The 2023 law restricts the use of personal pronouns and titles by educators in schools. Violations of the law can result in teachers losing their certifications and hefty financial penalties for school districts. The law is one of several measures supported by the Republican-controlled Legislature and Governor Ron … Read more

Portland City Council Settles Lawsuit Over Withheld Text Messages with $167,000 Payment

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Portland, Oregon – The Portland City Council has agreed to pay almost $167,000 to settle a lawsuit that accused the city and Mayor Ted Wheeler of withholding a large number of text messages from a public records request. The lawsuit followed an investigation that found Wheeler and other city officials regularly violated city policy by using iMessage on their city-issued iPhones. The city’s public records software at the time was unable to access iMessages. The state public records law mandates that government officials preserve all written communication, including text messages and emails, and provide them … Read more

Jimmy Kimmel Injects Humor into Trump’s Hush Money Trial with Alternative Juror Questionnaire

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Los Angeles, CA – Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel injected humor into Donald Trump’s hush money trial proceedings on Tuesday night, offering an alternative questionnaire for jurors in the case. Despite Trump’s attempts to dismiss or delay the case, he is facing trial for allegedly falsifying business records to cover up payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels and others to prevent them from going public about alleged affairs before the 2016 presidential election. The judge released a list of 42 questions to be used for selecting jurors, which includes inquiries about affiliations with white … Read more

Florida Governor Signs Legislation to Protect Children from Exploitation and Combat Domestic Violence, Inspired by Gabby Petito’s Tragic Story

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ST. PETERSBURG, Florida — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a series of bills on Wednesday aimed at protecting children from exploitation and online predators, as well as a domestic violence bill inspired by the tragic killing of Gabby Petito. During a news conference in St. Petersburg, DeSantis signed five pieces of legislation. One of the bills, referred to as the “Gabby Petito Act” or SB 1224, requires law enforcement officers investigating domestic violence incidents to administer a lethality assessment under certain circumstances. The assessment involves asking a series of questions to determine if the victim … Read more