Illegal Immigration: The ACLU has filed a lawsuit to block an executive order by the Governor of Rhode Island cracking down on illegal immigrants. A story by AP writer Ray Henry reports that Governor Carcieri has ordered employers doing business with the state to check the immigration status of new hires, and police and prison officials to check the status of arrestees and inmates for possible deportation. The lawsuit claims that the crackdown could encourage employers to discriminate against workers who appear foreign.

Summer Homicides in LA have dropped to a level not seen since 1967 according to this Los Angeles Times story by Joel Rubin. From June to August, there were 84 homicides reported in LA compared with roughly 125 killings reported each summer over the past decade. For the year, homicides are down 8.5% to date. Police Chief William Bratton attributes the decline to his department's aggressive anti-gang program and the hiring of hundreds of additional officers.

Virginia's DNA Database has generated 5,000 cold hits and become a national model according to this story by Scott Shenk in the Charlottesville Daily Progress. Albermarle Sheriff J.E. Chip Harding, who pushed through legislation last year that added 11,000 new profiles to the data base, wants to include felons going back to 1990, which could add 30,000 more. The Virginia ACLU is opposed, arguing that adding the new profiles undermines the privacy rights of felons.