Court Gives Green Light to Death Penalty Fast-Tracking: The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the Department of Justice Wednesday to allow states to expedite inmates' death penalty appeals through federal court, throwing out a lower court ruling that blocked the certification process. Sudhin Thanawala of the AP reports that the fast-track program requires condemned inmates to file petitions in federal court within six months of a final ruling on their appeal in state court, the typical timeline for which is one year. It also requires federal courts to take quicker action on inmate petitions. "This decision is important not only for the families of murder victims, but also for everyone in the United States who depends upon the rule of law and relies upon the court to follow it," said CJLF legal director Kent Scheidegger.
Officials Brace for Another Surge of Migrant Children: Border Patrol officials are preparing for another influx of unaccompanied children coming through the border this summer, which "may exceed" the thousands who made the trip from Central America in 2014. Joel Gehrke of the Washington Examiner reports that officials anticipate that the crisis may hit "at exactly the wrong moment, politically" amid Congress' extended summer recess and the Republican National Convention in July. As of Jan. 31 of this fiscal year, U.S. Customs and Border Protection had apprehended 20,000 unaccompanied children at the border, compared to the approximately 10,000 apprehended during the same period the year before. Because the numbers spiked well before the "traditional season of higher migration," border officials are bracing for another summer humanitarian crisis. Though Congressional Republicans likely won't pass major immigration legislation ahead of the 2016 presidential election, House Speaker Paul Ryan has floated the idea of a House task force on national security that could produce a border security proposal.
Thousands Arrested in Sweep Targeting Violent Offenders: Over 13,000 violent fugitives with open warrants were arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service as part of a national operation targeting the "worst of the worst" habitual offenders, the Justice Department announced Wednesday. Andrea Noble of the Washington Times reports that Operation Violence Reduction, which ran from Feb. 1 to March 11, resulted in the capture of 8,045 fugitives with open warrants and another 5,446 fugitives arrested in the course of the operation. Of those apprehended, 559 were wanted for homicide, 946 for sex offenses and 648 were known gang members. The offenders averaged a total of seven prior arrests and three prior convictions each. No law enforcement officials were killed during the sweep.
Officials Brace for Another Surge of Migrant Children: Border Patrol officials are preparing for another influx of unaccompanied children coming through the border this summer, which "may exceed" the thousands who made the trip from Central America in 2014. Joel Gehrke of the Washington Examiner reports that officials anticipate that the crisis may hit "at exactly the wrong moment, politically" amid Congress' extended summer recess and the Republican National Convention in July. As of Jan. 31 of this fiscal year, U.S. Customs and Border Protection had apprehended 20,000 unaccompanied children at the border, compared to the approximately 10,000 apprehended during the same period the year before. Because the numbers spiked well before the "traditional season of higher migration," border officials are bracing for another summer humanitarian crisis. Though Congressional Republicans likely won't pass major immigration legislation ahead of the 2016 presidential election, House Speaker Paul Ryan has floated the idea of a House task force on national security that could produce a border security proposal.
Thousands Arrested in Sweep Targeting Violent Offenders: Over 13,000 violent fugitives with open warrants were arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service as part of a national operation targeting the "worst of the worst" habitual offenders, the Justice Department announced Wednesday. Andrea Noble of the Washington Times reports that Operation Violence Reduction, which ran from Feb. 1 to March 11, resulted in the capture of 8,045 fugitives with open warrants and another 5,446 fugitives arrested in the course of the operation. Of those apprehended, 559 were wanted for homicide, 946 for sex offenses and 648 were known gang members. The offenders averaged a total of seven prior arrests and three prior convictions each. No law enforcement officials were killed during the sweep.
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