RALEIGH, N.C. - North Carolina lawmakers are pushing ahead with a bill (SB 306) that would restart executions in the state and repeal the landmark Racial Justice Act (RJA). The RJA allows inmates to argue that race was a factor in their sentencing or jury selection, and if they are successful, it co ...Read More

ST. PAUL, Minn. - With the crisis over sexual assaults in the military growing as more details emerge by the week, a Minnesota congresswoman is calling for an extensive investigation by the U.S. House of Representatives. Rep. Betty McCollum, D-Minn., has introduced legislation to establish a "Speci ...Read More

AUSTIN, Texas - The Texas Senate is expected to vote today on a bill that supporters say will help preserve privacy in the digital age. One part of the legislation, Senate Bill 1052, would require law enforcement to secure a probable-cause warrant before using cell-phone tracking technology to foll ...Read More

RICHMOND, Va. - As a U.S. Senate committee prepares to vote this week on a sweeping immigration reform bill, advocates for children say it contains critical provisions for protecting and helping immigrant youth. It includes a pathway to citizenship, and other provisions to keep families together. ...Read More

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - It's been ten years since Congress passed the Prison Rape Elimination Act, but a new Justice Department inmate survey shows sexual violence still plagues U.S. detention facilities. The report says the Baltimore City Detention Center has one of the highest rates of staff and inmate s ...Read More

ST. PAUL, Minn. - As Minnesota lawmakers wrap up their 2013 session, one of the new statutes that has emerged aims to prevent seniors and others from being scammed through wire transfers of money. According to DFL Rep. Joe Atkins, for one thing, money transfers to locations other than the original ...Read More

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - After watching a string of disappointments from Congress, a national women's grassroots organization is celebrating Maryland's new gun law. Today, Gov. Martin O'Malley signs legislation banning 45 types of assault weapons. It also limits gun magazines to 10 bullets and requires toug ...Read More

INDIANAPOLIS - An Indiana attorney, who is also a state senator, has noticed an uptick in Hoosier seniors being intimidated in financial matters by con artists, salespeople, even family. The Indiana Division of Aging indicates financial exploitation of seniors went up 80 percent between 2001 and 201 ...Read More