BREAKING NEWS
Florida's Marco Rubio wins 3rd Senate term, defeats Demings
Read full article: Florida's Marco Rubio wins 3rd Senate term, defeats DemingsRepublican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio has won a third term, defeating U.S. Rep. Val Demings and holding a key seat as the GOP tried to regain control of a closely divided Senate.
Autistic Cambodian teen, jailed for online comments, freed
Read full article: Autistic Cambodian teen, jailed for online comments, freedAn autistic Cambodian teenager has been released from prison after serving time for posting comments critical of the government on social media in a case that has attracted international attention.
High court skeptical of Texas death row inmate prayer demand
Read full article: High court skeptical of Texas death row inmate prayer demandConservative Supreme Court justices are expressing skepticism about saying that Texas must agree to a death row inmate’s request to allow a chaplain to pray out loud and touch him during his execution.
Cambodian activist decries delayed release of autistic son
Read full article: Cambodian activist decries delayed release of autistic sonA Cambodian activist has denounced a delay in releasing her autistic teenage son, who has been imprisoned for comments critical of the government he made on social media.
Texas executions face delays over religious rights claims
Read full article: Texas executions face delays over religious rights claimsExecutions in the nation’s busiest capital punishment state face delays amid legal questions over Texas’ refusal to allow spiritual advisers to touch people as they are being put to death.
Another Texas execution delayed on religious freedom claims
Read full article: Another Texas execution delayed on religious freedom claimsAnother Texas inmate has had his execution delayed over claims the state is violating his religious freedom by not letting his spiritual adviser lay hands on him at the time of his lethal injection.
Phillies rally past Nationals 7-6, complete series sweep
Read full article: Phillies rally past Nationals 7-6, complete series sweepAndrew McCutchen drove in four runs and the Philadelphia Phillies erased a six-run deficit against the Washington Nationals to earn a 7-6 victory and a three-game sweep.
Angels' Ohtani hits 38th HR, but Jays hit 4 in 10-2 win
Read full article: Angels' Ohtani hits 38th HR, but Jays hit 4 in 10-2 winShohei Ohtani hit his major league-leading 38th home run this season, but the Toronto Blue Jays hit it out of the park four times, including two from George Springer and a grand slam by Teoscar Hernandez, to defeat the Los Angeles Angels 10-2.
Colorado man suspected in wife's death appears in court
Read full article: Colorado man suspected in wife's death appears in courtA Colorado man suspected in the death of his wife who disappeared last Mother’s Day made his first appearance in court Thursday to be advised of the charges he could face, including first-degree murder.
Religion and the death penalty collide at the Supreme Court
Read full article: Religion and the death penalty collide at the Supreme CourtThe order from the high court follows two years in which inmates saw some rare success in bringing challenges based on the issue of chaplains in the death chamber. This time, liberal and conservative members of the court normally in disagreement over death penalty issues found common ground not on the death penalty itself but on the issue of religious freedom and how the death penalty is carried out. Dunham said most state execution protocols, which set who is present in the death chamber, do not mention spiritual advisers. For most of the modern history of the U.S. death penalty since the 1970s, spiritual advisers have not been present in execution chambers, he said. The Biden administration is still weighing how it will proceed in death penalty cases.
High court orders continued look at Texas death row case
Read full article: High court orders continued look at Texas death row caseFILE - In this Nov. 6, 2020, file photo the Supreme Court is seen as sundown in Washington. The Supreme Court is telling a lower court to continue to consider a case brought by a Texas death row inmate protesting a policy that means a chaplain cant accompany him into the death chamber. That change came after the Supreme Court halted the execution of another inmate, Patrick Murphy, who requested a Buddhist adviser be allowed in the chamber. By changing the policy, Texas argued all inmates were being treated the same. Gutierrez is on death row for fatally stabbing an 85-year-old woman.
US Supreme Court halts Texas execution over clergy question
Read full article: US Supreme Court halts Texas execution over clergy questionThe U.S. Supreme Court blocked Ruben Gutierrezs execution about an hour before he could have been executed. The Texas prison system last year banned clergy from the death chamber following a Supreme Court ruling that halted the execution of another inmate, Patrick Murphy, who had requested a Buddhist adviser be allowed in the chamber. Six executions scheduled in Texas for earlier this year were postponed by an appeals court or judges because of the outbreak. Gutierrezs attorneys had also sought a coronavirus-related delay but were turned down Friday by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. The Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops has filed a brief with the high court in support of Gutierrez.