Civil Rights
State constitutions guarantee equality, freedom from discrimination, fair treatment under the law, and a broad range of other civil rights. Issues that regularly crop up in state court include discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, sex, sexual orientation or identity, age, or disability, abuses of power by government actors, as well as the availability of monetary damages for such state constitutional violations.
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Missouri Attorney General Clashes with Prosecutor Trying to Exonerate Man on Death Row
Marcellus Williams is set to be executed in September, but the prosecutor says he was wrongfully convicted.
What the SCOTUS Term Means for State Courts
Some of the Court’s most important holdings — including on abortion, gun restrictions, and presidential immunity — have implications for state courts and constitutions.
Confederate Monuments and State Constitutions
Courts considering removal of Confederate monuments have ignored southern states’ Reconstruction-era commitments to maintaining national unity and respecting racial equality.
Iowa Supreme Court Allows Six-Week Abortion Ban to Take Effect
The court’s stance on reproductive health has shifted dramatically since 2018, when it held that abortion was a fundamental right under the state constitution.
Texas Supreme Court to Hear Arguments Over Ban on Gender-Affirming Care for Transgender Minors
Families of transgender children are asking the court to reinstate a temporary injunction blocking the ban.
Texas Supreme Court Refuses to Block Ban on Certain Medical Care for Trans Minors
The court said the ban does not infringe on parents’ right to choose medical care for their children.
SCOTUS’s Review of Ban on Trans Health Care Highlights Need for State Litigation
Even if the U.S. Supreme Court decides that bans on gender-affirming care for trans youth are constitutional, state courts can strike down such laws under state constitutions.
SCOTUS’s 2nd Amendment Decision Leaves Open Questions for State Courts
The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the disarmament of a domestic abuser in United States v. Rahimi, but litigation over where to draw the line will continue.