LEGAL NEWSLINE

LITTLE ROCK – Attorney General Tim Griffin issued a statement regarding the unanimous decision of the Arkansas Supreme Court to dismiss Reynolds v. Thurston, a suit seeking to bypass state laws on ballot title submissions and place constitutional amendments on paper ballots and absentee voting directly on the ballot.

Two Estonian nationals will make their initial appearance in the U.S. District Court in Seattle at 5:00 p.m. EDT today following their extradition from Estonia to the United States to face criminal charges related to their roles in a massive multi-faceted cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme.

The North Dakota Ethics Commission is set to host a webinar titled "Dakota Dilemmas: Navigating the Complaint Process" on June 25, 2024. The event will take place from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM CDT and aims to elucidate the procedures involved in handling complaints regarding violations of the Ethics Commission’s rules, Article XIV of the North Dakota Constitution, and related state laws.

Attorney General Kris Mayes announced today the conviction and first prison sentence in a case related to the ongoing Medicaid fraud scandal. Ariell Dix, 37, pleaded guilty to two felony charges of illegal control of an enterprise. She was sentenced to three and a half years in prison for her role in the scheme.

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost announced a significant settlement with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in his lawsuit challenging the NCAA’s double transfer rule, which restricts college athletes' ability to compete after transferring to another school.

(COLUMBIA, S.C.) - South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced the arrest of Larry Ray Vickery, Jr., 52, of Anderson, S.C., on seven charges connected to the sexual exploitation of a minor. Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force investigators with the South Carolina Attorney General's Office made the arrest. Investigators with the Anderson County Sheriff's Office, Anderson Police Department, S.C. Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon, and the U.S. Secret Service, all members of the state's ICAC Task Force, assisted with this investigation.

Attorney General Moody urges Biden administration to stop continued support of Cuba’s communist interests

The Maine Justice Foundation has announced that applications for the 2024 Access to Justice Program will be open from June 1 through June 17, 2024. The program aims to provide tax credits to support legal services for underserved communities.

Gregory Edward McLean, 40, of Jacksonville, Florida, was sentenced today to 160 months for distributing child sexual abuse material and 120 months for unlawfully retaining classified national defense information. The sentences will be served concurrently.

Attorney General Jason Miyares announced today that Michael Donivan White, 36, originally from Cross, South Carolina, pleaded guilty to the first-degree murder of Big Stone Gap Police Officer Michael Chandler. The plea was entered in Wise County Circuit Court with assistance from the Office of the Attorney General.

May 30, 2024 (DENVER) – Attorney General Phil Weiser today joined attorneys general from across the country and the U.S. Department of Justice in announcing a significant settlement with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The agreement permanently eases restrictions on Division I college athletes who have transferred schools multiple times and enhances their rights and opportunities.

Under the federal DOJ grant obtained by John Gourde, a strong North Dakota delegation attended the RISE24 conference. The event aimed to provide attendees with insights into drug trends, best practice standards, and the psychology of addiction, among other topics.

Attorney General Ken Paxton announced that Gwendolyn Gibbs, 72, owner of the Houston-area Daybreak Rehabilitation Center, was sentenced to 84 months in federal prison for orchestrating a $15 million health care fraud and kickback scheme. Gibbs was also ordered to pay $8,680,380 in restitution to government health care programs and will be subject to three years of supervised release following her prison term.

Kansas district courts affected by an October 12 cybersecurity incident have completed addressing a backlog of new cases and paper documents filed while court information systems were offline from mid-October to early January.

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti and Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch announced a multi-state lawsuit today, challenging a new rule from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The rule redefines the Affordable Care Act’s prohibition against discrimination on the basis of "sex" to include "gender identity." Under threat of severe penalties, it would require medical providers to perform surgeries and administer hormone drugs for gender transition to both children and adults, irrespective of a doctor's medical judgment on the appropriateness...

A Colombian national was sentenced today to 48 years and nine months in prison for his role in kidnapping and assaulting two U.S. Army soldiers who were on temporary duty in Bogota, Colombia.

HARRISBURG — Attorney General Michelle Henry announced an agreement with UPMC and Washington Health Care Services to preserve affordable access to health care in Washington and Greene Counties in connection with UPMC’s acquisition of Washington Health Care Services.

Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter delivered remarks at the Promoting Competition in Artificial Intelligence Workshop on May 30, 2024. The event was co-hosted by the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research and the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Chicago – Attorney General Kwame Raoul, along with the offices of 10 state attorneys general and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), announced a significant settlement with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) that permanently eases restrictions on Division I college athletes who have transferred schools multiple times and enhances their rights and opportunities.

On May 15, 2024, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a nuisance abatement lawsuit in Williamson County Courts to halt the operations of Sun Spa, an illicit massage business located on Pond Springs Road in Austin. The lawsuit followed an investigation by the Office of the Attorney General’s (OAG) Human Trafficking Unit, which uncovered evidence of illicit sexual activity at the establishment.