The Latest Breaking News from Institute for Justice

Short Circuit: An inexhaustive weekly compendium of rulings from the federal courts of appeal

Rebellions, rebels without a cause, and military discounts.

Reason · Oct 23

The Feds Took $460,000 From This Arizona Convenience Store Owner and Never Explained Why

Mario Ayala is seeking the return of his property, which federal agents seized more than a year and a half ago for reasons that remain mysterious.

Reason · Oct 21

No Council Vote Required: How Flock Safety Cameras End Up in Cities That Never Approved Them

How police departments use spending thresholds, sole-source exemptions, and free trials to deploy Flock cameras without a council vote.

Latin Times · Oct 20

Lakewood West End Blight Fight: residents repeal label after tight 2003 vote; case feeds post-Kelo debate

In 2003, residents of Lakewood faced a contentious situation when the city labeled their neighborhood as blighted, leading to legal resistance from property owners. With the support of the Institute for Justice, a narrow vote later rejected the redevelopment plan. By 2004, a new election successfully lifted the blighted designation,…

The Times of India · Oct 2

Cops Used AI Surveillance To Detain an Innocent Texas Driver. His Lawsuit Just Got the Program Struck Down.

AI-powered license plate readers flagged an abnormal driving pattern. Then officers made up reasons to pull him over and interrogated him, and they faked a K-9 alert to justify a nonconsensual search.

Reason · Sep 30

A Texas family has owned land in Freeport since 1940; after the port sought to seize it in 2020

The Marshall family from Texas is challenging a recent decision that permits Port Freeport to exercise eminent domain for a new cold-storage facility. Claiming the ruling is unconstitutional, they assert that the port is misusing its authority for private gain, infringing upon Texas property regulations. Legal analysts indicate that this…

The Times of India · Sep 30

Judge Blocks Warrantless ICE Construction Site Raids After Agents in Alabama Arrested a U.S. Citizen 3 Times

Being on a construction site "does not open the floodgates to warrantless government intrusion," a federal judge ruled in a lawsuit filed by a construction worker who has been detained three times by ICE.

Reason · Sep 21

The Feds Are Spying on Your Bank Account

While the Treasury forces money changers to report on suspected immigrants, Homeland Security is having police pull people over for suspicious transactions.

Reason · Sep 9

Aimed at Cartels, FinCEN's Cash Reporting Order Is Shutting Down Small Businesses at the Border

Border money-transfer shops have filed 700,000 federal cash reports under a low-dollar rule now blocked in court — and customers are the ones vanishing.

Latin Times · Aug 16

Supreme Court Agrees To Hear Case of Alaska Pilot Whose $95,000 Plane Was Seized Over a 6-Pack of Beer

Ken Jouppi's Eighth Amendment challenge asks the Court to decide whether a fine must be proportional to the gravity of the crime.

Reason · Jul 21