December 20, 2015 Kan. lawmakers OK bill to void local gun rules Kansas legislators gave final approval Saturday to a bill that would nullify city and county gun restrictions and ensure that it's legal across the state to openly carry firearms, a measure the National Rifle Association sees as a nationwide model for stripping local officials of their gun-regulating power.
December 20, 2015 Secrecy surrounds execution drugs in most states Dating to the days when the guillotine operator or the hangman wore a mask, a certain amount of anonymity has always surrounded executions. But that secrecy is increasingly coming under fire, with judges, death penalty opponents and lawyers questioning why so little can be known about a state's most solemn responsibility.
December 20, 2015 Missouri House passes bill aimed at nullifying federal gun control laws Under the bill, which passed with enough support to override a possible veto, Missouri would refuse to enforce past, present and future federal gun control laws that are deemed to be infringements on gun rights.
December 20, 2015 Colorado lawmakers weigh ban on red-light, speeding traffic cameras A proposal to ban red-light and speeding cameras in Colorado is back at the Capitol, and the bill sponsor says he has more support than when he pitched the idea two years ago.
December 20, 2015 Florida lawmakers approve 'warning shot' bill revising self-defense laws The Florida Senate on Thursday approved the so-called warning shot bill, moving to significantly revise the state's self-defense laws for the first time since the shooting death of Trayvon Martin.
December 20, 2015 Utah governor signs bill giving fathers new rights in adoption cases Utah Gov. Gary Herbert has signed off on a partial fix to the state's controversial adoption law, in a bid to close a loophole allowing women from other states to give birth and put their babies up for adoption in Utah -- without the knowledge or consent of the biological father.
December 20, 2015 Mississippi governor to sign bill banning abortion at 20 weeks Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant said Tuesday that he looks forward to quickly signing a bill that would ban abortion at 20 weeks, the midpoint of a full-term pregnancy.
December 20, 2015 SC bill to make mammoth official state fossil on ice over 'God' amendment A bill fulfilling an 8-year-old girl’s wish to designate a type of woolly mammoth as South Carolina’s official state fossil has been put on ice after a state senator proposed an amendment declaring God created the animal.
December 20, 2015 Federal judge rules North Dakota abortion law unconstitutional U.S. District Judge Daniel Hovland on Wednesday ruled that the law banning abortions when a fetal heartbeat is detected is "invalid and unconstitutional."Â
December 20, 2015 After Sandy, feds mull plan for artificial islands off New jersey, New York A string of artificial islands off the coast of New Jersey and New York could blunt the impact of storm surges that proved so deadly during Superstorm Sandy, according to a proposal vying for attention and funding as the region continues its recovery.