May 8, 1867: Trolley segregation ends in New Orleans

Since their inaugural service in the 1830s, streetcars were a source of both convenience and resentment for the Black citizens of New Orleans. With their access limited by local “Black codes” only to “star cars”—segregated trolleys emblazoned with a black star—even free Black workers, housewives and shoppers found a daily reminder that their freedom bore scant resemblance to that of whites.

Apr 1, 2024 12:05 AM CDT

March 28, 1898: Supreme Court affirms birthright citizenship of Wong Kim Ark

Although it took them more than a year to decide U.S. v. Wong Kim Ark, the justices ruled 6-2 on March 28, 1898, that the 14th Amendment means what it says: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and the state wherein they reside.”

Feb 1, 2024 12:05 AM CST

Dec. 8, 1993: Supreme Court listens to John Fogerty

In late October 1988, John Fogerty—the voice and focus of the meteoric rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival—took the witness stand in a San Francisco courtroom. He also took his guitar.

Dec 1, 2023 12:10 AM CST

Nov. 28, 1953: LSD and the death of a CIA scientist

The mystery began in the early morning hours of Nov. 28, 1953, soon after Frank Olson plunged onto the pavement in front of New York City’s Hotel Statler. Two decades later, the mystery surrounding Olson’s death would result in a lawsuit, a presidential apology and a six-figure settlement.

Oct 1, 2023 12:10 AM CDT

Sept. 25, 1930: U.S. names its first drug czar

Even before the end of Prohibition in 1933, public concern about narcotics addiction had been mounting. In the latter half of the 19th century, various opioids and cocaine were used in “patent medicines” and were widely available for sale, with drug laws and their enforcement deferred to the states.

Aug 1, 2023 12:10 AM CDT

June 3, 1943: The zoot suit riots begin

On June 3, 1943, an estimated 50 sailors stationed in Los Angeles crammed into taxis and swarmed into the nearby Alpine Street neighborhood of East LA, where they began beating a group of teens, several dressed in zoot suits—the loose-fitting bib and tucker associated in the local press with Mexican American youth gangs.

Jun 1, 2023 12:05 AM CDT

May 20, 1863: The 10th Supreme Court Justice

By the time he was sworn in on May 20, 1863, after having been nominated by President Abraham Lincoln to a 10th seat on the U.S. Supreme Court two months earlier, 46-year-old Stephen Johnson Field presented a curious choice. Not only was he a Democrat who would need confirmation by a Republican-controlled Senate, but he also was a briefly disbarred jurist known as much for his hot-headed temperament as for his keen legal mind.

Apr 1, 2023 12:10 AM CDT

Feb. 2, 1980: Abscam bribery investigation revealed

On Feb. 2, 1980, news outlets revealed that a U.S. senator and at least seven congressmen were among dozens of targets under investigation for soliciting and accepting bribes. In a far-flung and sometimes ludicrous sting operation, lawmakers had accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars from undercover FBI agents posing as oil-rich Arabs and their minions in exchange for loans and investments in the U.S.

Feb 1, 2023 12:10 AM CST

Jan. 29, 1912: Clarence Darrow indicted

At 54, Clarence Darrow was already widely known for his populist politics and his defense of union officials Eugene Debs and “Big Bill” Haywood. But by the time of one of his investigator’s arrest, Darrow was entertaining a plea deal for two brothers on trial for the murders of at least 20 people.

Dec 1, 2022 12:10 AM CST

Oct. 21, 1876: John B. West brings case law to lawyers with the Syllabi

Oct 1, 2022 12:05 AM CDT

Aug. 2, 1790: US conducts first constitutional census

Aug 1, 2022 12:05 AM CDT

June 30, 1983: Closing the books on Peoples Temple

On June 30, 1983, attorney Robert H. Fabian literally closed the books on one of the most painful proceedings in American jurisprudence: the court-ordered liquidation of assets owned by Peoples Temple, the organized following of the Rev. Jim Jones.

Jun 1, 2022 12:05 AM CDT

April 17, 1905: New York’s bakeshop labor law overturned

In October 1901, Joseph Lochner, who owned a bakery on South Street in Utica, New York, was indicted and subsequently convicted on two criminal counts of working his employees beyond the hourly limits of the Bakeshop Act, a relatively new state law that limited the working hours of bakery employees to 10 hours per day and 60 hours per week.

Apr 1, 2022 12:10 AM CDT

Feb. 29, 1984: Guilty plea in Three Mile Island disaster

Feb 1, 2022 12:10 AM CST

Dec. 13, 1920: The Bisbee deportations are upheld

On the morning of July 12, 1917, Mrs. H.R. McLellan was startled by the sight of hundreds of men marching just below her Bisbee, Arizona, home. From her house on Chihuahua Hill, she could see them filing down Naco Road, escorted by men carrying rifles. Her husband immediately surmised what was happening: a roundup of the mining town’s striking smelter workers.

Dec 1, 2021 12:10 AM CST