Afternoon Briefs: 10th Circuit strikes down voter ID law; social distancing could mean long elevator lines
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10th Circuit strikes down Kansas voter ID law
The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at Denver has struck down a Kansas law that required a birth certificate or other proof of citizenship to register to vote. The 10th Circuit ruled Wednesday that the Kansas law violates the equal protection clause and conflicts with the national motor voter law. (The Election Law Blog via How Appealing, Courthouse News Service, ACLU press release, the 10th Circuit decision)
Be prepared for long elevator lines once social distancing guidelines ease up
Social distancing could mean long elevator lines for lawyers returning to work in many offices. The six-feet separation guideline could limit elevators to two people at a time. That means that the wait for an elevator will be “like coming back in to the building after a fire drill,” said Katherine Dudley Helms, an office managing shareholder with Ogletree Deakins who spoke with Bloomberg Law. (Bloomberg Law)
Ban on political speech for judiciary staffers is mostly overturned
U.S. District Judge Christopher “Casey” Cooper of Washington, D.C., has mostly struck down an ethics code that bans staff from the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts from donating to candidates for office and belonging to political parties. Cooper found a First Amendment violation. The National Law Journal, the April 29 opinion)
Forced catheterization of suspects is unconstitutional, judge says
Chief U.S. District Judge Roberto Lange of Pierre, South Dakota, has ruled that forced catheterization of criminal suspects violates their Fourth Amendment rights. The procedure was intended to check for drugs. Lange ruled that all but one of the defendant police officers had qualified immunity in the case because it wasn’t clear that the practice was illegal at the time. (The Sioux Falls Argus Leader)
