Micron Technology Inc. is poised to land about ¥200 billion ($1.5 billion) in financial incentives from the Japanese

In a victory for voting rights and Alabama voters, the US Supreme Court has ruled that the state likely violated the Voting Rights Act with a congressional redistricting plan that diluted the voting power of Black voters. The state likely discriminated against Black voters with a newly drafted map that packs most of the state’s Black residents into a single district, out of seven, despite Black residents making up 27 per cent of the state’s population. A key ruling in the case of Allen v Milligan means that the state will have to re-draw its congressional map to include a second majority-Black district. The surprise 5-4 decision on the conservative-majority panel was written by Chief Justice John Roberts, joined by liberal Justices Elena Kagan, Ketanji Brown Jackson and Sonia Sotomayor, with partial but crucial concurrence from conservative Brett Kavanaugh. In January, a lower court determined that the map significantly dilutes Black residents’ political power and ordered the state to draw new political boundaries that would create at least two districts in which Black voters would be more likely to elect a representative that more closely resembles the state’s demographics. The Voting Rights Act was drafted to prevent that kind of race-based dilution of Black voters. But attorneys for the state argued the opposite – that considering race to redraw political boundaries would mark an unconstitutional consideration of “racial targets” and “race-based sorting”, in violation of the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause. A decision that sided with Alabama attorneys would have radically reduced Black voters’ political power and landed a critical blow to a state with a long history of racist violence and discrimination. Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act prohibits voting laws and election policies from discriminating on the basis of race. The state’s suggestion that “race should play no role whatsoever” to determine whether redistricting plans violate Section 2 would “rewrite” the law and “overturn decades of settled precedent,” according to the map’s challengers. Attorneys for President Joe Biden’s administration argue that Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act should be considered when “pervasive racial politics would otherwise deny minority voters equal electoral opportunities.” The map’s challengers argued that is precisely what is at stake in Alabama. This is a developing story Read More Main suspect in 2005 disappearance of Natalee Holloway due to be extradited to US Alabama senator says Space Command prefers Huntsville for HQ, but command has no comment Missouri governor signs ban on transgender health care, school sports

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The state of Michigan has agreed to pay $1.03 million to a man who spent nearly 21 years in prison for the deaths of two hunters before the convictions were thrown out in February. Jeff Titus, 71, qualified for compensation under the state's wrongful conviction law, which pays $50,000 for every year behind bars. Records show Court of Claims Judge James Redford signed off on the deal on Aug. 23. “Our goal is to hold accountable those who are responsible for the harm done to Mr. Titus. The state's acknowledgment of his wrongful conviction is a start,” attorney Wolfgang Mueller said Friday. Titus had long declared his innocence in the fatal shootings of Doug Estes and Jim Bennett near his Kalamazoo County land in 1990. He was released from a life sentence earlier this year when authorities acknowledged that Titus’ trial lawyer in 2002 was never given a police file with details about another suspect. Thomas Dillon was an Ohio serial killer whose five victims between 1989 and 1992 were hunting, fishing or jogging. There is no dispute that the failure to produce the file violated Titus’ constitutional rights. In June, Kalamazoo County prosecutor Jeff Getting said Titus would not face another trial. “I don’t know who ultimately murdered Mr. Estes and Mr. Bennett,” said Getting, who wasn't involved in the 2002 trial. There was no physical evidence against Titus, who was portrayed at trial as a hothead who didn’t like trespassers. The Innocence Clinic at University of Michigan law school worked to exonerate him. Dillon died in prison in 2011. ___ Follow Ed White at http://twitter.com/edwritez

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