Free Republic

A District Court judge in Ohio granted a temporary injunction Thursday on the Air Force's COVID-19 vaccine mandate for all of the branch's members requesting a religious exemption. U.S. District Court Judge Matthew McFarland, of the Southern District of Ohio, granted the 14-day injunction in the case of Doster v. Kendall, giving the government seven days to respond and explain "why this Court should not grant a class-wide preliminary injunction," according to the court order. The injunction applies to the entire Air Force and Space Force, including the Air Force Reserve, which submitted a Religious Accommodation Request. No punishment, discipline,...

A district judge, appointed by former President Donald Trump, has blocked President Joe Biden’s so-called “sanctuary country” orders that have successfully protected millions of illegal aliens from arrest and deportation over the last year.

An Olentangy Local School District employee of 13 years was forced to resign for comments she made linking the coronavirus to China and the country's subsequent profiting from personal protective equipment, according to a federal lawsuit filed last week. The incident in April wasn't the only time Antoinette Evans, a 68-year-old study hall aide from Delaware County, has been disciplined for disruptive speech by the district, the fifth-largest in Ohio. The lawsuit filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Columbus alleges that the district and three administrators at Olentangy Liberty High School, where Evans worked, "fabricated from Evans' innocent words...

Pablo Escobar's famed hippos - who have thrived in Colombia since the notorious drug lord was killed almost 30 years ago - got a stay of execution after a United States federal court ruled that animals can be recognized as legal persons. Judge Karen Litkovitz, of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, issued the ruling Tuesday after the nonprofit Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) filed an application seeking to allow two experts in nonsurgical sterilization of wildlife to provide testimony supporting a Colombian lawsuit to stop a cull. The Animal Legal Defense Fund made the...

A federal judge ruled that a provision in President Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief law limiting states from cutting taxes is unconstitutional. U.S. District Judge Douglas Cole issued the permanent injunction requested by Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, a Republican who argued the administration was trying to impose a “tax mandate” on states. “The Biden administration reached too far, seized too much and got its hand slapped,” Mr. Yost said. “This is a monumental win for the preservation of the U.S. Constitution — the separation of powers is real, and it exists for a reason.” Mr. Yost had filed a...

This will be a weekly post. Count remains at 218 judges confirmed. 2 Trade Court judges 161 District Court judges 53 Circuit Court judges 2 Supreme Court justices Senator McConnell did file for cloture for several judges this week, but with at least two senators testing positive for coronavirus those votes will likely be put off. The democrats are trying to use the president's diagnosis to delay the confirmation of judge Amy Coney Barrett to be Supreme Court justice. But Chairman Graham can simply move the hearings to Zoom (and should). Judiciary Committee members Lee and Tillis both tested positive...

A federal judge has rejected a Columbus bridal shop's lawsuit seeking a temporary restraining order allowing it to reopen amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The judge says state officials have legitimate reasons for restricting business operations. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine says the state's goal is to safely get as many people back to work as possible starting May first, beginning with hospitals: DeWine says large gatherings - including sporting events and concerts - will not be among the first to return because they present the most social distancing problems.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- A federal appeals court in Cincinnati, for now, has declined to get involved with a lawsuit over how abortion providers in Ohio can continue to provide their services amid a public-health order restricting non-essential surgeries during the coronavirus pandemic. A three-judge panel from the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday issued an order dismissing Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost’s appeal of a ruling from Senior U.S. District Judge Michael Barrett issued last week. The ruling temporarily blocked Ohio officials from using Health Director Dr. Amy Acton’s health order to completely bar women from access to...

How do you know if killing a baby in an abortion is “essential?” If the abortion clinic says so. That’s akin to letting a rapist determine if his sexual assault truly constitutes rape, but it’s the decision U.S. District Court Judge Michael Barrett just issued in the dispute between the state of Ohio and abortion businesses over whether abortions are medically essential procedures. Ohio is one of several states that included elective abortions in their bans on non-essential medical procedures during the global health crisis. The orders are meant to save lives by conserving medical resources and preventing further spread...

Ohio will suffer more death and destruction after a judge allowed abortion facilities in the state to continue elective abortions during the coronavirus pandemic. Even though there is nothing essential about aborting an unborn baby, Ohio District Court Judge Michael Barrett ruled late Monday that closing abortion facilities would cause “irreparable harm” to women, according to National Review. Ohio is one of several states that included elective abortions in their bans on non-essential medical procedures during the global health crisis. The orders are meant to save lives by conserving medical resources and preventing further spread of the virus. However, Planned...

A federal judge has blocked Ohio’s ban on abortion during the coronavirus pandemic just hours after Planned Parenthood, Preterm Cleveland, and other abortion facilities made the request. Senior U.S. District Judge Michael Barrett temporarily blocked the ban for 14 days, but he also said he may issue a preliminary injunction to allow abortions to continue while the abortion facilities prepare their legal fight. Earlier this month, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost sent letters to abortion facilities ordering them to stop committing “non-essential and elective” surgical abortions. The letters were sent after a request was made by the Ohio Department of...

A federal judge has suspended all jury trials and grand jury proceedings for courts in the southern district of Ohio for the next 30 days out of concerns about the spread of coronavirus, according to a copy of the judge’s order. Chief District Judge Algenon Marbley issued the order Thursday, a copy of which was provided to 10 Investigates. The two-page order issued Thursday morning says “there are multiple confirmed cases of COVID-19, in response to which the Governor of the State of Ohio, Michael DeWine, has declared a state of emergency which, among other things, limits large indoor gatherings.”...