California resident Jean Podrasky, first cousin of Chief Justice John Roberts, tells Anderson Cooper that she’s disappointed by the chief justice’s dissent on the DOMA ruling, but is thrilled that his majority opinion in the Proposition 8 case will allow her and her partner Grace Fasano to be married.
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Post by: Anderson Cooper Filed under: Same-Sex Marriage • Supreme Court • Tonight on AC360 |
Editor’s Note: We’ll have more tonight at 8 and 11 p.m. ET on the Supreme Court’s rulings. Senior Legal Analyst Jeffrey Toobin will join Anderson, as will columnist Andrew Sullivan and Jean Podrasky, Chief Justice John Roberts' gay cousin will react to today's rulings along with her partner.
Today, voting 5-4, the U.S. Supreme Court threw out part of the Defense of Marriage Act, a law that denied hundreds of federal benefits to same-sex couples. The high court said legally married same-sex couples must receive the same benefits provided to heterosexual couples. The act had defined marriage as only between a man and a woman, but the court said the law violated the rights of same-sex couples by demoting their marriages to second-class status when compared to their heterosexual peers.
In another landmark case, the justices, in a 5 to 4 decision, also handed a victory to same-sex proponents when it cleared the way for gay and lesbian couples to marry in California, dismissing an appeal to the state's voter-approved Proposition 8 that banned such marriages.
The Supreme Court sided on Tuesday with adoptive parents in a divisive custody fight over a Native American child after the biological father asserted his parental rights. The justices, by a 5-4 margin, said the adoption by a white couple was proper and did not intrude on the federal rights of the father, a registered member of the Cherokee tribe, over where his daughter, Veronica, 3, would live. The court said the father could not rely on the Indian Child Welfare Act for relief because he never had legal or physical custody at the time of adoption proceedings, which were initiated by the birth mother without his knowledge.
These decisions were made by the highest court in the nation.
Here’s the AC360 411 on the U.S. Supreme Court: FULL POST
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Post by: Maureen Miller Filed under: AC360° 411 • Proposition 8 • Same-Sex Marriage • Supreme Court |
High-wire walker Nik Wallenda said he battled wind and sand when he walked across a gorge near the Grand Canyon. He told Anderson that he's never been afraid of heights, and that he dreams of a walk in New York City someday.
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Post by: Anderson Cooper Filed under: 360° Radar |
Randi Kaye reports on George Zimmerman's weight gain and how it may affect the jury.
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Post by: Randi Kaye Filed under: Crime & Punishment • George Zimmerman • Trayvon Martin |
George Zimmerman's defense attorney, Mark O'Mara, talks exclusively to Anderson about his strategy for the trial.
Monday night on CNN's special "Self-Defense or Murder? The George Zimmerman Trial,” Martin family attorney, Benjamin Crump, spoke to Anderson Cooper about the trial.
Crump also explained why he interviewed Rachel Jeantel, the woman who was on the phone with Trayvon Martin minutes before his death.
Watch:
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Post by: Anderson Cooper Filed under: Crime & Punishment • George Zimmerman • Mark O'Mara • Trayvon Martin |
On day two of the George Zimmerman trial the prosecution and defense battle over 911 calls and examine crime scene photos. Martin Savidge reports.
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Post by: Martin Savidge Filed under: Crime & Punishment • George Zimmerman • Trayvon Martin |
Matt and Melanie Capobianco spoke exclusively on AC360 about their reaction to the Supreme Court ruling in favor of Baby Veronica's adoption. The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 the adoption was proper and did not intrude on the federal rights of the father, a registered member of the Cherokee tribe.
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Post by: Anderson Cooper Filed under: 360° Radar • Supreme Court |
Supreme Court case Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl ruled 5-4 in favor of Veronica's adoptive parents. Randi Kaye details the story behind the divisive case.
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Post by: Randi Kaye Filed under: Supreme Court |
A town in Georgia says when it comes to your pants, it's pull up or pay up.
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Post by: Anderson Cooper Filed under: The RidicuList |
Former CIA and FBI senior official Philip Mudd compares Edward Snowden's next steps for escape to a 'three-dimensional chess' game.
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Post by: Anderson Cooper Filed under: Edward Snowden • NSA • Russia |
Anderson Cooper goes beyond the headlines to tell stories from many points of view, so you can make up your own mind about the news. Tune in weeknights at 8 and 10 ET on CNN.
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