Alabama Supreme Court

Roy Moore filed an emergency application with the U.S. Supreme Court to block an 11th Circuit ruling from taking effect, seeking to preserve an $8.2 million jury award he received in a defamation case against Senate Majority PAC. The 11th Circuit overturned the jury's verdict, which found the PAC defamed Moore by falsely portraying him in a campaign ad, and Moore argues the bond guaranteeing the award may be lost if the ruling becomes final before the Supreme Court reviews it.

Alabama seeks to execute Jeffery Lee via lethal injection after a court blocked his scheduled nitrogen hypoxia execution. The state requested a new death warrant, arguing it was not barred from carrying out the execution but only from using nitrogen gas. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to lift the injunction against the nitrogen method, but Alabama can proceed with lethal injection or the electric chair.

An anti-abortion group sued seven Utah fertility clinics, alleging their disposal of embryos during IVF violates the state’s wrongful-death law. The lawsuit argues that frozen embryos have legal personhood rights under Utah’s fetal personhood law, a claim also applicable in Alabama, Louisiana, and Missouri. The case highlights tensions within the anti-abortion movement over IVF practices, as some support embryo disposal while others equate it to abortion.