Nightly Brief

Top CNS stories for today including the Supreme Court voicing concern that a reversal in a case involving a Mexican boy gunned down on his side of the border by a U.S. border patrol agent will flood courts with claims related to foreign drone strikes; Gabon's elephant population plunges 80 percent in a decade; Robert Durst's attorney goes on the attack to impeach testimony of defendant's longtime friend, the Seventh Circuit holds robbery suspects had no right to privacy in back of police van, and more.

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1.) High Court Digs for Justice on Cross-Border Tragedy

Hinting that it will rule against the family of a Mexican child gunned down on his side of the border by a U.S. border patrol agent, the Supreme Court voiced concern Tuesday that a reversal will flood the courts with claims related to foreign drone strikes.

2.) Rejected Bid for Firing Squad Triggers Dissent

Chiding their colleagues for turning down a death-row inmate’s bid to face an Alabama firing squad, two Supreme Court justices said Tuesday’s “decision permits states to immunize their methods of execution — no matter how cruel or how unusual — from judicial review.”

3.) Gabon's Forest Elephant Population Plunges 80 Percent in a Decade

Forest elephants living in a Central African “sanctuary” are being picked off rapidly by illegal poachers, and the population has dropped by more than 80 percent in a decade.

4.) More Drama in Robert Durst’s Murder Hearing

Robert Durst’s defense attorney went on the attack Friday against testimony from a longtime friend who’d said the eccentric real estate heir had admitted murdering their mutual friend Susan Berman in 2000.

5.) Claims Over Vile Brooklyn Jail Revived by 2nd Circuit

When it comes to the rodent-infested, garbage-strewn and feces-splattered cells of Brooklyn Central Booking, the Second Circuit ruled Tuesday, exposure for less than 24 hours may amount to civil-rights abuse.

6.) No Right to Privacy in Back of Police Van

Robbery suspects’ whispered conversations in the back of a police van were fair game to be secretly recorded and used against them in court, the Seventh Circuit ruled

7.) Cosby Ducks Suit by Actress With Rape Story

An actress who says Bill Cosby raped her after she appeared once on the comedian’s family-friendly television series is the latest to lose a defamation battle

8.) Texas Doctor Gets Life in Prison for Botched Surgery

A Dallas County jury deliberated for one hour Monday before sentencing neurosurgeon Christopher Duntsch to life in state prison for maiming an elderly patient in a botched surgery.

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