June 12

JPMorgan agrees to $290 million civil settlement in Epstein-related case

JPMorgan Chase agreed to a 290 million dollar civil settlement tied to its past banking relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. The bank denied liability while acknowledging the relationship was a mistake. The settlement created a major institutional-accountability record around private banking, compliance warnings, and high-risk client oversight.

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Boumediene v. Bush: Detainees Have Constitutional Right to Habeas Corpus

The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that foreign nationals held at Guantanamo Bay have a constitutional right to challenge their detention through habeas corpus in federal court, rejecting the Bush administration's argument that the Constitution does not apply to the naval base in Cuba. Justice Kennedy's majority held that the Suspension Clause of Article I applies wherever the United States exercises de facto sovereignty. The ruling struck down the Military Commissions Act of 2006's habeas-stripping provision and established that the executive cannot hold people indefinitely without judicial review, a principle that extends to contemporary debates over immigration detention.

Supreme Court limits Violence Against Women Act civil rights remedy in Morrison

The Supreme Court rules in United States v. Morrison on June 12, 2000, striking down the civil damages remedy in the Violence Against Women Act. Although the case centers gender-based violence, the ruling narrows Congress’s power to create civil rights remedies under the Commerce Clause and Fourteenth Amendment.\n\nThe Court says Congress cannot regulate noneconomic violent crime through the commerce power and cannot reach private conduct under Section 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment without state action.\n\nThe event matters to civil rights enforcement because it limits federal power to address private violence and affects how Congress designs remedies for discrimination and rights violations.

Supreme Court applies strict scrutiny to federal affirmative action in Adarand

The Supreme Court rules in Adarand Constructors v. Peña on June 12, 1995, that federal racial classifications must be reviewed under strict scrutiny. The case involves a federal contracting program that gave incentives for hiring disadvantaged businesses. The Court says all racial classifications by government, whether intended to burden or benefit racial minorities, must meet the same demanding constitutional standard. The ruling narrows the room for federal affirmative action programs. The decision extends strict scrutiny to federal race-conscious programs and reshapes civil rights remedies in contracting and procurement.

Reagan tells Gorbachev to 'tear down this wall' at Brandenburg Gate before 45,000 West Berliners

President Ronald Reagan delivers a speech at the Brandenburg Gate on June 12, 1987, directly challenging Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev: "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" Reagan demands the dismantling of the Berlin Wall as a test of Soviet commitment to reform. The speech occurs before an audience of 45,000 in West Berlin, with East German guards visible on the far side of the Wall. Reagan's challenge crystallizes the U.S. commitment to a reunified, free Germany and foreshadows the Wall's fall two years later in November 1989.

Supreme Court strikes down interracial marriage bans in Loving

The Supreme Court rules unanimously in Loving v. Virginia on June 12, 1967, that state bans on interracial marriage violate the Fourteenth Amendment. Richard and Mildred Loving had been convicted under Virginia law for marrying across racial lines. Chief Justice Earl Warren writes that marriage is a basic civil right and that racial classifications in marriage laws cannot survive constitutional review. The decision invalidates anti-miscegenation laws that remained in multiple states. The ruling ends a core legal structure of white supremacy that tried to police family formation, citizenship, and racial boundaries.