Gay 'I-do's' in state halt after 4 days
Gay couples lost access to marriage licenses in Arkansas late Wednesday after the state Supreme Court noted that state law still prevents county clerks from is…
Stories by Sean Beherec
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Let marriage ruling stand, plaintiffs urge
The Arkansas Supreme Court should not block a lower court's ruling that struck down the state's ban on same-sex marriages because it would cause immediate and …
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2 vying for high court seat
A court of appeals judge is running against an attorney with years of appellate experience in the only contested race for the Arkansas Supreme Court in 2014.
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Re-voided, voter-ID law is kept in primary
A Pulaski County circuit judge reaffirmed on Friday his decision that the law requiring voters to show government- or college-issued photographic IDs for their…
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3 justices recuse from appeals on late dues, judge eligibility
Three Arkansas Supreme Court justices have recused themselves from pending appeals before the court over whether suspension for nonpayment of annual license du…
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Risperdal ruling to stay as is
The Arkansas Supreme Court on Thursday denied the state’s request to reconsider its ruling throwing out a $1.2 billion Medicaid-fraud fine against Johnson &…
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Scholarships approved for 193 more
The Arkansas Legislative Council on Friday voted to use $2 million in the state’s “rainy-day” funds to offer nearly two-thirds more Governor’s Distinguished Sc…
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81 judges since ’06 on suspension list
Nearly one-third of the state’s sitting judges since 2006 have been suspended from practicing law a combined 157 times for nonpayment of annual law-license due…
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Rite for girl in foster care at hub of claim
The parents of an 18-month-old girl who died in state custody forfeited the right to bury the child because they were estranged from her at the time of her dea…
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Justices: Capital murder unproved
The Arkansas Supreme Court on Thursday threw out a Lincoln County man’s capital-murder conviction, finding that the state had failed to prove the shooting was …
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Earlier deal halts settlement with estate of ex-school chief
The Arkansas Claims Commission has put a hold on a settlement agreement between the state and the family of a former Pulaski County Special School District sup…
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EPA order to remove dam prompts lawsuit
A Clinton landowner who constructed a 30-foot tall dam on a tributary of the South Fork of the Little Red River without a permit is challenging in court an ord…
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Majority overrides state veto
When the Arkansas Legislature voted last week to override the governor’s veto of a provision in an appropriation bill, it didn’t require a landslide.
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Justices void Risperdal fine of $1.2 billion
The Arkansas Supreme Court on Thursday threw out a $1.2 billion fine against Johnson & Johnson and a subsidiary, ruling that the claims against the company by …
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Beebe veto overridden
The Republican-controlled Legislature on Wednesday overrode Democratic Gov. Mike Beebe’s line-item veto of a sales-tax exemption for sand used in oil- and natu…
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House votes GOP’s Gillam as speaker-designate
The state House of Representatives on Wednesday elected Rep. Jeremy Gillam as speaker-designate for 2015-16, giving the Judsonia Republican a lopsided first-ba…
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Vote set for House speaker
The state House of Representatives is scheduled this week to designate a new speaker to replace Rep. Davy Carter.
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Justices affirm contempt fine against ex-mayor of Helena
The Arkansas Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a $250 contempt fine against the former mayor of Helena-West Helena, who failed to appear before a legislative co…
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Public defenders’ workload beyond guideline, panel says
The Arkansas Public Defender Commission would need more than double the number of attorneys on the payroll to bring caseloads in line with national standards, …
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Lawyer: Defense needed to object to trial location
A black Oklahoma man convicted in the June 2005 murders of two women in De Queen did not receive adequate legal representation because his attorney failed to o…
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Judges overturn sex-case decision
A split Arkansas Court of Appeals panel Wednesday threw out a sexual-assault conviction against a Benton County man who prosecutors said attacked a 4-year-old …
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Wrap-up of session expected this week
The House and Senate will meet briefly this week as both chambers vote to approve the state’s spending plan and wrap up the fiscal session.
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Panel propels $109 million budget boost
Bills that would boost the state’s general-revenue budget by $109 million, to $5 billion, sailed through the Legislature’s Joint Budget Committee on Friday wit…
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High court hears sides in nursing-home case
The family of a former nursing-home resident that is suing the facility is bound by an agreement to use arbitration and cannot pursue a lawsuit in court, an at…
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’15 private option goes to Beebe
The House of Representatives approved funding Tuesday for the state’s private-option program after rejecting the measure in four consecutive votes last month.
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5th private option vote brews for House today
The House of Representatives is expected to vote for the fifth time today on a funding bill for the state’s private-option program, House Speaker Davy Carter s…
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House gridlock stalls session
House members will try again today to reach a deal on a private-option appropriation that can attract at least 75 votes in the 100-member chamber, state legisl…
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Attorney: Ignore new election rules
Pulaski County Attorney Karla Burnett told a state board Friday that she would advise the county’s Election Commission to not follow the board’s new rules on c…
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Longer Darr vacancy passes
The Arkansas House convened for about 15 minutes Thursday, passing just one bill, which would allow the governor to forgo a special election for the vacant lie…
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Judges reverse denials of 2 job-injury claims
The Arkansas Supreme Court on Thursday reversed two Workers’ Compensation Commission decisions that denied benefits to two workers because they tested positive…
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$1.2 billion fine topic of debate before justices
The $1. 2 billion f ine against Johnson & Johnson and a subsidiary for Medicaid fraud was not excessive, because the company continuously put patients in d…
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Private-option vote is set aside
For the first time in a week, the Arkansas House of Representatives met without voting on a funding bill for the state’s private-option Medicaid expansion — an…
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House’s 71-18 vote stops private option on 4th try
For the fourth day in a row, the House of Representatives rejected a funding bill for the state’s private-option Medicaid expansion, as another former supporte…
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Private option fails, now by 3 votes
The Arkansas House of Representatives failed Thursday for a third day in a row to approve funding for Arkansas’ private-option Medicaid expansion, just hours a…
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For 2nd time, private option fails in House
The House of Representatives on Wednesday failed to approve funding for Arkansas’ private-option Medicaid expansion for the second day in a row, but the leader…
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Private option falls short
House Democrats are promising retaliation after Tuesday’s failure to approve funding for Arkansas’ private option Medicaid expansion plan.
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Closed legislative sessions not new
Meetings of state legislatures are usually conducted in the open, sometimes even streamed live to constituents’ computers, but many states also allow for close…
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Panel favors 2 measures on private option
The Legislature’s Joint Budget Committee endorsed identical measures Thursday that reauthorize the use of federal funds to buy private health insurance for low…
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Bid advances to leave open Darr’s old job
The movement to leave the Arkansas lieutenant governor’s office open until the November general election cleared another hurdle Thursday, along with a couple o…
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UA System board protected from suit, justices rule
A police officer fired from his job at the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith is not allowed to sue the system’s board because it is protected by sovereign i…
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Bid for bill filed to delay filling Darr’s empty post
State lawmakers filed a resolution Monday that would allow consideration of legislation keeping the lieutenant governor’s office vacant for the rest of the yea…
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Inquiries underway after eagle shooting
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is offering a $5,000 reward for information on the killing of a juvenile bald eagle in Logan County.
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Justices: Fired worker wrongly denied benefit
A health-care worker is entitled to unemployment benefits because her supervisor’s mistake helped lead to her firing, the Arkansas Supreme Court said Thursday.
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Justices hear case of ousted UAFS officer
A former police officer at the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith should have brought his wrongful dismissal case to the Arkansas Claims Commission in Little…
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Longtime Supreme Court clerk plans to retire in July
Leslie Steen, the clerk of the Arkansas Supreme Court and Court of Appeals, will retire July 1 after more than three decades with the judiciary.
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Workers’ compensation denial disputed
Two men injured in an explosion while on the job should not be prevented from receiving workers’ compensation benefits because they later tested positive for m…
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For 3, trips, gifts top $10,000 each
Arkansas officials accepted free trips across the country and around the world, trekking as far away as Taiwan and Turkey, according to documents filed this we…
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High court throws out conviction in sex case
The Arkansas Supreme Court on Thursday ordered a new trial for a man convicted of 37 sex offenses, because his lawyer had an improper conflict of interest at t…
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Suit in bio case can go forward
The Arkansas Supreme Court on Thursday said a lawsuit filed by the former chief executive officer of a Springdale manufacturing company against his former part…
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Ex-youthful offender’s sentence confirmed
The Arkansas Supreme Court Thursday upheld a 55-year sentence for a man who was originally sentenced to life in prison for several crimes he committed as a you…
