stemming from a marijuana conviction in mississippi that was uphill just this week the mississippi court of appeals denied russell's appeal arguing he is a habitual offender that classification eliminated any judicial discretion and basically guarantees harsh sentencing even when the offense is nonviolent and i know what you might be thinking 3 strikes laws and yes this is similar but you up under statutes have faced scrutiny across civil rights and criminal justice advocacy circles and poor really good reason they systemically attack blacks who are 3 times more likely to get arrested for marijuana infractions than whites even though use imposition rates are similar across both demographics in alan's case the 38 year old was found guilty of possession in 2019 but because he had 2 prior charges he is facing life. but his case isn't unique the mississippi clarion ledger reported just last year that there were 86 have been to offenders serving life without parole because of convictions for nonviolent crimes just like allen the bite administration for its part is working to make a campaign promise a re

stemming from a marijuana conviction in mississippi that was uphill just this week the mississippi court of appeals denied russell's appeal arguing he is a habitual offender that classification eliminated any judicial discretion and basically guarantees harsh sentencing even when the offense is nonviolent. and i know what you might be thinking 3 strikes laws and yes this is similar but you offender statutes have a scrutiny across civil rights and criminal justice advocacy circles and poor really good reason they systemically attack blacks who are 3 times more likely to get arrested for marijuana infractions than whites even though use and possession rates are similar across both demographics in alan's case the 38 year old was found guilty of possession in 2019 but because he had 2 prior charges he is facing life. but his case isn't unique the mississippi clarion ledger reported just last year that there were 86 have been to a pender's serving life without parole because of convictions for nonviolent crimes just like alan. the bite administration for its part is working to make a campaign promise a

stemming from a marijuana conviction in mississippi that was uphill just this week the mississippi court of appeals denied russell's appeal arguing he is a habitual offender that classification eliminated any judicial discretion and basically guarantees harsh sentencing even when the offense is nonviolent and i know what you might be thinking 3 strikes laws and yes this is similar have actually bender statutes have a scrutiny across civil rights and criminal justice advocacy circles and poor really good reason they systemically attack blacks who are 3 times more likely to get arrested for marijuana infractions than whites even though use and possession rates are similar across both demographics in alan's case the 38 year old was found guilty of possession in 2019 but because he had 2 prior charges he is facing life but his case isn't unique the mississippi clarion ledger reported just last year that there were 86 have bitch will open doors serving life without parole because of convictions for nonviolent crimes just like alan the bite administration for its part is working to make a campaign promis

this case is always been going to the supreme court, so much so that the state of mississippi didn't even bother trying to have an argument in the court of appeals. because they knew they view loops. this mississippi abortion law hasn't had a chance, brian, and any lower court since the year 1973. if you passed a bunch of laws after shift in the composition in the supreme court, it's not because the laws change it's because the politics happen. and if there is someone invested in the reputation of the court as an institutional actor, that's a very dangerous calculus to legitimate. if mississippi weren't so interested in human dignity and protecting it as they say, you have to wonder why it is easier and harder to vote than it is to buy an assault rifle. now you're leading called this a potential reversal, weakening roe v. wade but i think that makes it sound like there's only one case being questioned. but in reality, we have 48 years precedent after precedent about rooms. some of them decided just two years ago that this case is therefore not just about one outlier decision, it's about nearly 50 years of supreme court history. two years ago, ch

court. the state of mississippi didn't bother with oral argument in the court of appeals because they knew they would lose. this abortion law hasn't had a chance in any lower court since 1973. if you pass a bunch of laws after a shift in the composition of the supreme court, it's not because the laws change, it's the politics have. if there's someone invested in the representation of the court as institutional actor, that's a dangerous calculus to legitimate. if mississippi were so interested in human dignity and protecting it as they say, you have to wonder why it's harder to vote than buy an assault rifle in the state and the like. now your lead-in called this potential weakening of roe versus wade, i think it makes it sound like one case in question. but in reality we have 48 years of precedent after precedent about roe, some decided just two years ago. this case is not just one outlier decision but nearly 50 years of supreme court history, and two years ago chief justice roberts cast deciding vote to strike down a louisiana law that restricted abortion. crossed over to vote with the so-call

of itself. because the supreme court has had this case on the docket since last september. that's when mississippi appealed the lower courts, striking the law down, saying you can't enforce the law. of course, that was around the time that justice ginsberg had died so there were some changes on the court. but then amy coney barrett came on the court in oblgt and it still waited seven more months to decide whether to hear this case. it discussed it something like 17 or 18 times in its private conferences. so the people on the court who agreed to hear this case, it takes five votes -- sorry, it takes four votes to grant a case, but when you are a justice voting to grant a case, you must think you have that fifth vote. that says something about what the justices themselves believe. >> nbc's pete williams. thanks, as always, sir, for that great reporting. >>> a new video is raising questions about the existence of ufos. >> wow, it's getting close. >> now a task force is set to brief on that footage. >>> a major bridge has a cracked support beam. how many other bridges could be in this state? stay with us. othe

a federal judge in mississippi struck down that law in 2018. the fifth u.s. circuit court of appealshat ruling in december of 2019. >> this is so important as the court now looks very different than it did several years ago with the addition of several justices by former president trump. >> everyone watching that mississippi law. >>> still ahead, ceos wrestling with what to do about bringing employees back into the office. does remote work really work, or should people return to the old ways of doing business? if you have moderate to severe psoriasis, little things can become your big moment. that's why there's otezla. otezla is not a cream. it's a pill that treats plaque psoriasis differently. with otezla, 75% clearer skin is achievable. don't use if you're allergic to otezla. it may cause severe diarrhea, nausea or vomiting. otezla is associated with an increased risk of depression. tell your doctor if you have a history of depression or suicidal thoughts or if these feelings develop. some people taking otezla reported weight loss. your doctor should monitor your weight and may sto

before fetus viability around 23 weeks of pregnancy but now, the supreme court says it will take another look at that very issue, agreeing to hear mississippi's appeal. supporters of abortion rights say it is an ominous sign. >> there is no way that the supreme court can uphold the restriction on abortion that mississippi has in place without reversing roe versus wade. >> reporter: two of the justices who consistently upheld core abortion rights are gone, anthony kennedy and ruth bader ginsburg, replaced by appointees of president trump, who said during his campaign that his court nominees would oppose abortion rights. >> i am pro-life, and i will be appointing pro-life judges. >> reporter: abortion opponent are hoping amy coney barrett will give thep the majority they need to uphold the mississippi law. the court will hear this in the next term in the fall, with a decision about a year from now the mississippi law, meantime, remains blocked and cannot be enforced, craig. >> pete williams there from the high court, thanks >>> 16 minutes after the hour. hey, mr. roker how you doing? >> well, we're doing okay, but our friends down south are having big

mississippi passed this law and it's a few weeks before the supreme court said they can bana borings. the united states court of appealsstruck it down seeing it as clearly unconstitutional. the supreme court should have swatted this away and not taken it, but unfortunately they have taken it and put squarely the question of whether states can, indeed, ba abortion prior to feet tall viability. roe v. wade is on the line. as you pointed out, should the supreme court weaken the protections that have been for almost 50 years. half the states in the united states are posed to ban abortion. that would just be tragic for the one in four women in the united states that make the decision in their lives that abortion is the right decision for them. >> so in a lot of these cases in the states, as you said, they passed laws that they knew were unconstitutional under the law as it stands now and sort of waited for the moment in which there would be five conservative judges on the supreme court because at that point that is a way in which the law changes. how does your approach change? how does the legal argument change when you kno