Gay, bisexual, lesbian, and transgender activists and civil liberties groups are rejoicing over the Department of Justice’s decision not to appeal a nearly $500,000 award to an ex-Special Forces colonel from Alexandria who lost a job at the Library of Congress a few years ago after reveling that he was undergoing a sex change.

David Schroer had already accepted an offer to become the Congressional Research Service’s terrorism specialist when he revealed plans to begin the new post as Diane Schroer. Library officials swiftly rescinded their offer. Schroer teamed up with the American Civil Liberties Union and filed a sex discrimination lawsuit in 2005. A federal judge in Washington awarded Schroer $491,190 earlier this year. On Tuesday, the Department of Justice let the deadline pass for appealing the decision.

Sunday's Washington Post has two stories about Cpl. Steven Jackson, the Prince George’s County police officer accused of beating and then fatally shooting Manuel de Jesus Espina. The incident last August caused uproar and exposed the mistrust between county police and Langley Park’s large Hispanic community.

A Metro section-front story reports how Espina’s son, Manuel de Jesus Espina Jacome, who watched his father die, stood up at a community meeting last week and asked county police officials: “What are you doing with assassin police officers?”

It’s not the first time Jackson’s version of an arrest didn’t jibe with other facts.

Read More "Sunday Post Raises Questions about Police Officer Involved in 2008 Shooting Death of Langley Park Latino" »

The District's had plenty of congressional bogeymen over the years. Recent names like Sam Brownback and Richard Shelby come to mind, sure, and if you reach back a little farther, there's folks like Joel Broyhill, John McMillan, and Theodore Bilbo.

These days, Nevada Sen. John Ensign's playing the role pretty well.

Ensign's the guy who introduced the amendment to D.C. House Voting Rights Act last week that gutted that gun laws passed by the D.C. Council and signed by the mayor. It looks like his legislative maneuver has the potential to derail the larger bill, which would leave Ensign pleased as punch.

The senator strolled up to the Senate daily press gallery this afternoon to talk guns, voting rights and vouchers with a gaggle of reporters. LL was not present, but frequent City Desk commenter Ryan Grim was, and he passes on audio of the discussion.

Read More "John Ensign: D.C. Vote “Has Nothing to Do…With Civil Rights”" »

Just a few minutes ago, I talked with Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, attorney and co-founder of the Partnership for Civil Justice, about the inauguration, security, and, and the Secret Service. She says that trained legal observers will be out and about for Tuesday's big events just in case the police start forgetting about your civil liberties. We advised you to seek them out if you have a problem on Tuesday.

"They'll be out around the route," Verheyden-Hilliard says of the legal observers. "They'll be out there monitoring the police action and the Secret Service action." She couldn't say how many observers will be volunteering for the inauguration detail. The plans are still be worked out.

But she's already noticed a little something about the inauguration windup. It isn't all hope. "I think it's very distressing that the Secret Service is making Washington so inhospitable for people." By people she means us and the out-of-towners who are coming because the event means so much to them. Instead, they get road closures, and bridge closings, and fortified security zones. We get gridlock.

"At the same time, the Secret Service seems to be bending over backwards to help the corporate law firms and lobbyists that have all the office buildings that line Pennsylvania Avenue to make sure their caterers and Hors d'œuvres get in," the lawyer notes.

Read More "Legal Observers To Monitor Inaugural Activities" »

While the Obama Inauguration promises to be filled with hope, optimism, and Pepsi, there is still a chance that you could be messed with by the gazillion cops filling up the protected security zone. You could get patted down for no reason, arrested on some dumb charge (failure to obey, loitering, whatever).

Anyone remember Pershing Park? Lanier had her hands in that fiasco which resulted in hundreds of people being rounded up, arrested and hogtied. It also resulted in a lot of lawsuits that cost the city tons of dough. And proved to be a huge blemish on the career of then-Chief Charles H. Ramsey.

I can't imagine anyone getting hogtied by some thumper cops. But just in case, you should know who to call if you feel your rights are being violated. You should call on the Partnership for Civil Justice. The organization's team of lawyers did brilliant, tough work on the Pershing Park cases and have taken strong positions regarding the inauguration and making sure it is as civilian friendly as possible.

Read More "Inauguration Watch: Protect Your Civil Rights" »

Turns out Ward 3 Councilmember Mary M. Cheh won't be moving emergency legislation tomorrow to put additional restrictions on residential protests after all.

LL reported Friday, and the Examiner reported today, about Cheh's proposed bill, which aimed to give police the ability to put the kibosh on allegedly hostile protests by a group called Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty. Labor and civil-rights groups raised immediate questions.

She did not cite those concerns this morning, when, at a council press conference, Cheh told reporters she won't be pressing the issue at tomorrow's council meeting. She explained that she has met with police and there's been an effort to clarify how existing laws can be enforced. "Given that there's been movement there," she says, "what I will do is I will not move forward on Tuesday."

Cheh says she still plans to explore permanent legislation when the new council term begins in January.

Can we still call Barack Obama's election a "civil rights victory" if the majority of black voters in California and Florida threw gays and lesbians under the bus?

Read More "What Civil Rights Victory?" »