Florida

On Thursday, a federal judge issued an injunction barring the state of Florida from enforcing the 48-hour-deadline provision of its new election law, calling the requirement "harsh and impractical." Tallahassee federal Judge Robert Hinkle wrote in his strongly worded ruling: "The short deadline, coupled with substantial penalties for noncompliance, make voter-registration drives a risky business....If the goal is to further the state's legitimate interests without unduly burdening the rights of voters and voter registration organizations, 48 hours is a bad choice."

As the tragedy of Trayvon Martin's death calls the country to examine the racial inequities of the criminal justice system, it must go beyond our common, and justified, focus on the racist zealots or inept police officers. It has to go where the real power lies – with the prosecutors – the ones who control the levers of the system in counties and states across the country. In Martin’s case, it was prosecutor Norm Wolfinger who allowed his killer to walk free.