The law is designed to keep sex offenders away from children by monitoring how close they live to schools, parks and other spots where kids gather. But critics say it unfairly subjects homeless offenders to a life sentence if they fail to register a home address.

The Georgia Supreme Court's 6-1 decision Monday found the law's registration requirements were "unconstitutionally vague." The opinion also held that homeless offenders are not exempt from the statute, and suggested special reporting requirements for the homeless.

The case involves William James Santos, a homeless man and convicted sex offender who was kicked out of a Gainesville homeless shelter in July 2006 and was arrested three months later on charges he failed to register with Georgia's sex offender list.

The Wisconsin Judicial Commission filed a complaint against Justice Michael Gableman on Tuesday, claiming he violated a rule that prohibits judicial candidates from knowingly misrepresenting facts about their opponents.

Gableman was the first challenger to defeat an incumbent justice in 41 years when he knocked off Louis Butler in the April election with 51 percent of the vote. Gableman, 42, joined the court for a 10-year term in August.

During the campaign, Gableman faced intense criticism from independent observers when his campaign ran a television ad that showed a picture of Butler, the state's first black justice, next to a mug shot of convicted rapist Reuben Lee Mitchell, who is black. A narrator said: "Butler found a loophole. Mitchell went on to molest another child."

When Butler was a public defender, he represented Mitchell on the appeal of his 1985 conviction for raping an 11-year-old girl.

Butler convinced an appeals court that Mitchell deserved a new trial because certain evidence should not have been allowed. The Supreme Court overturned that decision and Mitchell served his full sentence. After his release on parole in 1992, Mitchell was convicted of raping a 14-year-old girl and sentenced to 40 years in prison.

The justices did not comment Monday in turning down a dozen individuals and two groups that oppose abortion rights. The court turned down similar appeals in 2003 and 2006.

Four physicians and abortion clinics sued in 1995 after the activists released a Wild West-style poster that named a dozen abortion doctors underneath the headline, "Wanted." A related Web site, titled the "Nuremberg Files," declared the doctors guilty of crimes against humanity, and listed their addresses and telephone numbers.

In 1999, a jury awarded the doctors and clinics more than $100 million under racketeering laws and a 1994 federal law that makes it illegal to incite violence against abortion doctors. Courts reduced the judgment to more than $16 million.

The activists say the verdict violated their free speech rights under the Constitution.

The Iowa Court of Appeals said Officer Michael Mette's trial judge had no testimony on which to base her ruling that he could have walked away from a fight with another man — but didn't.

Mette had argued self-defense in the 2005 fight in Dubuque with Jake Gothard that left Gothard with a fractured nose, cheek and jaw.

In November 2006, 1st Judicial District Judge Monica Ackley found Mette guilty of assault causing serious injury and sentenced him to five years. She said Mette was not the initial aggressor but could have retreated.

The case prompted an outcry in Chicago, where prominent officials — including Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, Cook County State's Attorney Richard Devine and Chicago Police Superintendent Jody Weis — had called for Mette's release.

In its ruling, the appeals court found that there was no testimony to support Ackley's findings.

The unusual request, from Louisiana and the Bush administration, was based on the failure of anyone involved in the case to take into account a federal law from 2006 that authorizes the death penalty for members of the military who are convicted of child rape.

The state argued that the case should be reopened because Justice Anthony Kennedy relied in part on what he called a "national consensus" against executing convicted rapists. The court split 5-4 in the June 25 ruling.

The justices, by a 7-2 vote, issued an amended opinion Wednesday that adds a footnote concerning military law, but otherwise leaves the essence of the decision untouched.

The provision of military law setting out punishments for rapists "does not draw into question our conclusions that there is a consensus against the death penalty for the crime in the civilian context and that the penalty here is unconstitutional," Kennedy wrote, joined by the four liberal justices who formed the majority in June.

Reopening the case would have taken five votes, including that of at least one justice who voted to ban the death penalty for rapists.

Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas voted to hear the case again.

Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Antonin Scalia dissented from the original opinion, but voted against reopening the case.

Defense lawyers maintain that Simpson was just trying to retrieve personal belongings, family photos and heirlooms that had been stolen from him years ago.

On Wednesday, the jury that heard the prosecution's case against Simpson and co-defendant Clarence "C.J." Stewart was scheduled to hear from defense witness, Thomas Scotto, the wedding groom for whom Simpson came to Las Vegas to serve as best man.

Scotto, 46, a North Miami Beach, Fla., auto repair shop owner, served as go-between and banker for Simpson after Simpson's arrest Sept. 16, 2007, and again following his re-arrest in January when he was accused of violating terms of his bail release.

Scotto, who was preparing for his wedding, did not accompany Simpson from the Palms resort pool to the alleged armed robbery in a Palace Station casino hotel room. But his name is heard on audio recordings played for the jury during the first 11 days of testimony in the case.

Simpson and Stewart have pleaded not guilty to 12 criminal charges, including armed robbery and kidnapping. Each man could face five years to life in prison if convicted in the Sept. 13., 2007, confrontation.

The prosecution rested Monday, and the courtroom was dark Tuesday for a scheduled day off. Clark County District Court Judge Jackie Glass said outside the presence of the jury that closing arguments could come as early as Thursday. The jury would then begin deliberations.

Simpson's lawyers told the judge that Scotto could be their last witness. Outside court, defense lawyers said no decisions had been made whether Simpson or Stewart would testify. Stewart's lawyers said they expect to call several witnesses.

Simpson's defense lawyers brought one of the alleged victims, Alfred Beardsley, back to the witness stand. The sports memorabilia dealer repeated that charges against Simpson should be dropped, and said again that he and Simpson had been "set up" by Thomas Riccio, the collectibles broker who arranged their hotel room meeting.