Supreme Court to Rule on Birthright Citizenship, and U.S. Murder Rate Nears a Record Low

The U.S. Supreme Court is wrapping up one of its biggest terms in recent memory. On its final day, the Court is expected to issue a major ruling on birthright citizenship — the idea that anyone born in the United States is automatically a citizen. The case is connected to an executive order signed by President Trump that would deny citizenship to children born in the U.S. if their parents entered the country illegally or are here on temporary visas. The outcome could affect millions of families across the country.

At the heart of the birthright citizenship debate is the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. That amendment says that all people born or made citizens in the United States are citizens of the country. If the Court rules in favor of President Trump, it could overturn more than 100 years of legal tradition. It would also create serious problems for families where some members are citizens and others are not.

NPR reporter Ximena Bustillo says that even if the Court supports birthright citizenship, immigrant families may still face tough choices about whether to stay together in the U.S. The Trump administration has been working to reduce the number of ways people can legally live in the country. Last week, the Supreme Court also gave the administration more power to end the Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, program. This program allowed people from countries like Haiti and Syria to stay in the U.S. for safety reasons.

The Supreme Court also made several other big rulings recently. Justices decided that mail-in ballots can still be accepted during grace periods after an election. They also gave the president more power to remove leaders of independent government agencies. Additionally, the Court limited how police can use location data from phones to identify who was near the scene of a crime.

In other news, the United States and Iran have both sent representatives to Qatar for talks. President Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner and envoy Steve Witkoff traveled there to discuss a long-term peace deal. However, Iranian officials said they would not meet with the American representatives directly. Iran seems more focused on talking with Qatar about getting access to about $6 billion in frozen money that belongs to them.

NPR's Ruth Sherlock says both countries are moving quickly because neither fully trusts the other. Iran is worried that the Trump administration might break its promises, pointing to past failed agreements. There is also tension over a separate deal between Israel and Lebanon that requires Hezbollah, a militia backed by Iran, to give up its weapons. Hezbollah rejected the deal, calling it a surrender of Lebanese sovereignty.

In another story, the U.S. deported 146 Venezuelan immigrants from Texas back to Venezuela last week. The group included women and children. According to family members, two powerful earthquakes struck while the deportees were being processed in a hotel. The hotel was destroyed, and it is not clear how many of the 146 people survived or whether deportations to Venezuela will continue.

There is also some encouraging news about crime in the United States. Crime data analyst Jeff Asher says the country likely experienced its lowest murder rate ever recorded in 2025. He reached this conclusion using data from about 600 police departments across the country. His data shows that murders dropped by nearly 19% in the first four months of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024, and all violent crime fell by about 6%.

There is also drama surrounding the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which is being played in the United States. Many soccer fans bought tickets through resale websites like StubHub, only to find that their tickets never arrived. One fan, John McNicholas from New Jersey, paid more than $1,200 for two seats to watch Scotland play Morocco, and his friend flew all the way from England to join him. But when they arrived at the stadium, their tickets did not work and they never got inside.

StubHub is blaming FIFA's ticketing system for the problems, while FIFA says it has no control over third-party ticket sales. StubHub has offered refunds to fans whose tickets never showed up. But many fans say getting their money back does not make up for missing the game they had looked forward to for so long.