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2011 in the United States

Events in the year 2011 in the United States.

Incumbents

Federal government

:Nancy Pelosi (D-California) (until January 3)
:John Boehner (R-Ohio) (since January 5)

State governments

Events

January

February

March

  • March 1 – The U.S. House of Representatives passes a small spending bill that funds the federal government until March 18 and cuts $4 billion in spending, averting a potential government shutdown.
  • March 3
  • Serena Williams' spokeswoman confirmed that Williams had suffered from a life-threatening pulmonary embolism.
  • The U.S. Supreme Court makes a controversial 8–1 decision that the controversial protests of the Westboro Baptist Church at fallen US military members' funerals are a form of protected speech under the First Amendment.
  • The U.S. Senate passes the same small spending bill that funds the federal government through March 18 and cuts $4 billion in spending.
  • March 9
  • Space Shuttle Discovery lands at the Shuttle Landing Facility in Florida on its final mission, STS-133. The vehicle clocked 365 days in orbit during its 27-year career, beginning with STS-41-D in fall 1984.
  • Governor of Illinois Pat Quinn signs legislation abolishing the state's death penalty and commutes the death sentences of the fifteen inmates on Illinois' death row to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
  • The Wisconsin Senate approves a bill that ends most collective bargaining rights for nearly all unions; it was able to pass the legislation without a quorum by removing the budget oriented parts of it (a quorum would have necessitated the presence of at least one of the absent Democratic members).
  • The world's largest bond fund, Pimco, announces it is dumping all of its U.S. government-related securities, including U.S. Treasurys and agency debt.
  • March 10 – The Wisconsin State Assembly passes the law that restricts bargaining rights for unions in a 53–42 vote.
  • March 11 – Following the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issues a tsunami warning to parts of the U.S. West Coast along the affected coastal areas in Alaska, Hawaii and the U.S. Territories in the Pacific Ocean.
  • March 15 – The U.S. House of Representatives passes another small spending bill, avoiding the U.S. government shutdown until April 8.
  • March 16 – Wholesale food prices rose by the largest monthly increase in February since November 1974, with an increase of 3.9%. Some economists claim that it will only get worse.
  • March 17
  • The House cuts all federal funding for NPR.
  • The US Senate passes a small spending bill, avoiding a government shutdown until April 8.
  • March 18 – NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft becomes the first man-made technology to establish an orbit around Mercury.
  • March 19 – In light of the continuing attacks on Libyan rebels by Gaddafi forces, military intervention authorized under UNSCR 1973 began as French fighter jets flew reconnaissance flights over Libya. United States Navy ships were said to be preparing for bombardment of Libyan air defenses.
  • March 21
  • AT&T announces plans to buy T-Mobile for $39 billion. If allowed by the Federal Communications Commission, AT&T would become the largest US phone carrier, surpassing Verizon Wireless. If allowed, the number of major US phone carriers would decrease from 4 to 3, leaving AT&T, Verizon and Sprint.
  • March 24 – According to a landmark study in The New England Journal of Medicine, an orally administered Takeda Pharmaceutical called pioglitazone, marketed as Actos, shows 72 percent effectiveness at the prevention of the development of type 2 diabetes in pre-diabetic subject participants. Ralph DeFronzo, M.D., study leader and professor in the School of Medicine and chief of the diabetes division at The University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, stated that "It's a blockbuster study. The 72 reduction is the largest decrease in the conversion rate of pre-diabetes to diabetes that has ever been demonstrated by any intervention, be it diet, exercise or medication.
  • March 25 – Archaeologists report that they have found new artifacts in an archaeological site in Texas which indicates of human existence in America 15,500 years ago – around 2,000 years earlier than the alleged Clovis culture took place, which until recently was considered the first human culture in North America.
  • March 29 – More than 1.5 million web sites around the world had been infected by the LizaMoon SQL injection attack spread by scareware since Tuesday. Novice computer users should be warned that when a pop up window opens the best way to insure you are not infected is to close the window from the task manager.
  • March 31
  • Because of U.S. federal budget woes and a general migration of information from printed to digital format, the Social Security Administration announces that starting in April 2011, most U.S. workers will no longer receive their annual Social Security benefit estimates in the mail. Citizens are able to look at their social security account retirement benefit estimator online instead of waiting each year for a paper statement.
  • A data breach at one of the world's largest providers of marketing-email services, Dallas-based Epsilon, a subsidiary of Alliance Data Systems Corporation, may have enabled unauthorized people to access the names and email addresses for customers of major financial-services, retailing and other companies, (Citigroup Inc., J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., Barclays PLC, U.S. Bancorp, Capital One Financial Corp., Walgreen Co., New York & Co., Kroger Co., Brookstone, McKinsey & Co., Marriott International Inc., Ritz-Carlton and TiVo Inc.).

April

May

June

  • June – US-International Women in Science Dialogue conference is held.
  • June 1
  • The Obama administration states that it will boycott a United Nations anti-racism conference because of concerns over Anti-Semitism.
  • The new United States military strategy explicitly states that a cyberattack is casus belli for a traditional act of war.
  • STS-134: Space Shuttle Endeavour lands for the final time, after 19 years of orbital spaceflight.
  • June 2
  • The Federal Bureau of Investigation investigate claims that hackers in China attacked the Google email accounts of officials in the United States and Asian countries, as well as Chinese pro-democracy activists.
  • Mitt Romney announces plans to seek the Republican Party nomination as President of the United States.
  • June 3 – John Edwards, former United States presidential candidate and Senator representing North Carolina, is indicted on charges of conspiracy and violating campaign finance laws in connection to his affair with Rielle Hunter; Edwards denies he broke any laws.
  • June 6
  • The U.S. Supreme Court makes a 7–2 decision that inventors do not give up their patent rights to their employers if that employer received federal funding. The ruling went against Stanford University in a dispute of patent infringement over a Roche HIV PCR detection test. Writing for the majority, Chief Justice John Roberts said that "Since 1790, the patent law has operated on the premise that rights in an invention belong to the inventor. The question here is whether the University and Small Business Patent Procedures Act of 1980—commonly referred to as the Bayh–Dole Act—displaces that norm and automatically vests title to federally funded inventions in federal contractors. We hold that it does not."
  • Anthony Weiner photo scandal: Representative Anthony Weiner (D-NY) admits he sent a lewd photo of himself over Twitter to a Washington woman. He also admits sending explicit photos and messages to at least 6 other woman over the past 3 years. He states that he will not resign.
  • June 8 – Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, mastermind of the 1998 United States embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania, is killed in Somalia.
  • June 9 – The U.S. Supreme Court makes an 8–0 decision that in patent dispute challenges against inventors the standard of proof required is more than a preponderance of evidence. The ruling upholds a 2009 jury verdict in favor of i4i in a dispute of patent infringement over a Microsoft Word software editing subprogram. Writing for the majority, Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor said that "Under §282 of the Patent Act of 1952, "[a] patent shall be presumed valid" and "[t]he burden of establishing in-validity of a patent or any claim thereof shall rest on the party asserting such invalidity." 35 U. S. C. §282. We consider whether §282 requires an invalidity defense to be proved by clear and convincing evidence. We hold that it does."
  • June 12
  • The Dallas Mavericks win their first NBA championship, four games to two, against the star-studded Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.
  • The coat of Mad Men star Christina Hendricks catches fire and bursts into flames at the Tony Awards after party. She was said to be unharmed.
  • June 13 – Hackers break Into US Senate computers.
  • June 15 – The Boston Bruins win their first NHL title in 39 years over the Vancouver Canucks in the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals.
  • June 16
  • Anthony Weiner photo scandal: Representative Anthony Weiner (D-NY) resigns.
  • The U.S. Supreme Court makes a controversial 5–4 decision that, in the interrogations of minors, a Miranda statement must be made. The ruling involves a 13-year-old child under schoolroom police interview. The court ruled in favor of the child, J. D. B., in a dispute of his confession made during a North Carolina theft investigation. Writing for the majority, Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor said that "This case presents the question whether the age of a child subjected to police questioning is relevant to the custody analysis of Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U. S. 436 (1966). It is beyond dispute that children will often feel bound to submit to police questioning when an adult in the same circumstances would feel free to leave. Seeing no reason for police officers or courts to blind themselves to that commonsense reality, we hold that a child's age properly informs the Miranda custody analysis."
  • On March 19, because of the continuing attacks on Libyan rebels by Gaddafi forces, there was a military intervention authorized under UNSCR 1973. Various forces including ones from the United States attacked with fighter jets in bombardment over Libya. Ten Congressman announce plans to sue President Barack Obama in Federal court over violation of the War Powers Resolution. The 10 Congressman include 3 Democrats, Dennis Kucinich of Ohio, John Conyers of Michigan and Michael Capuano of Massachusetts, as well as 7 Republicans, Ron Paul of Texas, Walter Jones and Howard Coble of North Carolina, Tim Johnson of Illinois, Dan Burton of Indiana, Jimmy Duncan of Tennessee and Roscoe Bartlett of Maryland.
  • June 19 – Northern Ireland golfer Rory McIlroy wins the 2011 U.S. Open, setting scoring records in the process.
  • June 20
  • The internet domain names can now be any "dot"-suffix. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) approved the change.
  • The U.S. Supreme Court makes a controversial 9–0 decision that, in large class-action lawsuits, a cohesive element must exist. The ruling involves the class-action status of a sex discrimination case against Wal-mart containing 1.6 million litigants. The court ruled in favor of Wal-mart, only on the class action status of the dispute of the women's claims. The ruling rejects the lower courts lowering of standards in class-action status certification. Writing for the majority, Associate Justice Antonin Scalia said that "We are presented with one of the most expansive class actions ever. The District Court and the Court of Appeals approved the certification of a class comprising about one and a half million plaintiffs, current and former female employees of petitioner Wal-Mart who allege that the discretion exercised by their local supervisors over pay and promotion matters violates Title VII by discriminating against women. In addition to injunctive and declaratory relief, the plaintiffs seek an award of backpay. We consider whether the certification of the plaintiff class was consistent with Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 23(a) and (b)(2)."
  • June 21 – The Food and Drug Administration announces that starting in 2012, they will require new warning labels that feature graphic images to convey the dangers of smoking on U.S. cigarette packs.
  • June 22
  • The Congressional Budget Office predicts the US debt-to-GDP ratio will top 101% by 2021, 10% higher than the 91% previously projected. Further predictions show an increase to 150% by 2030 and 200% by 2037. This assumes current spending levels continue.
  • 82-year-old Boston mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger, wanted for his alleged role in 19 murders, is captured by the FBI in Santa Monica, California after 16 years as a fugitive.
  • June 23 – The U.S. Supreme Court makes a 5–4 decision that, in will lawsuits, bankruptcy state courts are superseded by will courts in matters of core proceedings. The ruling involves the US$1.6 billion estate of J. Howard Marshall Jr. between Anna Nicole Smith and Pierce Marshall. The court ruled in favor of the estate of the deceased Pierce Marshall and the Texas Probate Court versus the estate of the deceased Vickie Lynn Marshall (a.k.a. Anna Nicole Smith) and the California Bankruptcy Court. Writing for the majority, Chief Justice John Roberts said that "... the Texas state decision controlled, after concluding that the Bankruptcy Court lacked the authority to enter final judgment on a counter claim that Vickie brought against Pierce in her bankruptcy proceeding. 1 To determine whether the Court of Appeals was correct in that regard, we must resolve two issues: (1) whether the Bankruptcy Court had the statutory authority under 28 U. S. C. §157(b) to issue a final judgment on Vickie's counterclaim; and (2) if so, whether conferring that authority on the Bankruptcy Court is constitutional ... We conclude that, although the Bankruptcy Court had the statutory authority to enter judgment on Vickie's counterclaim, it lacked the constitutional authority to do so."
  • June 24
  • New York becomes the sixth state to legalize same-sex marriage.
  • Pixar Animation Studios' twelfth feature film, Cars 2, the sequel to 2006's Cars, is released in theaters.
  • June 27
  • The U.S. Supreme Court makes a 7–2 decision that strikes down a California law enacted in 2005 that bans the sale of certain violent video games to children without parental supervision. The Court upholds the lower court decisions and revokes the law, ruling that video games were protected speech under the First Amendment as other forms of media. The ruling involves a freedom of speech case by The Entertainment Merchants Association against a California law. The court ruled in favor of The Entertainment Merchants Association, only on the overly broad status of the statute's wording of the minors' rights. Writing for the majority, Associate Justice Antonin Scalia said that "We consider whether a California law imposing restrictions on violent video games comports with the First Amendment...Because the Act imposes a restriction on the content of protected speech, it is invalid unless California can demonstrate that it passes strict scrutiny—that is, unless it is justified by a compelling government interest and is narrowly drawn to serve that interest. R. A. V., 505 U. S., at 395. The State must specifically identify an "actual problem" in need of solving, Playboy, 529 U. S., at 822–823, and the curtailment of free speech must be actually necessary to the solution, see R. A. V., supra, at 395. That is a demanding standard. "It is rare that a regulation restricting speech because of its content will ever be permissible." Playboy, supra, at 818. California cannot meet that standard...And finally, the Act's purported aid to parental authority is vastly overinclusive. Not all of the children who are forbidden to purchase violent video games on their own have parents who care whether they purchase violent video games."
  • Former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich is found guilty of 17 of the 20 counts against him, including trying to sell President Barack Obama's Senate seat.
  • June 28
  • In baseball, a judge in the U.S. state of Delaware authorizes the Los Angeles Dodgers to enter into a $150 million bankruptcy financing deal after the club addresses concerns of Major League Baseball.
  • Richard Poplawski is sentenced to death in the murder of three Pittsburgh police officers in April 2009.
  • June 29 –' is released in theaters as the third film in the Transformers film series.

July

August

September

October

November

December

Ongoing

Births

Deaths

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

See also

References

External links