Feeds
61395 items (61395 unread) in 19 feeds
US
(12221 unread)
-
LawyersUSA
-
LawLibrary
(1694 unread) -
This Day at Law (2107 unread)
-
-
Cyber-Law (32 unread)
DE
(36245 unread)
IT
(565 unread)
-
Professionisti
(115 unread)
-
Legali
(450 unread)
FR
(4429 unread)
-
Village de la Justice (4143 unread)
-
Jurisexpert (286 unread)
CZ
(976 unread)
-
Liberalni institut
(198 unread)
-
Legalizace (778 unread)
BG
(1410 unread)
-
Bulgaria Law News (1410 unread)
NL
(1823 unread)
-
RvdJ
(120 unread)
-
Rechtspraak
(1703 unread)
ID
(356 unread)
-
Hukum Indonesia (356 unread)
TR
(3370 unread)
-
Turkish Law
(55 unread)
-
HukukiNetLaw (3315 unread)
Jurist (50 unread)
-
Supreme Court orders appeals court to reconsider Illinois ex-governor Ryan's appeal
Posted: April 30th, 2012, 11:13pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website] on Monday ordered [order list, PDF] the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit [official website] to reconsider former Illinois governor George Ryan's appeal in light of Wood v. Milyard [SCOTUS blog backgrounder; JURIST report]. Wood, which was decided just last week, held that federal courts of appeals, like district courts, have the authority—though not the obligation—to raise a forfeited timeliness defense on their own initiative in exceptional cases. Ryan argues that he was convicted under pre-Skilling v. United States [Cornell LII backgrounder; JURIST report] jury instructions and therefore he should be... -
UK court rules ISPs must block file sharing website
Posted: April 30th, 2012, 10:18pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The UK High Court ruled on Monday that British Internet service providers (ISPs) must block the file sharing website The Pirate Bay [website]. All of the ISPs, except one which requested additional time to consider the ruling, have one week to comply with the ruling [Guardian report]. The lobbying group requesting the block stated that the block was necessary to prevent the encouragement of copyright infringement. Critics of the ruling argue that it is pointless however because the block is easy to circumvent and it also represents a dangerous step forward for Internet censorship. In February the UK High... -
Rights groups urge UAE to end arrests, free political activists
Posted: April 30th, 2012, 9:51pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] Amnesty International (AI) and Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy websites] issued a joint public statement [text, PDF] Monday urging the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to stop its recent crackdown on political activists by ending arrests and releasing those in custody. The report claims that UAE authorities are holding political opponents based "solely on their affiliation with a non-violent political group and their peaceful criticism of the government." The group, the Reform and Social Guidance Association [advocacy website, in Arabic], is a non-profit organization that advocates Islamic principles, and its nine members currently in custody have not been charged with... -
Afghanistan election commission proposes voting changes to prevent fraud
Posted: April 30th, 2012, 8:46pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The Independent Election Commission of Afghanistan (IEC) [official website] on Saturday drafted [AFP report] proposed amendments to the country's electoral law [text, PDF] in an effort to prevent future election fraud. According to IEC spokesman Noor Mohammad Noor, about 50 percent of the electoral law will be changed, including alterations in parliamentary elections which would allocate one-third of seats to political parties based on proportional representation. The remaining two-thirds of parliament would remain subject to the original system whereby seats are determined by a single, non-transferable vote for one candidate. The IEC's proposed amendments also include a redefinition of... -
All sides in Mali conflict have committed war crimes: HRW
Posted: April 30th, 2012, 8:27pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] All sides in the Malian conflict have committed war crimes [HRW press release] including summary executions, rape, the use of children as soldiers, and the pillaging of hospitals, schools, aid agencies and government buildings, Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] reported Monday. HRW conducted a 10-day mission to Mali [JURIST news archive] in April and documented human rights violations by several groups, including the Tuareg National Movement for Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), which seeks autonomy for the North, Ansar Dine, which wants to impose strict Sharia law throughout Mali, and an ethnic Arab militia, formally allied with the government,... -
Bahrain court orders retrial for imprisoned rights activist
Posted: April 30th, 2012, 7:29pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The Bahrain Court of Cassation ruled Monday that human rights activist Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] would be retried along with 20 others convicted on terrorism-related charges. Al-Khawaja, along with eight others, is serving a life sentence after a closed hearing where the Bahrain military National Safety Court found him guilty [JURIST report] in June 2011. On appeal, the Bahrain court ruled that they should be retried in a civilian chamber, but they must stay incarcerated pending a new verdict [Reuters report]. Al-Khawaja has been on a hunger strike for the past three months and will most... -
Supreme Court to rule on ineffective assistance of counsel
Posted: April 30th, 2012, 7:06pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website] granted certiorari [order list, PDF] Monday in Chaidez v. United States [docket; cert. petition, PDF] to rule on an ineffective assistance of counsel claim. In 2010, the court held in Padilla v. Kentucky [JURIST report] that the Sixth Amendment [text] guarantee of effective assistance of counsel requires a criminal defense lawyer to advise a non-citizen client that pleading guilty to an aggravated felony will trigger mandatory, automatic deportation. The question presented in Chaidez is whether Padilla applies to persons whose convictions became final before its announcement. The US Court of Appeals for the... -
Sudan declares state of emergency on South Sudan border
Posted: April 29th, 2012, 9:23pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] issued a resolution Sunday declaring a state of emergency in areas near the border with South Sudan and suspending the constitution. The move follows the arrest Saturday of four people whom the Sudanese claim were arrested for aggression against the north in the contested Heglig oil fields. Those claims have been denied by representatives from Michem Demining which employed two of the men to conduct landmine removal efforts within South Sudan. The emergency declaration [AP report] imposes a trade embargo on South Sudan and grants authorities in the area increased... -
Bahrain police abusing detainees: HRW
Posted: April 29th, 2012, 8:26pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] Bahrain's police officers regularly abuse minor detainees before transporting them to police stations, Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] reported [text] Sunday after a five-day visit to the country. During the visit to Bahrain, HRW conducted interviews with young males who alleged that police officers had beat them while they were being arrested for participating in protests. Bahrain officials previously promised in November to end police brutality after similar allegations were addressed in a report [text] issued by the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) [official website]. HRW concedes in its report that treatment at police detention facilities has... -
Vietnamese-American activist arrested for terrorism
Posted: April 29th, 2012, 7:25pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] Vietnamese-American activist Nguyen Quoc Quan was arrested earlier this month in Vietnam for allegedly attempting to stop celebrations in remembrance of the end of the Vietnam War [History backgrounder], reports said on Sunday. Vietnamese newspaper Tuoi Tre [media website, in Vietnamese] reported Quan was arrested on charges of terrorism [Tuoi Tre report, in Vietnamese] for planning to hold protests in support of a banned group of US exiles, the Viet Tan (Vietnam Reform Party) [party website]. The Viet Tan on Sunday released a statement [text] regarding Quan's arrest:The Vietnamese government's accusation of "terrorism" against Dr. Quan is completely fabricated... -
Bosnian Muslim woman pleads guilty to war crimes committed in Sarajevo
Posted: April 28th, 2012, 9:49pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] Rasema Handanovic, a woman accused of killing Bosnian Croat civilians during the 1992-1995 Bosnian Civil War [JURIST news archive], pleaded guilty Friday before the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina [official website]. This makes her the first woman [AFP report] convicted of war crimes by the local Bosnian court. Fellow combatants testified to having witnessed Handanovic personally shoot wounded victims in the head [Reuters report], some multiple times. Handanovic expressed regret for her crimes. Handanovic, who immigrated to the US and became a citizen in 2006, lived with her family in Oregon and was extradited [JURIST report] in December. She... -
South Africa president pardons 35,000 offenders to ease prison overcrowding
Posted: April 28th, 2012, 9:02pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] South African President Jacob Zuma [BBC profile] announced Saturday that he will be issuing pardons [text], known as "special remissions," to 35,000 offenders in order to ease prison overcrowding. The remissions were issued in honor of Freedom Day commemorating Nelson Mandela [BBC profile] winning the nation's first all-race elections in 1994. According to the police minister [AP report], 14,600 of the offenders will be "conditionally or unconditionally" released from prison, and 20,000 offenders' parole or probation sentences will be dismissed. The president is granted this power under Section 84(j) of the South African Constitution [text, PDF]. Prison overcrowding is... -
Ukraine ex-PM Tymoshenko's tax evasion trial postponed due to health
Posted: April 28th, 2012, 8:43pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] A judge for the Kyivsky District Court of Kharkiv ruled Saturday that a tax evasion hearing for former Ukrainian prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko [personal website; JURIST news archive] will be postponed until May 21, due to health concerns. Tymoshenko's latest legal battle concerns allegations of tax evasion while she headed the United Energy Systems of Ukraine (UESU) in 1996. Proceedings began earlier this month [JURIST report] despite Tymoshenko's absence, but Judge Kostiantyn Sadovsky granted her a two-week extension [Interfax report] Saturday in the hopes that she will appear before the court. Tymoshenko's legal team has suggested that two weeks... -
Somali man convicted of piracy for role in German, US hijackings
Posted: April 28th, 2012, 7:55pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] Somali national Mohommad Saaili Shibin was convicted in a US court on Friday of piracy [JURIST news archive] for his role in the hijacking of a German merchant vessel and a US yacht in 2010 and 2011. Shibin, who played the role of negotiator in the hijackings, was convicted of 15 charges [AP report], including kidnapping and hostage-taking which require a sentence of life in prison. According to a statement by US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Neil MacBride [official profile], Shibin is the highest-ranking pirate ever to be convicted in the US. US officials are hopeful... -
China activist escapes house arrest to US protection
Posted: April 28th, 2012, 6:52pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] Blind Chinese rights activist Chen Guangcheng [JURIST news archive] fled the guarded home where he was being kept under house arrest to the protection of US officials last week, reports said Friday. While the US embassy has not confirmed reports that Chen is at the embassy [BBC report], US-based rights group ChinaAid [advocacy website] has confirmed that the US is in "high-level talks" regarding the safety of Chen in a statement [text] released on Saturday. Chen's escape is expected to change US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's scheduled visit to Beijing next week as she has repeatedly called for... -
Federal judge rejects Florida employee drug testing
Posted: April 28th, 2012, 12:15am MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] A judge for the the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida [official website] on Thursday blocked an executive order that mandates Florida state government agencies provide pre-employment drug screening for all prospective employees and provide for random drug testing of all current agency employees regardless of classification. Governor Rick Scott [official website] issued Executive Order 11-58 [text, PDF] in March 2011 and directed the drug testing policy to go into effect by May 21, 2011. The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida (ACLU-FL) [advocacy website] filed a lawsuit [JURIST report] in May on behalf of the... -
Rwanda high court rejects opposition leader's appeal
Posted: April 27th, 2012, 9:18pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] Rwanda's Supreme Court [official website] on Friday rejected an appeal by opposition leader Bernard Ntaganda, who was charged under the country's anti-genocide ideology laws. Ntaganda, a former leader of the country's PS-Imberakuri [party website] party, was arrested in July 2010 and convicted in February 2011 of endangering national security, encouraging an ethnic divide and attempting to organize demonstrations. He has denied all the charges but was sentenced to four years in prison. Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] called [press release] Friday's decision, "a blow for those who had hoped the Court might protect free speech." Ntaganda is the... -
Federal judge denies FOIA request for Bin Laden photos
Posted: April 27th, 2012, 8:33pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] A judge for the US District Court for the District of Columbia [official website] on Thursday denied a request [opinion, PDF] to release photos of Osama Bin Laden [JURIST news archive] taken shortly after his death last year. Nonprofit organization Justice Watch [advocacy website] filed a complaint [text, PDF] against the Obama administration in May, claiming that the government violated the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) [text] by refusing to release photographs of Bin Laden's body. Obama announced in May that the US government would not release the photographs and defended that decision [JURIST report] in September, arguing that... -
US House approves controversial cybersecurity bill
Posted: April 27th, 2012, 7:35pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The US House of Representatives [official website] voted 248-168 [roll call] Thursday to approve a controversial cybersecurity bill that would allow private companies and the federal government to exchange private security information, despite the threat of a presidential veto. The Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) [HR 3523 materials] was designed as a way to stop cyber attacks on US infrastructure as well as these private companies [AP report]. The bill would allow the private companies to share information with the federal government and vice versa, pertaining to these electronic attacks. Lawmakers who support the bill have hailed... -
UN rights chief concerned about threats to rule of law in Papua New Guinea
Posted: April 27th, 2012, 6:57pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay [official website] expressed concern on Friday about threats to rule of law [press release] in Papua New Guinea. Since August 2011 there has been a battle for leadership and the legitimacy of the Prime Minister has been called into question. Pillay's concerns stem from actions taken by the government that she believes breach international human rights standards and adversely effect the judiciary and its ability to act independently. Pillay believes the actions of both the legislature and the executive have curtailed the power of the judiciary and it can no longer... -
ACLU files suit against US Border Patrol
Posted: April 27th, 2012, 6:56pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The American Civil Liberties Union of Washington (ACLU-WA) and the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project (NWIRP) [advocacy websites] filed a lawsuit [complaint, PDF; press release] Thursday alleging that US Border Patrol [official website] agents are routinely stopping vehicles to check the immigration status of Latinos without legal justification. The class action lawsuit was filed in the US District Court for the Western District of Washington [official website] on behalf of three individuals who claim they were stopped and interrogated based solely on their ethnicity. The plaintiffs are seeking a declaration:that it is unlawful for Border Patrol agents to stop a... -
Brazil congress passes legislation easing forest conservation laws
Posted: April 27th, 2012, 1:01am MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The Brazilian Chamber of Deputies [official website] Wednesday passed amendments to the country's Forest Code, which requires landowners to conserve certain percentages of total acreage as forested terrain. Passed 247-184 over strong opposition, the controversial legislation eases conservation rules [BBC report] for farmers and provides amnesty from fines for illegally clearing trees. Farmers and other supporters of the bill contend that the changes will encourage greater investment in the agriculture industry, which accounts for approximately 5.8 percent of Brazil's GDP [CIA World Factbook materials]. Currently the law requires conservation of 20 percent of forested land in some areas, ranging... -
Wisconsin appeals court declines to lift injunction against state voter ID law
Posted: April 26th, 2012, 11:27pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The Wisconsin Court of Appeals for District II on Wednesday declined [order, PDF] to hear a request to overturn a temporary injunction against the state's controversial voter ID law [Wisconsin Act 23; JURIST news archive], which requires that all voters present a form of photo identification at the polls. Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker [official website] and the other named defendants in NAACP v. Walker [case materials] sought leave to appeal the injunction issued on March 6 [JURIST report] by Dane County Circuit Court [official website] Judge David Flanagan, who said that the Wisconsin law was more restrictive than similar... -
Canada government appealing prostitution ruling to Supreme Court
Posted: April 26th, 2012, 9:54pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] Canadian Justice Minister Rob Nicholson [official website] announced [press release] Wednesday that the government will appeal [docket] a recent prostitution ruling [JURIST report] to the Supreme Court of Canada [official website]. The decision rendered three portions of the nation's current anti-prostitution law unconstitutional and imposed a 30-day period for the government to file an appeal. Nicholson spoke on the decision [Globe and Mail video] before the House of Commons [official website], saying, "Canadians can continue to count on this government to protect those that are vulnerable to this exploitation." The respondents, three professional sex workers who brought the original... -
Pakistan high court convicts PM of contempt
Posted: April 26th, 2012, 9:00pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The Supreme Court of Pakistan [official website] convicted [order text] Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] of contempt of court Wednesday for disobeying a court order to open corruption cases against President Asif Ali Zardari [official website]. The decision proscribed a symbolic punishment of "imprisonment till the rising of the Court today," and does not attach jail time nor remove Gilani from public office, which were potential penalties [JURIST report] when charges were announced. Gilani's party, the Pakistan People's Party [official website], lamented the ruling [press release] in a meeting of party leaders:[T]he meeting... -
Kenya senior judges declared unfit
Posted: April 26th, 2012, 8:12pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] Kenya dismissed four senior judges on Wednesday after an independent board found that they lacked integrity and were incompetent. The men removed from their position were Riaga Omollo, the Chief of the Court of Appeals, Samuel Bosire, Emmanuel Okubasu and Joseph Nyamu. Five other judges were cleared of any suspicion [Angola Press report] in the proceedings. The investigative panel was set up in 2008 following post-election violence [JURIST news archive]. Previous attempts to clean up the judiciary have failed and been seen as more political actions than anything else. The panel said that the judges were removed for incompetence... -
UN rights chief says NGO restrictions undermine human rights
Posted: April 26th, 2012, 7:13pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay [official website] expressed concern [press release] Wednesday that recent restrictions on non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in a number of countries may fundamentally effect freedoms and human rights. Pillay highlighted Egypt, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Belarus, Israel and Venezuela as examples of countries that have enacted laws that are curtailing freedoms of NGOs. The most dangerous restriction to NGOs comes from laws the restrict freedom of association, or what Pillay calls "the lifeblood" of NGOs. Without such freedoms she foresees possible irreparable damage to NGOs. She urged these countries to rethink the legislation:NGOs must be... -
Charles Taylor convicted of war crimes
Posted: April 26th, 2012, 6:34pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL) [official website] on Thursday convicted [judgment summary, PDF; press release, PDF] former Liberian president Charles Taylor [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] on all 11 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity during Sierra Leone's decade-long civil war. Trial Chamber II found unanimously that Taylor aided and abetted Revolutionary United Front (RUF) and Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) forces. Taylor is the first head of state to be tried and convicted by an international tribunal. The verdict was welcomed by the Office of the Prosecutor [press release, PDF], the UN High Commissioner... -
Connecticut governor signs death penalty repeal bill
Posted: April 26th, 2012, 1:15am MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy [official website] on Wednesday signed legislation [SB 280 materials] to repeal the death penalty [JURIST news archive]. The bill was approved by the House and the Senate [JURIST reports] earlier this month. Upon signing the legislation, Malloy stated [text]:My position on the appropriateness of the death penalty in our criminal justice system evolved over a long period of time. As a young man, I was a death penalty supporter. Then I spent years as a prosecutor and pursued dangerous felons in court, including murderers. In the trenches of a criminal courtroom, I learned firsthand that... -
Supreme Court hears arguments on Arizona immigration law
Posted: April 25th, 2012, 10:53pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website] heard its final oral arguments [day call, PDF] of the term Wednesday in Arizona v. United States [transcript, PDF; JURIST report] to determine whether Arizona's controversial immigration law [SB 1070 materials; JURIST news archive] is preempted by federal law. The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld an injunction last April before the law ever took effect, and Arizona asked the high court to weigh in [JURIST reports]. Four specific provisions of the law are at issue: Section 2(B), which requires police officers to check the immigration status of anyone whom... -
Louisiana Senate votes to increase abortion sonogram requirements
Posted: April 25th, 2012, 10:02pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The Louisiana State Senate on Tuesday approved a bill [text] to change the requirements regarding ultrasounds before a woman can undergo an abortion, including a new requirement to listen to the fetus' heartbeat. Current state law already already requires an ultrasound two hours before the procedure, but the new legislation would require the ultrasound to be performed 24 hours in advance. The new amendments will now be voted on in the House and if passed would add the requirement that doctors, during the ultrasound, "make audible the fetal heartbeat, if present, in a quality consistent with current medical practice."... -
Military judge denies motion to dismiss Wikileaks trial
Posted: April 25th, 2012, 9:43pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] Army Col. Denise Lind refused Wednesday to dismiss Espionage Act [text] charges against Pfc. Bradley Manning [advocacy website; JURIST news archive] for allegedly transferring vast amounts of classified information to Wikileaks [website; JURIST news archive]. The ruling [AP report] will allow the discovery hearing to continue with the official trial scheduled to begin in September. Manning's defense argues that many others had access to his workplace computers in Iraq, he never should have been deployed to Iraq or entrusted with confidential information because he is emotionally troubled since he was barred from openly serving as a gay man, and... -
Maryland high court strikes down DNA collection law
Posted: April 25th, 2012, 8:19pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The Maryland Court of Appeals [official website] on Tuesday struck down [opinion, PDF] a law [text, PDF] allowing police to collect DNA from individuals arrested for violent crimes and burglaries, finding it an unconstitutional violation of the Fourth Amendment [Cornell LII backgrounder]. The question was whether the government interest in collecting and testing a DNA sample without a warrant outweighs the intrusion on an arrestee's privacy. The 5-2 majority opinion stated:The State's purported interests are made less reasonable by the fact that DNA collection can wait until a person has been convicted, thus avoiding all the threats to privacy... -
European Muslims facing discrimination: Amnesty report
Posted: April 25th, 2012, 7:52pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] Amnesty International (AI) [advocacy website] on Monday challenged European governments to do more to address discrimination against Muslims [report, PDF], especially in the areas of employment and education. The report states that many women are denied jobs or access to classrooms simply because they are wearing traditional forms of dress, such as a headscarf [JURIST news archive]. Men also reportedly face discrimination for growing beards in a style traditionally associated with Islam. The report documents cases in European countries, such as Belgium, France, Netherlands, Spain and Switzerland, that have restrictions on building places of worship and have banned full... -
Supreme Court rules in tax case
Posted: April 25th, 2012, 7:21pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website] ruled 5-4 [opinion, PDF] Wednesday in United States v. Home Concrete & Supply, LLC [SCOTUSblog backgrounder] that § 6501(e)(1)(A) [text] of the IRS code does not apply to an overstatement of basis. Ordinarily, the government must assess a deficiency against a taxpayer within "3 years after the return was filed." The three-year period is extended to six years, however, when a taxpayer "omits from gross income an amount properly includible therein which is in excess of 25 percent of the amount of gross income stated in the return." The question before the court... -
Supreme Court hears arguments on sovereign immunity in Indian land suits
Posted: April 25th, 2012, 12:31am MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website] heard oral arguments [day call, PDF] Tuesday in Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians v. Patchak [transcript, PDF; JURIST report] on US sovereign immunity in suits involving "trust or restricted Indian lands." David Patchak filed suit to prevent the Secretary of the Interior from holding land in trust for a Michigan Indian tribe. The district court dismissed his suit for lack of standing. The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled [opinion, PDF] that he had standing but found that the US was immune from suit. The case was heard... -
Padilla appeals dismissal of unlawful detention suit to Supreme Court
Posted: April 24th, 2012, 11:29pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] US citizen and convicted terrorist Jose Padilla [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] filed a petition for certiorari [text, PDF] with the US Supreme Court [official website] on Monday, appealing the dismissal [JURIST report] of his lawsuit against US officials for allegedly illegally detaining him at a military jail in South Carolina. Padilla's lawsuit claims nominal monetary redress against Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta [official profile], former defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld [BBC profile] and other officials, arguing that the Defense Department's methods of detaining him as an "enemy combatant" were unconstitutional. His question to the Supreme Court, however, is on... -
EEOC rules transgender workers covered under Title VII
Posted: April 24th, 2012, 10:58pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The Equal Opportunity Employment Commission (EEOC) [official website] has ruled [decision] that Title VII [text] employment discrimination protections extend to transgender individuals. The decision came as a result of an employment discrimination complaint filed by the Transgender Law Center (TLC) [advocacy website] on behalf of Mia Macy, a transgender woman who was denied a job as a ballistics technician at the Walnut Creek, California laboratory of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. The EEOC concluded that "intentional discrimination against a transgender individual because that person is transgender is, by definition, discrimination 'based on ... sex,' and... -
California to put death penalty repeal on November ballot
Posted: April 24th, 2012, 10:00pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] An initiative [text, PDF] to repeal California's death penalty [JURIST news archive] qualified Monday for the November ballot after receiving 500,000 signatures. If approved by voters, the Savings, Accountability, and Full Enforcement for California Act (SAFE California Act) [advocacy website] would overhaul the death penalty system in California. It will not only change all death sentences to a sentence of life without parole, but would also require inmates to work and pay into a victim compensation fund. It would also contribute to funding investigations of unsolved murder and rape cases. The act's supporters also claim that the repeal of... -
Supreme Court hears arguments on bankruptcy auction procedures
Posted: April 24th, 2012, 9:26pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website] heard oral arguments [day call, PDF] Monday in RadLAX Gateway Hotel, LLC v. Amalgamated Bank [transcript; JURIST report]. The issue is whether a debtor may propose a Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan that sells unencumbered assets without allowing secured creditors to "credit bid," if they can provide the creditor with an indubitable equivalent of to the claim per § 1129(b)(2)(A)(iii) [text] of the Bankruptcy Code. A "credit bid" is when a creditor will bid on collateral in the bankruptcy case's auction by promising to give up a portion of his claim rather than bidding... -
ICC closely monitoring situation in Mali
Posted: April 24th, 2012, 9:04pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] Office of the Prosecutor said Tuesday that they are monitoring the situation [text] in Mali [JURIST news archive] for potential crimes under the ICC's jurisdiction. The statement notes that Mali has ratified the Rome Statute [text] giving the ICC jurisdiction to prosecute war crimes and crimes against humanity that may have occurred since fighting began in January. The prosecutor's office said:According to several sources, including senior United Nations officials, crimes such as killings, abductions, rapes and conscription of children may have been committed by various groups in the northern part of the... -
Egypt approves law on presidential candidate ban
Posted: April 24th, 2012, 8:25pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] Egypt's ruling army on Tuesday approved a law drafted by the Egyptian Parliament [official website] which bans certain candidates from the upcoming presidential elections [IFES election guide]. The law was passed early in April [JURIST report] and prevents anyone who held a rank of party leader or higher during the regime of former president Hosni Mubarak [Al Jazeera profile; JURIST news archive] from running for president for 10 years. However, it was unclear if the law was passed in time to block the candidacy of Ahmed Shafiq [Reuters report] who very briefly served as Mubarak's prime minister and for... -
Supreme Court rules appeals court can raise timeliness defense
Posted: April 24th, 2012, 8:15pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website] ruled unanimously [opinion, PDF] Tuesday in Wood v. Milyard [SCOTUSblog backgrounder] that federal courts of appeals, like district courts, have the authority—though not the obligation—to raise a forfeited timeliness defense on their own initiative in exceptional cases. The court had been asked to decide if the prosecution failing to raise a statute of limitations argument in response to plaintiff's writ of habeas corpus is an error that can be overturned. The US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit ruling [opinion text] barred Patrick Wood's petition for writ of habeas corpus based on... -
UN experts welcome US report on criminalizing homelessness
Posted: April 24th, 2012, 7:51pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The UN Office for the High Commissioner on Human Rights (OHCHR) [official website] on Monday welcomed [press release] a report [text, PDF] published by the US Interagency Council on Homelessness (ICH) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) [official websites] which found that ordinances criminalizing homelessness may violate human rights as well as the Fourth and Eighth Amendments [text]. The report condemns the criminalization of the homeless through various acts of living, such as sleeping or conducting personal hygiene measures in public spaces and suggests alternatives to reduce homelessness and implement preventative measures. The report goes on to state: Homeless... -
Obama order allows sanctions for using technology to violate human rights
Posted: April 23rd, 2012, 11:09pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] US President Barack Obama [official website] on Monday issued an executive order [text] that will allow the US to impose sanctions on foreign nationals who have used technology to participate in violation of human rights. Obama signed the order after he indicated that Iran and Syria's governments have committed various abuses against human rights with the help of technology, including computer monitoring and network disruption. Under the order, any person found to have used technology to carry out a human rights abuse is not permitted to enter the US. While the order is aimed at agencies aiding the Syrian... -
Nepal urged not to impose blanket amnesty for crimes committed during civil war
Posted: April 23rd, 2012, 10:47pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] Human Rights Watch (HRW) and the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) [advocacy websites] on Monday urged Nepal to reject blanket amnesty [press release] plans for international crimes committed during the country's civil war, which ended in 2006. A representative for ICJ said amnesty for human rights abuses, such as torture, rape and forced disappearances, violate international law and Nepal's own jurisprudence. The Nepal Parliament [official website] is setting up a Truth and Reconciliation Commission to investigate war crimes and is currently debating a proposal to grant amnesty [AFP report] to government officials and rebel forces. Some lawmakers believe that... -
Iceland ex-PM convicted of single charge over role in banking collapse
Posted: April 23rd, 2012, 10:33pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] A special court in Iceland on Monday convicted former prime minister Geir Haarde [official profile, in Icelandic] on one out of the four criminal charges he faced concerning the collapse [JURIST news archive] of the country's banking system in 2008, announcing that he would not face any punishment. The charges stemmed from the collapse of the country's three major banks in 2008 while Haarde was leader of the country's ruling Independence Party. Haarde was convicted [AP report] of failing to take the steps to be sure a comprehensive analysis of the risk the state faced after the collapse of... -
Bahrain court delays appeal of imprisoned human rights activist
Posted: April 23rd, 2012, 9:52pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The Bahrain Court of Cassation on Monday delayed an appeal hearing for human rights defender Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja [BBC profile; JURIST news archive], who is serving a life sentence for terrorism-related charges. The court was to issue a decision Monday but set the appeal hearing for April 30 [AP report]. Al-Khawaja is among 21 individuals tried before the Bahrain military National Safety Court in June 2011 and found guilty [JURIST report] of terrorism-related charges, including several tried in absentia. Al-Khawaja has been on a hunger strike for the past 11 weeks and will now have to wait another week before... -
UN Security Council calls for constitutional order in Guinea-Bissau
Posted: April 23rd, 2012, 9:05pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The UN Security Council [official website] on Saturday urged immediate restoration of constitutional order [press release] in Guinea-Bissau [BBC backgrounder]. The presidential statement condemned the April 12 coup, during which the military took over the government, detained officials, including interim president Raimundo Pereira and former prime minister Carlos Gomes, and disrupted democratic presidential elections. The coup occurred two weeks prior to the second round of the presidential election between Gomes and former president Kumba Yala. The Security Council called for an end to violence in the country, release of Pereira, Gomes and others arbitrarily detained, and protection of human... -
UN Security Council approves mission to supervise Syria peace plan
Posted: April 23rd, 2012, 6:45pm MSD
Tags: [edit]
[JURIST] The UN Security Council [official website] unanimously approved a resolution [press release] Saturday to send 300 unarmed soldiers and other civilian aid to Syria for 90 days to supervise the implementation of a peace plan. The UN Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS) will track whether Syrian officials follow the UN Joint Special Envoy's six steps for ending the conflict, which the Security Council unanimously approved [JURIST report] earlier this month. Under the peace plan, Syrian officials will end military fighting, maintain communications with and free movement of UN mission officers in the country, allow access for humanitarian aid, release...