JURIST - Paper Chase

tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40798942009-11-23T14:30:57.684-05:00JURIST - Paper ChaseJURIST's legal news service, powered by a team of over 40 law student reporters and editors led by Professor Bernard Hibbitts at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.Bernard Hibbittsnoreply@blogger.comBlogger5000125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-2617247387341411532009-11-23T13:04:00.007-05:002009-11-23T14:30:57.706-05:00Kenya committee unveils new draft constitution

[JURIST] The Kenyan Committee of Experts on Constitutional Review [official website] unveiled the initial Harmonized Draft Constitution [text, PDF] last week. The changes are intended [Xinhua report] to reduce the widespread injustice throughout the country, and specifically address issues that led to the violence following the 2007 presidential elections [JURIST news archive]. Following the

Jay Carmellahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05302975656949829244noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-79775364658588419552009-11-23T11:18:00.010-05:002009-11-23T13:26:38.316-05:00London police settle with family of man mistaken for terrorist

[JURIST] London's Metropolitan Police Service (Met) [official website] and the family of Jean Charles de Menezes [BBC profile] on Tuesday announced [press release] an end to litigation stemming from de Menezes' death, caused by two Met officers in 2005. No details were given about the compensation awarded to the family: [I]n view of the physical and mental distress caused to the members of the

Jonathan Cohennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-4189961190738228472009-11-23T11:05:00.004-05:002009-11-23T11:22:15.024-05:00Israel Supreme Court bans for-profit prisons

[JURIST] The Israeli Supreme Court [official website, in Hebrew] banned privately-run prisons on Thursday, ruling [opinion, in Hebrew] that they violate prisoners' fundamental rights by introducing an element of profit into the prison system. The court decided that The arrangement lays the foundation for the transfer of basic law enforcement and imprisonment powers of the state to a private

Jonathan Cohennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-34232572104236021862009-11-22T11:45:00.006-05:002009-11-22T17:07:13.382-05:00Iran court sentences ex-VP for role in post-election unrest

[JURIST] Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Court has sentenced former vice president and reformer Mohammad Ali Abtahi [archived blog profile] to six years in jail for his role in the unrest that followed the disputed June 12 presidential elections [JURIST news archive], according to Iranian news agencies Saturday. Abtahi, who had been in custody since just after the election has been temporarily

Safiya Boucaudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06719756385529024368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-88978549439801910352009-11-22T10:30:00.008-05:002009-11-22T16:34:11.130-05:00Rights group says Israel-Palestinian conflict claimed almost 9,000 lives in twenty years

[JURIST] Marking its own 20th anniversary, Israeli human rights group B'Tselem [advocacy website] claimed Sunday that almost 9,000 people have been killed [materials; press release] in the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians since 1989. A majority of the deaths - 7,398 - were Palestinians. Of that number, 1,537 were thought to be minors. The report also said that 2009 has resulted in

Steve Czajkowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01836175957582468682noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-34727475309046707462009-11-22T09:40:00.006-05:002009-11-22T16:22:09.669-05:00DOJ dropping charges against Blackwater guard involved in 2007 Iraq shootings

[JURIST] Federal prosecutors from the US Department of Justice (DOJ) [official website] indicated Friday that they will drop manslaughter charges against a Blackwater Worldwide [JURIST news archive] security guard who had been involved in the September 2007 shooting incident in Baghdad [JURIST report] that killed 17 Iraqis. According to the US Attorney for the District of Columbia, Channing

Steve Czajkowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01836175957582468682noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-81492178011359369352009-11-21T12:56:00.010-05:002009-11-21T15:35:58.376-05:00Key ICTR witnesses threatening to boycott genocide trials after acquittals: report

[JURIST] Groups representing key witnesses appearing before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) [official website; JURIST news archive] told Reuters Saturday that they may no longer participate in court trials following the acquittal of two suspects involved in the 1994 Rwandan genocide [HRW backgrounder]. The umbrella organization for the various survivor groups in Rwanda,

Jay Carmellahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05302975656949829244noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-46508879019188153612009-11-21T10:28:00.012-05:002009-11-21T15:15:46.344-05:00UN rights resolution criticizes Iran for post-election violations

[JURIST] The UN Human Rights Committee [official website] Friday passed a resolution criticizing Iran for human rights violations, especially in the aftermath of the controversial reelection [JURIST news archive] earlier this year of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad [JURIST news archive]. The committee flagged detentions, arrests and the disappearance of individuals for exercising their freedoms of

Jay Carmellahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05302975656949829244noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-11407499049543267652009-11-21T10:09:00.007-05:002009-11-21T15:04:13.985-05:00Canada court orders review of US lesbian soldier refugee claim

[JURIST] Canada's Federal Court [official website] Friday ordered a review [judgment, PDF] of a denial of refugee status for a lesbian US soldier who deserted the US Army in 2007 and fled to Canada. The Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) originally rejected Bethany Smith's application in February, finding that she had failed to seek protection within the US and that such protection would have

Christian Ehrethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11763173228323485361noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-77169052107692575092009-11-21T08:59:00.009-05:002009-11-21T14:54:57.296-05:00Federal judge orders release of Algerian held at Guantanamo

[JURIST] A federal judge on Friday ordered the release [order, PDF] of Algerian Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] detainee Farhi Saeed Bin Mohammed. Judge Gladys Kessler directed the government to "take all necessary and approrpriate steps to facilitate [Fari Saeed's] release forthwith." The order resulted from a civil action brought against the US government for unlawfully detaining [Miami

Christian Ehrethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11763173228323485361noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-26209958841257118842009-11-20T15:05:00.000-05:002009-11-20T16:56:29.196-05:00ICTY appoints UK lawyer to represent Karadzic

[JURIST] The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) [official website] on Friday appointed [press release] British lawyer Richard Harvey to represent Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic [case materials; JURIST news archive] if he continues to boycott his trial when proceedings resume in March. Harvey is currently joint head of the British defense firm Garden Court

Patrice Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09258579106425581242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-8821852411393095902009-11-20T14:05:00.000-05:002009-11-20T16:56:11.394-05:00Islamic countries lobbying for treaty against religious defamation: report

[JURIST] The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) [official website] has begun lobbying for the UN General Assembly [official website] to pass an international treaty protecting religious beliefs and symbols from defamation, according to an AP report [text] Friday. The efforts of the OIC are being led by Pakistan and Algeria with full support of the organization's 54 remaining members.

Sarah Mileyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14481014236505918702noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-16412195924602220382009-11-20T13:03:00.024-05:002009-11-20T16:31:30.673-05:00Federal judge orders health benefits for same-sex spouse of federal employee

[JURIST] A judge for the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit [official website] on Thursday ordered [text, PDF] the director of the Administrative Office of the US Courts (AO) [official website] to provide health benefits to the same-sex spouse of a federal employee. Karen Golinski, the federal court employee who sued for the benefits, was married in California during the six-month period

Steve Dottererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02660076860396005858noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-48113896487938607192009-11-20T12:19:00.000-05:002009-11-20T16:56:51.915-05:00Senate confirms Obama's earliest judicial nominee after delay

[JURIST] The US Senate [official website] on Thursday voted 59-39 [roll call vote] to confirm Judge David Hamilton to the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit [official website], overcoming Republican opposition to secure President Barack Obama's first and longest-delayed judicial nominee. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) [official website] said a Republican

Zach Zaggerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03690580270265031315noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-78345190298964323902009-11-20T10:15:00.021-05:002009-11-20T16:08:04.049-05:00US only holdout on UN child rights treaty after Somalia announces intent to ratify

[JURIST] The Somali Transitional Federal Government [official website] on Friday announced its intention to ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) [official website], which, if successful, would make the US the only UN member state not to have done so. The UN International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) [official website] welcomed [Xinhua report] the announcement that

Ann Rileynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-33811711311477151622009-11-20T09:43:00.000-05:002009-11-20T15:58:51.932-05:00Ninth Circuit upholds ruling to block advocacy intervention in Proposition 8 suit

[JURIST] A three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit [official website] on Thursday affirmed [opinion, PDF] a lower court's denial [JURIST report] of a conservative advocacy group's motion to intervene in a challenge to Proposition 8 [text, PDF], California's constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage [JURIST news archive]. The appeals court held that the district

Ximena Marinerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06141546965415147103noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-4086003152239329542009-11-20T08:44:00.000-05:002009-11-20T14:25:10.197-05:00Argentina Senate approves law to compel DNA from suspected 'Dirty War' children

[JURIST] The Argentine Senate [official website] on Thursday voted 57-1 to approve a law [materials, in Spanish] that authorizes the government to obtain DNA samples from individuals suspected to have been born to forced disappearance victims of the 1976-1983 "Dirty War" [GlobalSecurity backgrounder; JURIST news archive]. The law will amend Article 218 of the Criminal Penal Code to allow minimal

Ximena Marinerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06141546965415147103noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-29458169630691178932009-11-20T08:21:00.023-05:002009-11-20T10:21:27.832-05:00New York high court rules same-sex spouses of state employees entitled to benefits

[JURIST] The New York Court of Appeals [official website] on Thursday dismissed a challenge [opinion, PDF] to two policies that provide benefits to same-sex couples married outside of the state. The first policy was a 2006 decision by the Westchester County executive to extend benefits to same-sex spouses of county employees. The second policy was a 2006 decision [memorandum, PDF] by the

Brian Jacksonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01100391433523080959noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-71947900752548333082009-11-20T07:32:00.001-05:002009-11-20T11:27:22.249-05:00Somalia, Afghanistan ranked most corrupt countries in annual survey

[JURIST] The conflict-ravaged nations of Somalia, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Sudan, and Iraq rank among the world's most corrupt, according to the 2009 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) [text; press release] prepared by Transparency International (TI) [advocacy website]. The index, released Tuesday, ranked 180 countries based on observations by businesspeople and analysts, giving each a score between

Jaclyn Belczykhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10531510092813386799noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-35481848769349416982009-11-19T15:03:00.001-05:002009-11-19T16:46:52.085-05:00Russia Constitutional Court extends moratorium on death penalty

[JURIST] The Constitutional Court of Russia [official website, in Russian] on Thursday extended the moratorium [press release, in Russian] on the death penalty [JURIST news archive] until the Russian parliament ratifies an international treaty abolishing capital punishment. In 1997, Russia signed, but did not ratify, Protocol 6 of the Convention on the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental

Haley Wojdowskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08323890931571403393Hwojdowski@gmail.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-55144900777138418732009-11-19T14:38:00.004-05:002009-11-19T16:34:15.199-05:00UK court orders release of details of ex-Guantanamo detainee's treatment

[JURIST] The UK High Court ruled [judgment text] Thursday that the details of the detention of Binyam Mohamed [JURIST news archive] in Pakistan in 2002 must be released. This most recent decision is the latest in a series of back and forth rulings on whether redacted materials regarding Mohamed's detention should be disclosed. An October interim ruling [JURIST report] by Lord Justice Thomas and

Brian Jacksonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01100391433523080959noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-7036625175544133762009-11-19T13:32:00.002-05:002009-11-19T16:18:39.778-05:00Bangladesh Supreme Court upholds death sentence for coup officers

[JURIST] The Supreme Court of Bangladesh [official website] on Thursday denied the final appeals of five former military officers sentenced to death for the 1975 military coup assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman [Hindustan Times profile], the country's first leader. Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed [official website], Mujibur's daughter, praised [press release] the latest

Andrea Bottorffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11857493861024601772noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-30172159138300923322009-11-19T12:59:00.002-05:002009-11-19T15:41:37.530-05:00Europe court rules delayed airline passengers entitled to compensation

[JURIST] The European Court of Justice (ECJ) [official website] ruled [case materials; press release] Thursday that airline passengers confronted with flight delays of two hours or more may receive compensation equal to that of passengers whose flights are cancelled. The flat-rate compensation ranges between 250 and 600 euros. The case arose under European Parliament and European Council

Steve Dottererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02660076860396005858noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-33165795952579381872009-11-19T12:01:00.000-05:002009-11-19T14:59:11.737-05:00Afghanistan president vows to fight corruption in inaugural address

[JURIST] Afghan President Hamid Karzai [official profile, JURIST news archive] pledged to fight corruption in his government during his inaugural address [text, PDF] on Thursday. To this end, Karzai announced that he would soon be organizing a conference to research the sources of the corruption and bribery that is widespread throughout Afghanistan and find ways to combat it. Additionally, he

Dwyer Arcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09888451953785271095noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4079894.post-48905056904344391252009-11-19T11:41:00.001-05:002009-11-19T14:47:55.834-05:00Brazil top court rules for extradition of Italy fugitive

[JURIST] The Brazilian Supreme Court [official website, in Portuguese] on Wednesday voted 5-to-4 to extradite [press release, in Portuguese] former Italian guerrilla Cesare Battisti back to Italy, but left the final decision to President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva [official profile, in Portuguese], who granted him asylum earlier this year. The high court has yet to decide if the order mandates

Carrie Schimizzihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00966261928134558992noreply@blogger.com