The Indonesian Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) on Wednesday arrested the chief justice of the country’s constitutional court for allegedly accepting over USD $250,000 in bribes. Akil Mochtar was elected as chief justice for a five-year term which began in August, and the money confiscated from Mochtar’s house was said to be possibly linked to a [...]
A French court on Wednesday held that ID checks are legal under French law and are not discriminatory. The case was brought by 13 individuals from minority groups who were subject to ID checks, requesting €10,000 (USD $13,000) in compensation for each. In addition, they sought to amend the law to require written reports for [...]
Three Texas death row inmates on Tuesday filed a lawsuit alleging that the state plans to use new types of drugs in their execution. The complaint claims that Texas has obtained propofol, midzolam and hydromorphone from manufacturers by pretending to be a hospital. Thus, the drugs would not have been delivered if manufacturers knew that [...]
The Singapore Supreme Court on Wednesday again rejected a challenge to an anti-gay law criminalizing sexual conduct between men. This section outlaws any kind of sexual conduct between men, both in public and private. Those found guilty under the law can be up to two years imprisonment. Enacted in 1938, the law has not been [...]
A federal judge on Tuesday rejected constitutional challenges against a new Maryland firearm law that went into effect the same day. The Firearm Safety Act of 2013 limits certain assault weapons and removable magazines and requires safety training and fingerprint for potential buyers. While the recent ruling rejected the challenges, plaintiffs are still allowed to [...]
A military judge on Tuesday refused to suspend the pretrial hearings in a case against five Guantanamo Bay prisoners related to the 9/11 terrorist attack. Army Col. James Pohl reasoned that the measures taken to respond to the defendants’ concerns were adequate to continue the hearings. The defense team claimed that the government’s computer network [...]
Montgomery County Register of Wills D. Bruce Hanes on Tuesday appealed a lower court order to cease issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court . Hanes, who began granting marriage licenses to same-sex couples following Attorney General Kathleen Kane’s statement that United States v. Windsor ruling left the Pennsylvania Marriage Law [...]
A Vietnamese court on Wednesday sentenced prominent dissident Le Quoc Quan to 30 months in prison for tax evasion. Quan’s imprisonment sparked outrage from hundreds of protesters who believe the verdict was politically motivated and part of a widespread government crackdown on dissent. Quan, a lawyer and blogger, has been a vocal critic of Vietnam’s [...]
A court in Ecuador on Tuesday began the country’s first trial for crimes against humanity. Attorney General Galo Chiriboga charged nine army officers and a police general with the torture, sexual violence and forced disappearance of three opponents of the government in 1985. The prosecution, led by the Truth Commission , denounced the crimes, which [...]
The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant on Tuesday for a man accused of tampering with prosecution witnesses in a case against Kenyan Deputy President William Ruto . The ICC issued the warrant against Walter Barasa, whom the ICC accuses of attempting to bribe prosecution witnesses and participating in a scheme by Kenyan [...]
