Syrian and international human rights groups on Monday urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate the hundreds of civilian deaths during protests against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad . The ICC prosecutor’s office indicated it could not investigate the killings because it can prosecute only those crimes committed by nationals of ICC member states. Amnesty [...]

Eric Lipkin, payroll manager for Bernard L Madoff Investment Securities LLC, pleaded guilty on Monday to six criminal counts in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York related to his involvement in a Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors of billions of dollars. Lipkin admitted to falsifying documents to show nonexistent account [...]

The US Senate Tuesday approved Donald Verrilli, Jr , as the next Solicitor General by a vote of 72-16 , taking the position left open since Elena Kagan was sworn in to the Supreme Court last August. Verrilli is a veteran Supreme Court lawyer and former clerk for Supreme Court Justice William Brennan and for [...]

The Wyoming Supreme Court ruled Monday that a same-sex couple married in Canada can get a divorce in Wyoming. The couple was legally married in Canada in 2008 and began divorce proceedings in Wyoming, where the couple resides. A district court determined it did not have subject-matter jurisdiction to adjudicate an action to dissolve a [...]

The Connecticut Senate on Saturday approved by a 19-18 vote SB 1014 which provides for the decriminalization of small amounts of marijuana. The vote was at 18-18 until Lt. Governor Nancy Wyman broke the deadlock. The bill must now be passed by the Connecticut House of Representatives to become law. Supporters of the bill contend [...]

Four former security guards for Blackwater , now known as Xe Services , on Monday filed a petition challenging an appeals court ruling that reinstated a manslaughter case against them. The suit revolves around a 2007 shooting incident in the Nisour Square area of Baghdad that left 17 Iraqi civilians dead. A subsequent FBI investigation [...]

Kenyan Attorney General Amos Wako on Monday appealed the refusal by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to transfer two cases against high-ranking Kenyan officials for their alleged involvement in the violence after the 2007 Kenyan elections . In response, the ICC called for a hearing “to properly assess the desirability and feasibility of conducting the [...]

International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) prosecutor Serge Brammertz said that the arrest of accused Serbian war criminal Ratko Mladic was “significant on many levels” but questioned why it took Serbia nearly 16 years, in a speech to the UN Security Council . Brammertz also submitted a report to the Security Council which [...]

The US Supreme Court on Monday denied certiorari in Martinez v. Regents of the University of California , thereby rejecting a challenge to California’s policy of granting in-state tuition for state colleges and universities to illegal immigrants who graduated from California high schools. Last year, the California Supreme Court held that the state’s policy did [...]

The Nigeria Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arrested outgoing speaker of the House of Representatives Dimeji Bankole Sunday on allegations of fraud. He is believed to have secured a USD $ 66 million loan on top of his normal salary. He was arrested in his home in Abuja after a five-hour standoff with authorities. [...]