The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) on Friday named the members of its fact-finding mission into the May flotilla incident , in which Israeli forces raided several Turkish ships bound for the blockaded Gaza Strip . The UNHRC announced the formation of the commission in June, shortly after the incident, with the mandate to “investigate [...]
The US District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania on Friday accepted a plea agreement with former Pennsylvania judge Michael Conahan for his involvement in the juvenile sentencing scandal . Conahan, the former president judge of the Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas , pleaded guilty to racketeering and conspiracy charges for accepting more [...]
The Canadian Supreme Court ruled Friday that damages are an appropriate remedy for violations of a citizen’s rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms . The case arose after Vancouver lawyer Cameron Ward was mistakenly arrested for making threats against then-prime minister Jean Chretien . Ward was detained and eventually arrested for breach [...]
A Turkish court on Friday ordered the arrest of 102 people, including two serving and three retired military officers, in connection with an alleged coup plot. The 2003 Balyoz Security Operation Plan , or “Sledgehammer” plot, which included plans to bomb Istanbul mosques and provoke Greece into shooting down a Turkish plane in order to [...]
The appeals chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Friday suspended an order issued last week directing the release of accused Congolese militia leader Thomas Lubanga Dyilo . The court ordered Lubanga’s release after previously ordering a stay in the proceedings until the prosecution complied with a directive to provide certain information to the [...]
US Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) introduced legislation Wednesday intended to block the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from implementing its National Broadband Plan . The Freedom for Consumer Choice Act would remove the FCC’s ability to declare the actions of a communications provider illegal unless there was a clear showing that the practice causes harm to [...]
US Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) on Wednesday introduced an amended version of the Senate campaign finance bill in order to gain support from moderate Republicans in the hope of increasing the chance of the bill’s passage. The bill, known as the Disclose Act, was developed in response to the January US Supreme Court ruling in [...]
JURIST Guest Columnist Curtis Doebbler, professor of law at An-Najah National University in Nablus, Palestine, says that while the recent opinion of the International Court of Justice on Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence is likely to be an important point of reference for the representatives of other groups seeking self-determination, it is unlikely to be [...]
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit Thursday seeking to force Montana to provide legal status to same-sex relationships. The lawsuit, filed in Montana’s First Judicial District Court on behalf of seven same-sex couples, seeks declaratory judgment that the state must provide a legal status to same-sex couples that confers the same rights [...]
The US Senate will not pass broad climate legislation during this session, according to statements made Thursday by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) . Reid said that the body lacks the 60 votes necessary to end debate on the bill and pass the legislation, but also indicated that he would attempt to pass a [...]
