A federal judge ruled Friday that firearms regulations in Washington DC, including a ban on assault weapons and a prohibition on large capacity ammunition feeding devices , do not violate the US Second Amendment . The ruling by Judge Ricardo M. Urbina of the US District Court for the District of Columbia also upholds new [...]
Lawyers for former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra claimed Friday that the Constitutional Court of Thailand had wrongfully ordered the seizure of assets belonging to Thaksin and asked for a reconsideration of his case. Noppadon Pattama, Thaksin's legal advisor, said that new evidence had come to light showing that Thaksin did not abuse his power [...]
A three-judge panel of the US District Court for the District of Columbia ruled Friday that the Republican National Committee (RNC) cannot raise "soft money" to use in state elections. "Soft money" refers to contributions beyond the ceilings imposed by campaign finance laws. The case tests the limits of the Supreme Court's recent decision in [...]
The Obama administration on Friday defended the legality of its use of unmanned predator drone strikes . State Department Legal Adviser Harold Koh explained the administration's legal rationale in a speech to the American Society of International Law , saying the strikes "comply with all applicable law." Koh said the drone strikes fit the administration's [...]
US Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Thursday appointed retired Navy Vice Adm. Bruce MacDonald as the convening authority for military commissions . Considered an expert in military law, MacDonald's experience as a former Navy judge advocate general played a significant role in the appointment process. MacDonald replaces Susan Crawford, a Bush administration appointee. The position [...]
US Attorney General Eric Holder said Thursday that the US Department of Justice (DOJ) would appeal a judge's order to release a Guantanamo Bay detainee suspected of involvement in the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks. In a decision released Monday, US District Court for the District of Columbia Judge James Robinson had granted the habeas [...]
Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and President Robert Mugabe agreed at belated International Women's Day Celebrations on Friday that gay rights should not be constitutionally protected . While Zimbabwean "sexual deviancy" laws prohibit homosexual acts, some lawmakers have suggested that drafts of Zimbabwe's new constitution decriminalize homosexual acts. Tsvangirai and Mugabe rejected such proposals, stating [...]
The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) on Friday adopted a resolution condemning Myanmar for rights violations and urging the ruling junta to conduct fair and free elections. The UNHRC also extended the mandate for the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, Tomas Ojea Quintana, for an additional year. Friday's resolution comes [...]
A judge for the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts on Thursday sentenced a computer hacker to 20 years in prison for his role in the one of the largest identity theft cases in US history. Judge Patti Saris also ordered Albert Gonzalez to pay $25,000 and serve three years of probation. Gonzalez [...]
Dick Anthony Heller, et al. v. District of Columbia, et al., US District Court for the District of Columbia, March 26, 2010 . Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here. Latest commentary available here. JURIST has more on gun control.
