A number of advocacy, rights and philanthropic groups filed an amicus curiae brief Friday with the US District Court for the Northern District of Ohio arguing against the classification of some charitable groups as terrorist organizations without due process. The brief, filed by the groups to support the plaintiffs in KindHearts for Charitable Humanitarian Development, [...]
The Supreme Court of Nebraska ruled Friday that Robert Henderson will not be reinstated as a state trooper for the Nebraska State Patrol because of his membership in the Knights Party , a political group associated with the KKK. Justice John M. Gerrard wrote: Nebraska public policy precludes an individual from being reinstated to serve [...]
The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) gave notice to the White House Office of Management and Budget Friday that it was preparing to rescind a Bush administration regulation protecting healthcare workers who refuse to fulfill medical services that violate their moral principles. The regulation, which was entered into the Federal Register on [...]
Russia's Prosecutor General's Office on Friday appealed the acquittal of three Chechen men accused of involvement in the killing of Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya . The decision to appeal the ruling was reportedly made shortly after Moscow Military Court judge Yevgeny Zubov referred the case back to the office last week. The defendants' acquittal came [...]
Foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) meeting in Thailand said Friday they had held discussions on a draft charter for the already-controversial ASEAN Human Rights Body (AHRB), which Thai officials have said they expect to be formally created during Thailand's chairmanship of ASEAN this year. The group said that AHRB will [...]
The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) sentenced former priest Emmanuel Rukundo to 25 years imprisonment Friday after convicting him of genocide, crimes against humanity, and sexual assault. Rukundo, who was a military chaplain and captain in the Rwandan Armed Forces, was found to have used his position as a priest to influence troops to abduct and [...]
The US Senate on Thursday approved the District of Columbia House Voting Rights Act of 2009 (S 160) by a 61-37 vote . The legislation gives the residents of the District of Columbia (DC) voting representation in the House of Representatives and also gives Utah an additional seat in the House. The Act was introduced [...]
Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri , a suspected Al Qaeda operative held in the Navy brig in South Carolina since 2003, is to be officially charged and tried in US federal court, according to news reports. Al-Marri, a legal US resident, was arrested in December 2001 in Peoria, Illinois and charged with being part of a [...]
Speaking on behalf of the European Union, Czech Interior Minister Ivan Langer Thursday expressed reservations about hosting Guantanamo Bay detainees without first examining potential safety and security implications. The Czech Republic currently holds the rotating European Presidency . After meeting with the EU Justice and Home Affairs Council , Langer explained that while the decision [...]
Judge Robert Cleland of the US District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan on Thursday ordered journalist David Ashenfelter to attend a second deposition to answer questions regarding unnamed sources he used in connection with a 2004 article on former federal prosecutor Richard Convertino. Cleland declined to hold Ashenfelter in contempt, however, instead requiring [...]
